Since it has no physical signs, some students can find it hard to understand. Autism affects millions of people around the world, including more than , in the UK, and early diagnosis and intervention are essential. Ahead of World Autism Awareness Day on Wednesday 2 April, we have a collected a range of useful resources to help teachers ensure all students understand the disorder and help support those directly affected.

The autism spectrum disorder ASD -friendly classroom presentation by Humans Not Robots raises awareness of some of the needs and difficulties presented by students with autism. The presentation explains what ASD is and how it affects communication, social and thinking skills. The guide stresses the need for an individualised approach when working with ASD students but includes some "catch-all" strategies such as starting lessons with short, fun and factual activities that provide immediate structure and awarding points for meeting pre-agreed targets.

Suggested changes to the classroom environment include: There are more practical tips in this guide for teachers by the Autism Education Trust. The framework focuses on structure, positive behaviour, empathy, low arousal, and links with home. The aim is to reduce any anxiety a child might be experiencing, allowing them to work more effectively in an environment which makes them feel safe. Woodfer's World is a resource from Ambitious about Autism that helps teachers reduce the risk of bullying.

The guide focuses on "neurodiversity", and helps fellow students understand the differences in the way people think or perceive the world. It is designed to encourage peer awareness, social acceptance, empathy and inclusion for all children but in particular those whose behaviour is difficult to understand. The resource, which is suitable for children aged around eight, features a set of four stories with teacher's notes and reflective questions. There's also a list of ideas for taking the lesson further.

Kickstart a discussion about ASD with secondary students with the help of films suggested by educational charity FilmClub. Apparently few people care what disabled people think. I do, however, have the ability to police the terminology used in the comment section of my own blog. I am no more okay with someone using ableist terminology in the comments than I would be with someone using homophobic or racist slurs.

Thanks for this — i appreciated this point of view very much! Autism Speaks just either scares me or makes me want to scream, depending on the circumstances i just read that in March Simone Greggs lost her suit against AS -gee I wonder if that had to do with their Big Money origins?!! I appreciate your point of view. I think everyone in this field means well. Nevertheless, I am going to post info about this issue on my website to help bring about awareness.

I will go because I made a commitment, but your comments will necessitate further investigation on my part. If you read the links in the actual post, you will realize that I am not the only one who is standing up and saying that Autism Speaks is quite frankly, a horrible organization.

Wisdom From a Preschool Teacher - Autism Awareness

It makes me physically ill and I have an actual physical response of fear and dread when I see their logo, hear a commercial from them or about one of their walks. It bothers me, quite honestly, that you are more devoted to what you see as breaking a commitment than to investigating Autism Speaks as an organization and making a decision based on that information. You must realize that Autism Speaks is a big organization.


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Autism Speaks says one thing and does another. I guess the moral of the story here is to investigate charities before you give to them. If I discovered that a charity that I agreed to work with contributed to ableism and abuse of the very people it claimed to help, I absolutely would not honor my commitment to such an organization. And I question the morality of anyone who would honor that commitment. Some of the worst people, the most ableist towards autistic people, are those who work with autistic people. That tells me nothing about her motivation.

You had credibility with me until you attacked Steve R for his comments. You have autism, but you must understand that you have NO IDEA what it is to care for someone with autism parent or teacher. You are very condescending in your tone toward others.

How to teach … autism awareness

Dealing with an autistic child day in and day out can be very challenging. Yes, it crumbles many marriages. Yes, it drives caregivers to the brink. Your arrogance and condescending tone makes me doubt your objectivity now. Good luck to you. I at one time was a teacher to several autistic children, as well as kids with other disabilities. I believe that genuine research into actually helping autistic people would be fantastic.


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  • Autism Speaks does none of that and silences autistic voices. Where did I ever say that parenting was not a challenge? In an online discussion. You call an organization evil because they do not cater to your concerns about autism. Despite the fact they are one of the leading charities to contribute to autism research. It is your apparent opinion that this is somehow a bad thing, that shocks me. You act as if being autistic is like being Italian, or African American.

    And that by working to find a way to eradicate the condition, they are essentially committing genocide. Nobody is advocating to murder autistic people. I would seriously doubt than anybody with the condition, would ever wish it upon anybody else, especially their own children. And rather than complain about an organization that focused on getting rid of it even if it neglected making my life easier, I would praise it. At the very least, I would be thankful for any organization that contributed towards any kind of research for it. You should be so lucky to have so many charities willing to help the condition.

    Are you aware that you are speaking to someone who is autistic but who is also the parent of not one but two autistic children? Because your comment about nobody wanting their children to be autistic is really cruel and heartless if you have indeed read the rest of my blog and still make this sort of comment. Autism is the way that our brains work, the way that we communicate, and nothing about it is wrong. It is not a disease, something heartbreaking and life threatening, and no, I do not appreciate organizations that are dedicated to finding a cure for something that is a variant of the acceptable neurology.

    Because that is what autism is — a variant. It is not wrong, or dangerous, or something to be feared. It is a difference in human neurology. I am French and Native American, and I would no more want to eradicate those parts of my genetic codes than eradicate the autistic part.

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    Being Autistic is just like being an American of African descent hell, like black people all over the World , we are also discriminated against because of the way our genes expressed themselves. Always check with you local Autism Society chapter. The money raised locally is used for local families.

    There is no age limit and it does take board members on the spectrum. I think Panera Bread has stopped supporting Autism speaks, if I recall correctly after the campaigns last year, they withdrew support form AS. They should be supported, not boycotted. This is an excellent post. He has become a fine young man, and living proof of the mockery that is AutismSpeaks and their sick viewpoint on the world. This is a fantastic article. But on that note, my mother and I have had a really hard time finding ways to communicate with her, and in finding resources to help her communicate with the world.

    Do you know of any specific projects, organizations, or anything else that might be able to help her? You might want to add Roland to the list of companies. I found this article very interesting. First of all yes.. Yes they could sit back and hand individuals checks… but they do something better… they get the govt to do it..

    You need to look at the bigger picture. Because they change laws.. OR they get a law passed and sends ALL autistic children to ABA and forces the schools to hire them and train them and get them into their town… how much does that cost? We have so few resources.. You must live a sad, ignorant existence if you think ABA is a good thing. I mean, unless you buy the ableist idea that autistic people are less capable. Focusing on the one point that there are no autistic people on the board rather misses the point.

    Read the whole post and attached links before jumping to a snap judgment there. You are misrepresenting the people who are behind Boycott Autism Speaks by implying that we are all high functioning.

    It is society that disables us. Great post here, thank you.