What is autism?
Autism is a perplexing lifelong developmental disorder which impairs a child's natural instinct to communicate and form relationships.
The autistic child usually withdraws into a world of his or her own. The degree to which each child is affected varies, and hence the term Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), but common characteristics include:
- Difficulty with social relationships
- Difficulty with verbal and non-verbal communication
- Lack of imaginative play
- Challenging behaviour
- Varying level of learning disability