My Child and Autism Online Modules

My child and autism online modules are designed for families and carers of children aged 0-6 years who have or are in the processing of being assessed for an autism diagnosis.

  • Introduction

    In this short video we introduce the online module videos, the Autism and Me: Planning Booklet and facts sheets, as well as tips for getting the most out of this online module.

  • My Child and Autism

    Develop your understanding of the autism diagnosis including common strengths and interest for children on the spectrum and meet Janie, a 4-year-old with an autism diagnosis. Throughout the videos the journey of Janie and her family will help illustrate what autism may look like for a young child and their family.

  • Autism and Me: Planning Booklet

    This booklet is designed to collect and share important information about your child. Please complete the below fields about your child. Scroll down the page to find an option to save the entries you have made in the booklet.

    The Autism and Me: Planning Booklet includes important information about me! It is a document that will change and develop as I do. It's purpose is to help everyone in my life understand my autism and what it means for me and my family on a day to day basis.

    My Autism and Me: Planning Booklet includes information about:

    • The characteristics of my autism
    • The impact of those characteristics on me and my family
    • Strategies that can support me and my family
    • Information about supports and services

    It is always helpful for the people in my life to know what I like, what I am good at, what I find challenging and the supports I need. This information can help guide decisions around how to interact with me, what I am likely to be successful at and what skills I need to continue developing.

  • Enter the details of your school / kindergarden / childcare / etc.
  • It is always helpful for the people in my life to know what I like, what I am good at, what I find challenging and the supports I need. This information can help guide decisions around how to interact with me, what I am likely to be successful at and what skills I need to continue developing.
  • Max. file size: 5 MB.

  • Understanding Autism, Social Communication and Social Interaction

    Look further into autism, including many of the social communication and social interaction characteristics of autism and the impact they may have on a person’s development. Learn more about these characteristics by checking in again with Janie and her story. See an example of how to complete the Autism and Me: Planning Booklet.

  • My social communication and social interaction: CHARACTERISTICS

    Social communication and social interaction are areas of difference for people on the spectrum BUT these characteristics are not the same for every person with autism. It is important to understand what is true to me and my autism. From here we can understand how these characteristics impact on me and my family. This information can increase awareness and acceptance of my behaviour as well as guide the development of personalised strategies that can have a positive impact on my communication and play!

  • My social communication and social interaction: IMPACT

    My autism changes how I learn, which can affect me and my family in our everyday activities.

  • My social communication and social interaction: STRATEGIES

    There are many strategies that can assist me in all areas of my development. The key is to make sure the strategies my family and I use fit with the characteristics that are true to me. Below are some strategies, some we already use and know work well for me, some we have not tried yet but may be helpful. To find out more about any of the strategies in this Planning Booklet you may wish to seek further training or input from different professionals. See the Further Information links list for training options.

  • My social communication and social interaction: SUPPORTS

    My autism changes how I learn, which can affect me and my family in our everyday activities.

  • Restricted and Repetitive Behaviours and Sensory Processing

    Learn more about restricted and repetitive behaviors in autism and sensory processing differences your child may experience. Follow Janie to see how restricted and repetitive behaviors and her sensory processing differences impact on her and her family and see an example of how to complete the Autism and Me: Planning Booklet.

  • My restricted and repetitive behaviors and sensory processing: CHARACTERISTICS

    Restricted and repetitive behaviours and varied sensory processing styles are areas of difference for people on the spectrum, BUT these characteristics are not the same for every person with autism. It is important to understand what is true to me and my autism. From here we can understand how these characteristics impact on me and my family. This information can increase awareness and acceptance of my behaviour as well as guide the development of personalised strategies that can have a positive impact on my day to day life!

  • My restricted and repetitive behaviors and sensory processing: IMPACT

    My autism changes how I learn, which can affect me and my family in our everyday activities.

  • My restricted and repetitive behaviors and sensory My restricted and repetitive behaviors and sensory processing: STRATEGIES

    There are many strategies that can assist me in all areas of my development. The key is to make sure the strategies my family and I use fit with the characteristics that are true to me. Below are some strategies we already use and know work well for me, some we have not tried yet but may be helpful.

  • My restricted and repetitive behaviors and sensory processing: SUPPORTS

    Who could support me and my family to further understand my restricted and repetitive behaviours and sensory processing characteristics and impacts, and using my strategies?

  • Learning Styles and Key Strategies

    Everyone learns differently, this is especially the case for children on the spectrum. Learn more about how children with autism learn and knowing this, some strategies on how to help your child successfully learn and engage. Check in with Janie and her family to see how they approached the final section of this video looks at key strategies. See an example of how to complete the Autism and Me: Planning Booklet for learning styles and key strategies.

  • My learning style: CHARACTERISTICS

    Learning (cognitive) styles can be areas of difference for people on the spectrum BUT characteristics are not the same for every person with autism. It is important to understand what is true to me and my autism. From here we can understand how these characteristics impact on me and my family. This information can increase awareness and acceptance of my behaviour as well as guide the development of personalised strategies that can have a positive impact on my learning and development!

  • My learning style: IMPACT

    My autism changes how I learn which affects me and my family:

  • My learning style: STRATEGIES

    There are many strategies that can assist me in all areas of my development. The key is to make sure the strategies my family and I use, fit with the characteristics that are true to me. Below are some strategies, some we already use and know work well for me, some we have not tried yet but may be helpful. To find out more about any of the strategies in this Planning Booklet you may wish to seek further training or input from different professionals. See the Further Information links list for training options.

