Expert: Catherine Ridenour - 7/5/2005

Question
My grandson's daycare has suggested he has some issues.  He will be 3 yrs old this month. Birth to three has eval him about 8 mos ago and stated they could not find enough evidence. Now he was re-eval and the social worker suggested we get in touch with the school system to set him up for special ed because she said from observing him in daycare he probably won't be able to be in a regular classroom. She sts he has a sensory problem.  He can talk,use all utensils, he understands commands,he is very happy and is social, all things that suggest autism.  my question is how soon should he be put in a school system and what can they do for him/She was supposed to have a oc therapist eval but was not done.  Also, she also admits he is different at home. (SHE HAS OBSERVED BOTH) One last question/what is the best test or tests to determine if there is a problem.  Thank you so much for your time.

Answer
Hi Kathy,

You do not say how your grandson is different at home, but that is a common thing with high functioning autistic (HFA) children.  For one thing, they know the environment and for another, the parents have often made adaptations, even though they may not be aware of doing so.

If you are parenting your grandson (again, you did not say) you may be so used to him as he is that you did not see the signs of an autistic spectrum disorder.*  Many high funcioning children speak, understand and learn the self-care tasks at the same time or even sooner than "normal" children.  The social and sensory issues that characterize HFA don't really show up, many times, until the child must interact with other children or new environments.

What getting involved with the school system may do for you is get him a more complete evaluation to try to nail down what his needs are and what the most effective education program might be for him.  I encourage you to talk to the school, immediately.  If your state is like mine, once he is identified, he is entitled to services from the public school system at no cost to you.  Adaptive pre-schools, occupational therapy at home and other services may be available.

Sometimes, a very young child is hard to diagnose.  All that can be said is that "something" is going on and that it looks like a spectrum disorder.  As he works with teachers, social workers and therapists, they will come to understand more about him and a more accurate diagnosis can be made.

Much can be done to help him and the sooner, the better.  

Visit the websites below to get a better idea of some of the symptoms and signs of spectrum disorders.

*  http://www.autismasperger.net/intro.htm  
This web page has a great explaination of the Autistic Spectrum and what that means.

http://www.autism-society.org  This is the National Autism Society and they have many links to information.