1st Edition

Children With High-Functioning Autism A Parent's Guide

By Claire E. Hughes-Lynch Copyright 2010
    254 Pages
    by Prufrock Press

    Children With High-Functioning Autism: A Parent's Guide offers parents the information needed to help them cope with their child's autism and to navigate the path as they first perceive differences, seek assistance and treatment, and help their child develop into his or her full potential.

    Including examples of the author's own experiences with her child with autism, this book helps families realize that there are others on similar paths—and that help is available. With topics ranging from understanding the first signs of autism and the diagnosis, finding a support network, and filling out necessary paperwork, to determining the various types of therapies available and planning for adulthood, this book provides parents with valuable insight into this new world.

    With an emphasis on high-functioning autism, Pervasive Developmental Disorder-Not Otherwise Specified, and Asperger's syndrome, Children With High-Functioning Autism: A Parent's Guide helps parents learn to celebrate small areas of growth and keep the focus on the child.

    Acknowledgements Introduction: How Did I Get Here? Chapter 1 Starting the Journey: From the Beginning—and Even Before Chapter 2 The Landscape and Its Signage Chapter 3 I Don’t Think We’re in Kansas Anymore, Toto: Diagnosis Chapter 4 Down the Rabbit Hole Chapter 5 Education—Joining the Highway Chapter 6 Are We There Yet? Chapter 7 Siblings, Spouses, and Other Passengers Appendix: Travel Agents References About the Author

    Biography

    Claire E. Hughes-Lynch, Ph.D., is associate professor of special education at the College of Coastal Georgia. She received her doctorate in both gifted education and special education from The College of William and Mary. Her research interests include cognitive interventions for children with autism, Response to Intervention, and twice-exceptional children.

    The book is a goldmine about everything from support to therapy, with lots of pointers to research and other books . . . Not for parents of profoundly autistic kids, it focuses on the unique concerns of children who may even be gifted learners and are more likely to be able to “graduate” from their autism into an independent adult life. Also, this is neither the story of a parent's journey through autism nor a book written by a clinician—it spans both genres in a helpful and insightful way.,Suki Wessling,The Babblery, 4/13/13