Receiving the news that your child has autism spectrum disorder (ASD) can feel like a relief as well as a tremendous weight all at the same time. In addition to learning about all of the resources and support available to you, families and caregivers can feel inundated with a whole new vocabulary and assortment of terms they need to sort out along the way.
The good news is that you are in wonderful company, and your ASD support communities are here to help in any way we can. One of the first steps is to learn as much as you can about ASD, and this list of common or standard words and terms associated with ASD is a good place to start.
Previously referred to as just “autism,” the term autism spectrum disorder (or ASD) is more common because it better describes the broad spectrum of sensitivities, symptoms/signs, and resources associated with individuals who span the gamut between low- and high-functioning autism (more on those terms below).
Note: IQ is in no way correlated to where a child is on the spectrum. So, never underestimate what your child is capable of. Access to high-quality applied behavioral analysis and the right behavioral support, resources, and tools you have, the more your child will be able to shine.
In relationship to an ASD diagnosis, your physician or neurologist may have used terms like low- or high-functioning autism. You can Click Here to read a detailed description of these terms.
In general:
Individuals considered to have high-functioning autism require minimal support to thrive in the classroom, workplace, and social environments. Depending on the length of time spent with the person or the depth of the relationship, others may not realize they have high-functioning autism - which has also been called Asperger’s Syndrome. That said, those with Level 1 ASD may still have a hard time discerning others’ facial expressions or emotional states, have trouble taking turns, prefer routine to spontaneity, and may take sarcastic comments or jokes quite literally until they’re taught to tell the difference.
Level 2 autism is more of a mid- than low-level diagnosis, but these children need far more support to be successful in their family systems, classrooms, and public settings. A child with Level 3 ASD is considered low-functioning and requires significant support for their entire lives.
There are innumerable variations in how a person with ASD responds in any given situation. As with those of us without ASD, much of our sensitivities, reactions to new stimuli, or personal preferences are specific to our DNA, personalities, family/cultural systems, etc. Ultimately, ABA uses positive reinforcement, natural outcomes, and structure to create a more calm and functional life for people with ASD (and their families).
Applied behavioral analysis is a heart-led but systematic approach to tailoring resources for individuals with ASD And their families. It is designed to enable individuals with a disability to participate in life’s activities through services provided at our clinics. We carefully craft an assessment-based intervention to address these challenges, increasing the functioning of the ASD learner in their daily life. We aim to involve the whole family and provide education regarding the autism diagnosis to empower our families for hope and optimal outcomes.
These are newer terms used to describe children or individuals needing extra support due to their brain and neural function. The term neurodivergent is used most often to describe people with ASD, but other examples of neurodivergence include those with dyslexia, dyscalculia (trouble grasping numbers or basic math), sensory processing disorder (SPD), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and more.
Individuals with ASD are more prone to anxiety, depression, or issues around their self-worth. This causes negative thoughts that can become repetitious. Cognitive behavioral therapy is a specific psychotherapy that finds ways to interrupt negative neural pathways and replace them with more positive and functional alternative thoughts, solutions, or tools.
While not all children with sensory processing disorder have ASD, most children with ASD have some degree of sensory processing disorder. The Child Mind Institute describes sensory processing disorder as a, “...difficulty integrating information from the senses, which may overwhelm children and result in confusing behavior.”
Children with SPD may experience and exhibit:
Again, while neurotypical children can and do have sensory processing disorders, children with ASD almost always have some degree of SPD.
Self-stimulating behaviors, shortened to stimming, are common responses to sensory overload and physical behavior children develop for self-soothing or expressing feelings they can’t put into words. These behaviors are repetitive and can seem incessant rather than occasional.
Some of the most common stimming behaviors associated with ASD include:
This list can be rather long, but it's worth mentioning to your pediatrician whenever a child’s physical behaviors seem excessively or abnormally repetitive. These signs are also signs of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and neurotypical children - not exclusively an autism characteristic.
Echolalia is a term that refers to a sound, word, or phrase being repeated over and over again. It is a common characteristic of a child with ASD to repeat the words just said to them or to have a specific soothing phrase that they repeat to calm themselves (which becomes a type of stimming.)
