About the book
My name is Rowena Monds and I am the mother of an autistic child and the founder of © Autism Thinks. Autism Thinks provides information to assist families, professionals and individuals working and living with autism.
I wrote this book to be a tool for parents, caregivers and professionals and to explain autism and autism spectrum disorders (ASD) in a fun and positive way. In my experience, young children find autism to be complex and have difficulty understanding how a child with autism differs from ‘normal’, or neuro-typical, children. When there is a cooperative partnership and collaboration between home and school to support the child with ASD, positive, successful outcomes can be achieved for all. I experienced this joint effort first-hand with my son, Isaac, when home and school worked together to provide an understanding and supportive environment of his extra needs. Isaac’s learning has been significantly supported and more successful with the learning strategies we have put in place.
This tool is not a one-size-fits-all approach to autism because the autism spectrum is complex and unique to each individual. Each person on the spectrum will be affected differently despite having a similar diagnosis. Likewise the interpretation of the diagnosis doesn’t necessarily mean that the person has a greater capacity to cope with their challenges. Every child or adult on the spectrum has specific challenges that they need to manage, and which their families and the professionals who work with them need to be guided by too. These challenges often include verbal and nonverbal social communication difficulties, sensory processing difficulties or disorders, cognitive and behavioural delays, difficulty developing, maintaining and understanding relationships and restricted, repetitive patterns of behaviour which are likely to cause stress if disrupted (American Psychiatric Association, 2013, p. 50.).
It is my intention that this book aids conversation with children about autism and ASD so they can understand and relate to children who have ASD in their classroom, the playground or their wider circle. Thank you, Rowena Monds
Email: autismthinks@xtra.co.nz Web site: www.AutismThinks.co.nz
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