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Why Do Children with Autism Struggle with Non-Verbal Communication?

Individuals who have autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often have a deficit in their social communication. This is part of the diagnostic criteria that’s used for ASD, and it describes how they may not be on equal footing with their neurotypical…
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Loners: Why Children with Autism Prefer to Be Alone

If you have a child who has autism spectrum disorder (ASD), you might notice that they prefer to be alone. They might spend an inordinate amount of time playing by themselves, rather than joining in on group play activities with other children…
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Why Don’t Children with Autism Respond to Their Name?

One of the early warning signs that a child might have autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is that they don’t respond to their name. This question is asked on the M-CHAT, or the Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers, which is a screening questionnaire…
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Playing Pretend and Autism: Why Do Children with Autism Struggle with Pretend Play or Imitation?

Children go off into magical worlds, blurring imagination with reality in what is called pretend play. It’s truly a pleasure to watch children having fun exploring and acting out different scenarios this way, but pretend play is also a crucial…
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Regulating Emotions and Autism

People who have autism face many challenges that they deal with on a daily basis. Some of the common challenges include communication, social interaction and regulating emotions. Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) might not be able…
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The Trouble with Eye Contact

Some children who have autism might avoid eye contact more so than their neurotypical peers. This isn’t a symptom of their autism spectrum disorder (ASD), though, as not every child on the autism spectrum avoids eye contact. The reason…