Autism
Autism is a lifelong neurodevelopmental condition that can be recognised from early childhood. Each autistic person will have their own individual strengths and challenges.
Autistic people will have some challenges around social interaction and communication. For some, there may be limited or no spoken communication but often the challenges can present difficulties in understanding others’ intentions, social cues, body language and/or facial expressions. Social interactions can be hard work for autistic people.
There is usually a “preference for sameness” and a tendency for restricted or repetitive patterns of thought or behaviour, this can present in several different ways. Repetition and familiarity can be comforting and help to manage anxiety. Unexpected changes or breaks from familiar routine can be difficult and an autistic person might need longer to process these.
Autistic people often have sensory differences and can experience sound, smells, sight, taste and touch so acutely that this can be really overwhelming at times.
It is common for autistic people to have specific strengths and abilities around pattern recognition and memory (especially visual), they can be creative and visual thinkers. When a subject or field is found to be of particular interest, and an autistic person can apply these strengths, they can be incredibly successful due the ability to hyper-focus and see all the detail.
Bill Gates, Albert Einstein, Michelangelo, Elon Musk, Greta Thunberg, Temple Grandin are all known or thought to be autistic.
Want to understand more?
We offer learning programmes and workshops which will give you a greater understanding and strategies to support an autistic child or young person
Useful resources about Autism
