Finding a Great School for Your Child With Autism

For children with autism, finding the right school can make a huge difference in how they adapt to the school system and how much they learn at school. Independent schools can often be the best option as they have maximum flexibility to adapt to children with different needs. 

Extra resources in the classroom

There are some great resources that can help children in the classroom, such as tablet computers that record the lessons so that the children can go back and review the items that the teachers have covered. It can also be useful to use dedicated apps and programs that present the material in different ways to help the children absorb the information in a way that suits their learning style. It can also be useful to have noise cancelling headphones so that children can focus on quiet tasks, as children with autism are often very sensitive to noise. Public schools do not usually have the financial capacity to provide these extra resources. 

Support in and out of the classroom

In addition to having the flexibility to provide some much-needed support in the classroom, independent schools often have the capacity to give some support outside of the program. Autistic children can often do with support in the playground to help them manage social relationships, as well as programs to help them manage normal social interactions such as playing chase or playing sports in the playground. These interactions can be very stressful for children with autism, so it can be useful to get this extra support in order to let the children fully develop at school. 

Extra training for teachers

The research on teaching children with autism is constantly developing. Independent schools focus on hiring great teachers and provide them with ongoing training so that they can continue to use best practice in their classroom. Talented teachers can also help to mentor other teachers in the school so that they can trade effective techniques and constantly improve their teaching style. This can be extremely useful in maximising the learning for your child, 

If you have a child with autism it can be extremely useful to look at an independent school. They usually have more learning resources (both physical resources and additional staff) as well as having well-trained staff who are constantly looking for ways to improve and optimise how they teach. Why not make an appointment to chat to your local independent school about options? 

About Me

Learning how to learn again

I really want to start going to university, but it's been such a long time since I've been in formal education that I'm a bit worried about heading back to a classroom. Luckily, my university has a great support network, and I can do some preparation courses to get back up to speed on some of the things I think I've forgotten, such as how to write an essay. This blog is all about being a mature-aged student and learning about how to learn in a formal environment again. It should be useful for students or people considering going back to study again.