  • My learning style: SUPPORTS

    Who could support me and my family to further understand my learning style, its impacts, and using my strategies?

  • Supports & Services

    There are many supports and services available to people on the spectrum and their families, however navigating the world of funding and services can be confusing. What should you be looking for, what questions should you be asking yourself and the service providers? Explore these questions for your own situation, see how Janie and her family approached access to services and see an example of completing the Autism and Me: Planning Booklet.

  • My current supports and services

    Everyone needs some level of support at different stages of their lives. My supports and their role in my life will change as I do, which is why it is important to review and manage my supports. There are many people in my current network who support me in a range of ways, they are listed below.
    • Formal (paid) supports e.g. professionals such as ECEI partner, speech pathologist, childcare staff, GP.
    • Informal supports e.g. my immediate and extended family, friends, or neighbours.
    • Community supports e.g. playgroup coordinator, swimming teacher, local library staff.

  • Supports and services I need

    These are supports and service in addition to the ones I already have, which I could benefit from:

  • My family’s current supports and services

    It is important that my family are supported too, this helps us reach our best outcomes as a family unit. Support for my family could include, but not be limited to, having a babysitter for a night, speaking to a counsellor, or increasing knowledge and skills through training:

  • Supports and services my family need

    These are supports and service in addition to the ones we already have, which we could benefit from:

  • Setting Goals

  • Goals e.g. successful transition to kindergarten or school, develop further language skills. Tip: keep your goals SMART:
    • S = Specific
    • M = Measurable
    • A = Achievable
    • R = Realistic
    • T = Timebound
    Things my family and I want me to achieve in:

  • DOWNLOAD OR SAVE YOUR COMPLETED BOOKLET

  • We can now send you a PDF version of your completed booklet to keep for future reference and to look back on your progress. Enter your email address below and you should receive your PDF booklet within a few minutes.
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
Click Here to SAVE and continue later (If Required)

Questions to ask yourself about therapies, services, and supports

Further Information

Now that you have completed this training and your Autism and Me: Planning Booklet here are some of the next steps you may wish to take in developing your knowledge and support systems.

Learn more about autism (including how to get a diagnosis): there are many great information resources available.

General

State and Territory specific

Activate Medicare plans

Medicare plans provide financial support to make services and assessments more financially accessible if you are interested in knowing more about the different Medicare plans and which professionals they can be used with.

Access Family training

If you are interested in knowing more about autism in general and specific topics related to autism there are many training options available for families. For more Early Days training options visit:

Apply for NDIS

Request a NDIS plan or review for my child

Join a family support group

Family support groups can be a source of information and friendship and support

Access recreational activities for my child

Recreational activities play a part in providing opportunities to increase physical health and well-being as well as socialisation.

Understand more about therapies, the professionals who deliver them and how they can help:

There are many therapy types and knowing what how they help is important in helping you make a decision.

Choosing and being prepared for childcare/kindergarten/school:

This can be a daunting process, but there are many supports for choosing placements and supports within educational settings:

Much more information on a wide range of topics is available at:

Download Fact Sheets

Download Visual Supports Fact Sheet 

Download What is Autism Fact Sheet

Download Setting Successful Goals Fact Sheet

Download Sensory Processing Fact Sheet

User Notes & Copyright

User notes

The Autism and Me: Planning Booklet is intended to be used in conjunction with the My Child and Autism Video Training above.

Upon completion, we recommend you share this document with the team of people who support and care for the child it has been completed for.

The information in the My Child and Autism Online Training and the Autism and Me: Planning Booklet are intended as an introduction, for more comprehensive information please seek further details as per information in the Further Information links.

Thank you to The Department of Social Services for funding this resource, more information about The Department of Social Services is available here https://www.dss.gov.au/

Copyright

This document and all other materials contained on this digital platform (Materials) are copyright © 2021 Autism Association of South Australia ACN 164 545 215 (Autism SA) and its licensors.

All rights reserved.PCS is a trademark of Tobii Dynavox LLC. All rights reserved.

Used with permission by Autism SA. PCS and Boardmaker are trademarks of Tobii Dynavox LLC. All rights reserved. Used with permission by Autism SA. You may not copy, reproduce, upload, transmit, translate, adapt, vary or modify the Materials in any form and by any means (electronic, mechanical, microcopying, photocopying, recording or otherwise) without the express written consent of Autism SA, except as expressly authorised herein or as otherwise may be permitted by the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth).

Inquires as to further uses of the Materials should be addressed to Autism SA.

Video

Autism & Me

Members of the autism community and their families share lived experience on their autism journeys.

Video Transcription

Autism Community

One of the main things I like to explain is that people with autism have varied abilities and character traits, there’s not one single experience of autism.

— Zoran Bekric

Autism Community

I have Asperger’s syndrome and that means I’m sometimes a bit different from the norm. And - given the right circumstances - being different is a superpower.

— Greta Thunberg

Autism Community

I would play with numbers in a way that other kids would play with their friends.

— Daniel Tammet

Autism Community

People on the spectrum experience the neurotypical world as relentlessly unpredictable and chaotic, perpetually turned up too loud, and full of people who have little respect for personal space.

— Steve Silberman

Autism Community

Everyone has a mountain to climb and autism has not been my mountain, it has been my opportunity for victory.

— Rachel Barcellona

Autism Community

Although people with autism look like other people physically, we are in fact very different in many ways. We are more like travellers from the distant, distant past. And if, by being here, we could help the people of the world remember what truly matters for the Earth, that would give us a quiet pleasure.

— Naoki Higashida

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