Autism is a childhood disorder that usually occurs more often in boys than in girls.

The skills of an autistic child can be high or low level depending on both the IQ and the verbal communication skills.

What are the causes of autism?

The causes of autism are still unknown. But there are some theories:

1. The autistic child's relationships and their environment and social environment. It is said that autism is because it has not received affection as a child. That has had distant fathers, cold, too intellectual.
2. Cognitive deficiencies and abnormalities. There seems to be a neurological basis although not proven.
3. Certain basic biochemical processes. It has been found excessive secretion of serotonin in platelets of autistic people.

Profile of an autistic child

An autistic child has a look that does not look but transferred. In the infant is usually observed monotonous babble of sound, babbling late, and a lack of contact with their environment, as well as a sign language. It follows the mother and can entertain themselves with an object without knowing what it does.

In the preschool years the child is strange, is not talking. I assume it costs and identify others. Shows no contact in any way. Even aggressive behavior may present itself. Another characteristic of autism is the tendency to conduct limited scope activities repeatedly. The autistic child may turn like a top, perform rhythmic body movements such as flapping his arms.

The high-functioning autistic may repeat television commercials or perform complex rituals at bedtime. In adolescence, it is said that 1 / 3 of people with autism often suffer seizures which suggests a nervous cause.

A summary of the symptoms that may indicate that the child is autistic

• Marked lack of recognition of the existence or feelings of others.
• No search for comfort in times of distress.
• Lack of capacity for imitation.
• Lack of social play.
• Lack of proper communication channels.
• Markedly abnormal nonverbal communication.
• Absence of imaginative activity, like playing an adult.
• Marked anomaly in the issue of language impairment.
• Anomaly in the form and content of language.
• Stereotyped body movements.
• Persistent preoccupation with parts of objects.
• Intense distress over changes in trivial aspects of the environment.
• Unreasonable insistence on following routines in detail.
• Marked limitation of interest, concentration of particular interest.

Is there a treatment?

Special education is the mainstay of treatment and may occur in specific school or in highly individualized dedication ("Maternage"). You can use psychotherapy but the results are limited because the cognitive deficits and language therapy difficult. Family support is very useful. Parents should know that autistic disorder is not a relational affective disorder of aging. You should seek and maintain contacts with associations for parents of autistic children.

There also consider drug treatment, which should be indicated by a specialist.

Can we cure autism?

Autism has no cure. It is a syndrome defined in 1943 an Austrian-born psychiatrist named Leo Kanner. Today, 50 years later, we still do not know the causes of this serious difficulty relating. An estimated 350 children in the Madrid live with the syndrome.

What should parents do

Parents who suspect their child may be autistic, should consult a pediatrician for a referral to a child and adolescent psychiatrist who can diagnose autism for sure, their level of severity and determine the appropriate educational measures. Autism is a disease and autistic children can have a serious disability for life. However, with proper treatment some autistic children can develop certain aspects of independence in their lives.

Parents should encourage their autistic children to develop those skills that make use of their strengths so that they feel good about themselves. The psychiatrist, in addition to treating the child, can help the family resolve stress, for example, can help siblings who feel ignored by the care needed in the autistic child, or who feel embarrassed if they bring their friend over. The child and adolescent psychiatrist can help parents resolve the emotional issues that arise as a result of living with an autistic child and guide them so they can create a favorable environment for development and education of the child.

Autistic children in school

According to Bandura (1987) children with "severe autism have great difficulty learning because they tend to direct their attention only to some of the many signals available in the middle and often cater to small and irrelevant details." The author cited above, suggests that multidimensional stimuli before (with audible, visual and tactile), unlike autistic children typically normal set of the 3 forms of information, being unable to learn from the other forms. Present the greatest challenge to attentional turns.

It is not uncommon for an autistic person shows no interest in learning. He learns according to their interests, but education is the first option should be present in autistic children. The autistic child can and should be educated.

