Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) Assessment

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Autism Spectrum Disorder is a pervasive developmental disorder that emerges in childhood and impacts on the individual's ability to live independent lives. Autism Spectrum Disorder is diagnosed when significant impairments exist in the developmental abilities associated with: Social interaction; play; communication; sensory difficulties.

If you are concerned that your child demonstrates some of these behaviours, an assessment of ASD might be warranted.

Some features of social interaction difficulties include:

• Shying away or becoming upset when approached by others
• Not noticing when parents have left the room, or, becoming extremely distressed when parents leave
• Trying to interact with other children but not knowing how to engage and communicate
• Upset when visitors come to the house
• Fearful of new situations
• Being too familiar with unfamiliar people
• One-sided approaches to others, e.g. always talking about the same topics regardless of whether the other person wants to hear about this 
• Not  know how to engage in to and fro conversations with others
• ​Talking to others in an adult-like manner
• Not being able to manage group learning at school
• Not knowing when not to make comments about others 

Can involve the following features:​

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•  Severe delay in language development
•  Repeating phrases immediately or later
•  Repeating words and phrases over and over
•  Making up new words
•  Melodic or sing-song tone
•  Easily picking up accents
•  Literal understanding of phrases (e.g. "specialise" is understood as "special eyes", looking for "cats and dogs" falling from they sky when it's raining)
• Not using gestures such as pointing,  showing
• Poor eye contact 
  Not being able to share interest and enjoyment with others - prefers own personal enjoyment in activities

Including:

• Lack of imaginative play
• Not developing flexible and elaborate sequences (e.g. playing with objects in the farm set but not developing a creative game of 'being on a farm')
• Playing the same theme over and over (e.g. superheros, trains; tractors)
• Watching episodes of DVD's/cartoons repeatedly;​
• Likes lining toys in particular patterns
• Interested in parts of toys such as spinning wheels on cars, collecting trains and trucks
• Not allowing others to join in with play; being the 'boss' of the game and not open to other children's suggestions
• Needs to be taught how to role play (e.g. playing dress-up) and how to make up new and imaginative games
• Having lots of toys but only enjoys playing with the same few  
  

We all experience the world through our senses (touch, taste, smell, sight, sound).  Some children experience information differently through these senses and children may:

• Favour particular tastes (e.g. extremely spicy, bland, have preferences for brands of food)
• Prefer particular colours (e.g. only wear red shoes, prefer yellow objects and toys)
• Love particular movement (e.g. likes to spin around, love swinging, spinning objects such as wheels of toys or spinning tops)
• Have a preference for different types of touch (e.g. likes deep pressure hugs, do not like to be touched by others on the head or hand, loves or hates tags on clothes)
• Have strong reactions to certain smells  (e.g. gag and feel sick) or may sniff to explore new objects ​
  Be fearful of certain noise such as hairdryers or lawnmowers
• Enjoy unusual movement such as flapping hands, twitching arms, or engage in more complex movements involving different parts of the body