How does a family with a child on the autism spectrum participate in Halloween activities? That question is pondered by more families than ever before. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that an average of 1 in 110 children in the United States has an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).
Can a parent prepare their child for the necessary social interactions with neighbors and other children? Children with autism often have difficulty participating in social events, especially one like Halloween that has the added challenge of wearing costumes. One company that is helping families overcome such issues this Halloween is Rethink Autism (http://www.rethinkautism.com).
As part of its commitment to the autism community, Rethink Autism has drawn from its library of video lessons to provide an entertaining, free online video with tips on how to prepare a child with autism for typical Halloween-related social interactions.
Rethink Autism's curriculum spans the entire autism spectrum and covers a broad range of skills, including academic, language, social, motor, daily living, and behavior management. All video lessons are consistent with Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) methodology. Endorsed by the US Surgeon General and the American Academy of Pediatrics, ABA is the only treatment for autism that has been consistently validated by independent scientific research.
Parents are discovering that they can now easily apply the latest research to help their child learn at home. When using the Rethink Autism platform, a parent assesses the child by filling out a skills checklist, and the program then formulates an individualized ABA-based learning plan for the child. Each lesson plan includes several step-by-step videos that show ABA therapists working with a child with autism, so that parents know how to teach their children specific skills.
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