Sometimes, the phrase makes sense because it’s the one they just heard someone say, or it relates to the object they’re using or something in their visual field. Other times, a child may experience echolalia that seems to have no association with the action, object, setting, etc.
Scripting is similar to echolalia except that, in this case, the person is reciting something they’ve read or heard before. In this case, it may feel more like delayed echolalia.
Also, one of the SPD symptoms listed in #6, misophonia, is a heightened sensitivity to loud or very specific sounds. So, a child may have to wear sound-canceling earphones while in the classroom, in crowded public settings, or anywhere where loud/chaotic noises are expected. They may also have a very specific sound aversion, like the sound of diesel engines, a particular bird chirp, or the distant sounds of lawnmowers, or the street sweeper.
Instead of the brain making adjustments and filtering that sound out or helping it fade in the background, a person with misophonia fixates on the sound so it becomes even louder or more intense, which can result in tantrums or meltdowns until the right tools and resources are put into place.
If you listen to speech without focusing on the words (like if you think about how you hear conversations from the next room), you’ll notice a melodic and rhythmic quality to speech patterns. This includes differences in speech speed, intonation, and inflections. This is a large part of what makes speech so expressive, and we call this prosody.
Individuals with ASD often lack prosody, which makes their speech sound more stilted, monotone, or “robotic.”
Any child with ASD in the public school system will typically have a 504 plan or an IEP in place to support their success in the classroom and social settings. This plan ensures the child has legally mandated, adequate, general accommodations to facilitate that. This may be as simple as requesting a “quiet break” if things are overwhelming or using a desk divider to minimize distractions from desk partners.
The IEP is a next-level modification plan tailored for the individual. In most cases, a child with ASD would have input from their applied behavior analyst to further support their specific needs, including access to individualized services.
High-functioning students with ASD may only need a 504, the first level of support and intervention provided by the school after a meeting with parents/caregivers, teacher(s), counselors, and administrators.
We support parents and caregivers early on by recognizing the difference between a tantrum and a meltdown—both of which can be extreme, lengthy, and even disturbing until you learn to tell the difference and use ABA to mitigate the effects.
A tantrum is a physical embodiment of a person’s emotional upset, typically anger or frustration. A child may also throw a tantrum when they don’t get their way, and giving in to that is a big no-no for any child, including those with ASD, because it sets a precedent for future tantrums as a means to get their way. This is a recipe for disaster, especially when a child’s tantrums are louder, longer, or more physically demanding - and possibly harmful.
Confusing tantrums with meltdowns is one of our first “what not to do's” for children with ASD.
Meltdowns have far less to do with feelings and everything to do with sensory overload. While it may seem like a child is having a tantrum it may be due to disturbing noises, flashing lights, or overstimulation from a crowded public space. This requires a practiced but supportive response.
Learning the triggers and preparing for them goes a long way to minimizing the upset from meltdowns. This often requires finding different ways to celebrate holidays or go on vacations.
If your child is nonverbal, visual communication strategies are game-changing. One example of this is PECS cards, which are short for picture exchange communication systems. Tools like this are also called things like visual schedules or social stories.
PECS Card kits evolve according to the needs and abilities of the child, family, or classroom. They include cards designed for everything from working on language and communication skills to creating daily/weekly schedules and learning about feelings and how they’re communicated.
Tools like these are often the way “in” to your child’s experience, and the more we learn from them, the better and more individualized your tools, supports, and accommodations can be.
Rather than being about food, a sensory diet is a metaphor for a behavioral plan that integrates very specific behavioral “ingredients.” As the folks at Healthy Young Minds explain, a sensory diet typically entails:
These plans are typically created and implemented with the support of applied behavioral analysts or your child’s occupational therapist and can be incorporated into your child's home life and school day.
The tendency toward repetition and obsessive thoughts or behaviors associated with ASD is often described as perseveration. Once the child fixates on an idea, question, or thought, they may not be able to focus on anything else - even if they’ve received the answer.
Do you have a child newly diagnosed with ASD or a child who needs more support to thrive at home, in the classroom, and with their peers? The more you learn about these and other common autism terms - and the sooner you have a personalized plan in place - the better you all can thrive.
Contact us here at the Autism Response Team and schedule a consultation. We can’t wait to show your family the difference it makes when we integrate everything we know about the most innovative ASD resources, tools, and technology.