Adequate schooling of children in individual sessions of treatment and psychological and medical assistance, help in learning of autistic children. To be effective, education must be personalized and made by people with a high degree of specialization and above all understanding and delivery. It is necessary that educators of autistic children, have a thorough knowledge of techniques and procedures, able to develop and help these children.

What to teach?

Behaviors or strategies for the autistic child interact with others and gain a social understanding of their environment.

What methodology to use?

The first thing you should do the specialist, is to acquire a theoretical and practical training allowing you to perform your job properly.

You must make an initial assessment to provide clear information about the child in all developmental areas: motor, cognitive, social, communicative, and so on.

Break down goals in small steps and formulate in concrete terms in order to observe the progress achieved.

Make ongoing assessments of the evolution of the child to obtain information about the status of the educational process.

Create a structured environment where the specialist sets the tone and helps them to not feel lost. The specialist shall prepare working sessions where clear rules are established to guide the child. Thus, using visual methods are recommended boards with words, pictures and letters.

The specialist must ensure that the child understands, for it must use appropriate language, providing enough information but not excessive, selecting information that is within the assimilative capacity of the child.

Use learning without error, that is from what the child has mastered and added to the task, the unknown elements that will be offered all the help the child to be successfully completed. Aid, will withdraw or diminish as the child acquires the skill.

The autistic child as any child, requires positive reinforcement, which is why you must provide continuously in all the activities that the child made. The reinforcement must be immediate, should be given nothing but perform the behavior you want.

Was it through what strategies can achieve learning?

Providing the child with autism:

• Routine and structured activities to help you deal with problems and learn from them.
• Frequent opportunities to practice and rehearse.
• Planning through visual information that can regulate behavior.
• Opportunity to make choices.
• Learning communication skills for social interaction.

What programs do you use?

There is a lack of programs designed to serve children with autism. One such program is the TEACCH method, the group of researchers from North Carolina, where the goals come from an individual, observation of that person, in different contexts and for certain social categories. This program has been recognized nationally and internationally, and has served as a model for establishing similar programs.

The main goal of TEACCH method is to prepare people with autism to live and work more effectively at home, school and community. Individual plans are to help people with autism and their families to live together affectionately, reducing or removing autistic behaviors.

The establishment of objectives, individualized consists of four phases: 1) assessment of social skills, 2) interviews with parents to determine their views on the social skills of children and their priorities for change, 3) establish priorities and express in the form of written goals, 4) develop a design individualized social skills training.

What techniques do you use?

Considered appropriate boards with words, pictures and letters. Verbal communication is encouraged by the practice of social scripts and social interaction is achieved through group work and educational games where several children can participate and interact with each other that way.

How to evaluate?

One of the most widely used assessment instruments in autistic children is the Psychoeducational Profile (PEP) (Schopler and Reichler 1979) which was created within the Division TEACCH Program to assess specific areas of developing autism. The test evaluates the scale of development and pathological scale.

How can autism be treated?

Therapies or interventions are designed to remedy specific symptoms in each individual, through them we can improve the behavior of people who suffer.

The education-behavior therapy, emphasize highly structured training to develop social and language skills.

Group therapy, are performed with a group of children and therapists interact to achieve skills that will help the autistic person to achieve self-sufficiency. These sessions should be made in three or four hours daily.

Individual therapy, are established in one-hour sessions are held daily and personalized manner enabling the therapist to observe the evolution of the child.

Social therapies are performed in a structured environment with a high degree of consistency where activities that aim to achieve social interaction. Through these therapies, they manage to teach basic rules of conduct (behavior in public), social routines (greetings, farewells), teaching games (rules to follow), aid to the partner, and so on.

Communication and language therapies, which use flash cards which have pictures of items and the therapist often repeated the name of the object presented, making the child repeat it too, achieving such a way as to establish a therapist-child communication .

The hours, frequency of sessions and vacation periods should be clarified from the start of therapy.

Are usually present such varied materials: paper, pencils, paint, plasticine and toys, etc.. You can also add other materials consider enabling the therapist to develop certain skills in children.