Welcome to our lesson on Autism & Behaviors
- In this section, you will learn
- How autism and challenging behaviors are different but connected
- How the areas of autism can impact behaviors
- The strengths of autistic children
Why does autism matter?
- Autistic children think about and act in the world in unique ways.
- Differences are not bad and are often strengths for children.
- Differences may change over time, but they won’t ever go away. They are part of the child’s biology.
- These differences can help caregivers think about the world in new ways.
- You might need to change what you expect from your child.
- You might also need to change the way you talk and act with your child to better support them.
Autism and challenging behaviors
SENSORY EXPERIENCES
Autistic children often have more intense sensory experiences than non-autistic children. These might be sensations like sight, sound, touch, movement, taste, smells, or physical pressure.
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Overstimulation means that there is too much sensation. Children might scream, run, or tantrum to get away from the sensation.
For example, a child might be highly sensitive to the sounds of people chewing. They might cover their ears and scream or say rude things to family members at the dinner table.
Understimulation means that there is too little sensation. Children might yell, demand, or refuse to listen to get more sensation.
For example, a child might need a lot of movement or spin to feel comfortable. They might not listen when caregivers tell them to sit still.
Repetitive sounds or Behaviors
- Repetitive sounds and behaviors are often called stimming. They help children calm down and feel regulated.
- They are usually not dangerous or destructive. They are quite helpful for children.
- They can look like defiance when repeated requests to "stop" are ignored. Usually, this is because children don't know how to stop.
Give your child another way to regulate before expecting them to stop stimming.
Predictability
- Routines and sameness help children feel safe and calm. Changes can make an autistic child feel particularly unsafe or like their world is out of control.
What happens?
Children might hit, kick, scream, tantrum, or refuse to act when there are changes in routines or expectations.
What could this look like?
A child always eats toast for breakfast. One day, there is no bread. They feel out of control, get overwhelmed, and tantrum.
Following schedules or rules might feel more important than even good changes. Caregivers might expect the child to be happy about the change. This makes the child’s frustration more confusing and harder to manage.
A caregiver wants to go out for ice cream before dinner. The child gets frustrated because it’s not the usual routine.
Special Interests
- Special interests help children feel secure and focused. They can help the world seem under control when many social interactions feel unpredictable.
What happens?
Preferred toys or activities might not be allowed all the time. Children might tantrum, demand, hit, kick, or refuse to listen until they get their toy or activity.
What could this look like?
A caregiver puts away a child’s preferred toy. The child might get very angry and hit or throw things. To keep everyone safe, the parent might give the toy back. This teaches the child that they can get their toy by hitting and throwing things. The next time it is taken away, they will probably do the same thing.
Social Challenges
- Autistic children often understand social situations in ways that are different than their caregivers or peers expect. They might act differently, care about different things, and have different expectations.
What happens?
Children might not understand social cues, tone of voice, or what you tell them to do. They might act in a way that doesn’t make sense or that seems rude.
What does this look like?
Some autistic children don’t understand sarcasm. A child might be told to do something then ask “Do I have to?” The other person responds “You don’t have to.” They believe that they clearly implied the child has to do it. But, the child may not understand the change in tone. They believe they don’t have to do the task.
Children understand that they are different from others. Others might ignore them, be mean, or bully them. This could make them more irritable, aggressive, and defiant.
Children at school might make fun of an autistic child or purposefully leave them out of things. The child might feel confused or unsafe. They could act more irritable and aggressive.
Autistic Children Have Many Strengths
- Notice and praise the strengths that often go along with autism. Some common strengths include:
- Being a quick learner
- Visual thinking
- A very good memory
- Honesty and reliability
- Dependable, punctual, and rule-following
- Drive for success and order
- Ability to think and problem-solve in new or unique ways
- Fresh views of the world
- Non-judgmental listening
All Children want to have fun!
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