Signs Of Autism In Children
A number of studies have been carried out to identify the signs of autism in children. As a result of these studies, five areas of development have been identified for special consideration. These signs of autism will help parents identify early on whether their child has autism:
Signs Of Autism In Children
(a) Responding to Calling by Name: It is important to note whether the child responds to his or her name. Usually, by the time a child is a few months old, it will recognize its own name called and turn towards the person calling them. He/She may respond with a smile to the calling of a familiar person. One of the signs of autism in children is the lack of this response. In the case of children who are later on diagnosed with autism, when called by name, they may respond only about 20% of the time or they may selectively respond only to certain sounds. For example, the child may not respond to its parents calling but will immediately respond if a television is turned on.
(b) Engaging in Joint Attention: Joint Attention refers to the process wherein which a young child joins its parent or companion in looking at the same event or object. Typical children, by the time they are one year old, begin to shift their gaze from toys to people around them, monitor where others are looking, point to objects that catch their interest and show their toys to others. One of the signs of autism in children is that the child with autism does not engage in joint attention and does not show a toy to a parent. Nor does the child shift its gaze to and from an object.
(c) Imitation of Others: Typical children are mimics and it is believed that a lot of early learning in infants takes place through imitation. Children are able to imitate facial expressions, copy words spoken by a parent or clap in response to clapping by a parent. A very important sign of autism in children is the lack of imitation by the affected child.
(d) Emotional Response: Typical children show a social response to others and will smile when others, say a parent, smiles at them or laughs when playing with toys. It may also happen that a child will start crying in response to another child's crying or may pat or offer comfort to the crying child. One of the common signs of autism in children is that the autism-affected child seems unaware of the other children's emotions or may ignore the smiles or distress of others.
(e) Pretend Play: Typical babies and young children will engage in pretend play - pretending to be a father, mother or a police officer. They may also pretend to feed themselves or a favorite doll. But one of the signs of autism in children is that the child does not engage in pretend play.
One of more signs of autism in children should indicate to the parents that they should consult a doctor.