Does a Child With Autism Reach Developmental Milestones on Time?
A developmental
milestone is a sign of typical autism child development and it reaches
to more children’s between birth and adulthood. Early milestones include
rolling over, social smiles, and sitting up. Later milestones involve the
acquisition of social, physical, language, emotional skills, and intellectual
abilities.
A child with autism tends not to
reach all of their developmental milestones at the appropriate times. But that
statement is a huge overview of the reality because:
·
Many of the autism
children reach to developmental milestones on time or early, but then lose
ground.
·
Most of the autistic
children reach some of their developmental milestones on time or early, but
reaches late to others or not at all.
·
Some of the autistic
children reach some of their developmental milestones extraordinarily early but
reach others extraordinarily late.
·
A Children
with autism can appear to gain important skills but in fact unable to use those
skills in real world situations.
·
Many of the children
with autism have so called "splinter" skills, which can be very
advanced but which are not useful in daily life.
·
In Autistic children,
particularly girls who are high-functioning are sometimes able to overcome or
hide some developmental delays.
With few absolutes, it's no
wonder that both parents and practitioners can find it hard to spot autism and especially
in very young or very high functioning children. However, a few developmental milestone
markers are most likely and most obvious when a child is autistic.
What Are the Developmental Milestones?
The CDC has divided the
developmental milestones into few groups: movement/physical, cognitive, language/communication,
social/emotional. They listed some specific levels of achievement for each age,
starting with 1 month and moving through adolescence. While they make it clear
that, then autistic children may not reach any given milestone at the precise
age described, they also suggest that parents to keep an eye out to be sure that
their child is at or close to normal.
Most of the children with autism
are diagnosed at a relatively young age often by the age of 3. Here is a
simplified list of development milestones for 3-year-olds from the CDC:
·
Social and
Emotional
·
Copies
adults and friends
·
Shows
affection for friends without prompting
·
Takes turns
in games
·
Shows
concern for crying friend
·
Will understands
the idea of “mine” and “hers” or “his”
·
Shows a wide
range of emotions
·
Separates
easily from dad and mom
·
May get sudden
upset with major changes in routine
·
Dresses and
undresses themselves
Language/Communication
·
Follows
instructions with two or three steps
·
Can name
most of the familiar things
·
Can able to understand
the words like “on,” “in,” & “under”
·
Says first
name, age, and sex
·
Names a
friend
·
Says the words
like “I,” “me,” “you,” and “we” and some plurals (cars, dogs, cats)
·
Talks well
enough with the strangers to understand most of the time.
·
Carries a
conversation using 2 to 3 sentences
Cognitive (learning, thinking,
problem-solving)
·
Can work
with toys buttons, levers, and moving parts
·
Plays
make-believe with dolls, animals, and people
·
Completes
puzzles with 3 or 4 pieces
·
Understands
what “two” means
·
Copies a
circle with crayon or pencil
·
Turns book
pages once at a time
·
Builds the towers
of more than 6 blocks
·
Turns door
handle or Screws and unscrews jar lids
Movement/Physical Development
·
Climbs well
·
Runs so easily
·
Pedals a
tricycle (3-wheel bike)
·
Walks the
stairs with one foot on each step.
When Missing Developmental Milestones May Suggest Autism
There are many reasons why children with autism
miss developmental milestones. In most cases, there's no particular cause for
concern. That's because:
·
Children are
different from one another & naturally, develop at different rates.
·
Children who
are born prematurely may miss developmental milestones but usually catch up.
·
Boys are
often slower in development than girls, but almost always catch up.
·
Many
children are focused on certain developmental milestones that they may miss
others. For example, a physically adapted child may reach mostly on advanced
physical milestones and then later catch up on social milestones.
·
Early
medical challenges may slow developmental but most children are able to catch
up to their same-age peers.
·
Certain
correctable challenges, such as difficulty with hearing, can slow early
development but will have little impact on long term development.
So when should parents be
concerned about autism? CDC has provides a short list of issues that should
raise red flags.
·
Can’t work with
simple toys (such as peg boards, simple puzzles, turning handle)
·
Does not speak
in sentences
·
Does not understand
simple instructions
·
Does not
play pretend or make believe
·
Does not
want to play with toys or other children
·
Does not
make an eye contact
·
Loses skills
he once had
While these issues can be a signs of
autism however, they may not be. Autism is more likely when children
have more than one of these issues or have other related issues in the social
or emotional or communication realms.
Why Monitoring Developmental Milestones for Autism Child Can Be Misleading
Sometimes, children with autism
miss multiple developmental milestones and have clear and obvious developmental
delays. Often, however, missed milestones can be even invisible or masked. This
is because children with autism are not simply delayed they learn and behave
differently from their typical peers.
In addition, autism is rarely
obvious from birth. Many children with autism develop normally in a period of
time and then either slow down, develop idiosyncratically, or actually regress.
Because of these types of issues, it can be tough to spot autism just by
watching for missed developmental milestones.
How Autistic Delays Can Be Masked or Hidden
Some children with autism have
severe behavioral challenges, cognitive delays, or physical "stims"
(rocking or flapping) that make it obvious something is wrong. But many autism
children have few mild delays, challenges, or stims. When that's the case, the developmental
delays may be hard to spot.
Here are a few groups of autism children
whose developmental delays may not be obvious until social smiles, emotions, or
communication demands increase (usually after grades 1 or 2):
·
Girls: Generally autism causes the children to be
quiet, socially withdrawn, and less likely to raise their hands or speak out.
They may appear inattentive and their behaviors are culturally appropriate for
girls in most parts of the world. Thus, young autistic girls who are not meeting
milestones may slide under the radar. They are also often labeled as "shy
and quiet," and perhaps, not terribly bright. It may take a quite while
for teachers and parents to notice other symptoms.
·
Children
with impressive intelligence or splinter skills: Quite
an autistic child’s are very bright or have surprising skills that are far
beyond their years. For example, some children with
autism can solve difficult puzzles, read at a very young age, or show
impressive music, math, or computer skills. When this is the case, their parents
and teachers may not notice that the same child who can solve complex math
equations is unable to catch a ball or play imaginatively. They may also have advanced
vocabularies in their areas of interest.
·
Children
with empathetic siblings or peers: In some
families and classrooms, empathetic siblings or peers can actually mask another
child's with autism. These wonderful children will take it upon themselves to
learn and understand their autistic peer and to speak for them. While this is an
undoubtedly kind and caring, it's also a form of enabling that can make it hard
to know what the autistic child really can do for him or herself.
·
Children of
parents with autistic traits: It's not
unusual for children with autism to have parents who are either diagnosable
with high functioning of autism or who have so called "shadow" traits
of autism. When this is the case, parents may see their autism children as
developing typically or as being "chips off the old block." It can be
especially hard for the parents to see their child labeled as autistic and easily
apply to them as well.
What Parents Should Do
If you think your child has developmental delays
and may be autistic, take an action immediately. Ask your general doctor to
screen your child for delays, with a special emphasis on social cues,
communication, and emotional skills.
If your perception was incorrect,
you've lost nothing just an hour of time and a load of anxiety. If your child
does indeed, and have developmental delays you have to take an action promptly
and can expect to quickly access resources and programs that can help him or
her to overcome any challenges.
If you have questions to ask about
Best Autism Treatment Centre in Bangalore. Click on the topics below to
find out more from the direct website of Capaar4autism.
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