Thanks!
I have to question #5 use of "relatively few" in describing the number of ASD's with Savant skills. I guess it all depends on where you draw the line and call something "savant", but don't most (or at least more than relatively few) ASD's have at least some skills that are above normal? Like Hyperlexia or memory.
Love number 7. I see my son problem solve in a way that amazes me all the time
Thanks again Norway !
And even these are NOT necessarily so - take #6 -
my son IS classical autism (the 'most classical' the docs have seen in decades, they say) and DOES have language!
BRAVO!Great read
Thanks
<quote>
Fact: Autistic people are as different from one another as they could be. The only elements that ALL autistic people seem to have in common are unusual difficulty with social communication.
Fact: Many -- in fact, most -- autistic people are extremely capable of feeling and expressing love, though sometimes in idiosyncratic ways! What's more, many autistic people are far more empathetic than the average person, though they may express their empathy in unusual ways.
Fact: While it’s unlikely that an autistic child will be a cheerleader, it is very likely that they will have solid relationships with, at the very least, their closest family members. And many autistic people do build strong friendships through shared passionate interests. There are also plenty of autistic people who marry and have satisfying romantic relationships.
Fact: Recent news reports of an individual with Asperger Syndrome committing violent acts have led to fears about violence and autism. While there are many autistic individuals who exhibit violent behaviors, those behaviors are almost always caused by frustration, physical and/or sensory overload, and similar issues. It’s very rare for an autistic person to act violently out of malice.
Fact: It is true that a relatively few autistic people are “savants.” These individuals have what are called “splinter skills” which relate only to one or two areas of extraordinary ability. By far the majority of autistic people, though, have ordinary or even less-than-ordinary skill sets.
Fact: Individuals with a classic autism diagnosis are sometimes non-verbal or nearly non-verbal. But the autism spectrum also includes extremely verbal individuals with very high reading skills. Diagnoses at the higher end of the spectrum are increasing much faster than diagnoses at the lower end of the spectrum.
Fact: This is one myth that, in my opinion, truly injures our children. Autistic individuals can achieve great things -- but only if they're supported by people who believe in their potential. Autistic people are often the creative innovators in our midst. They see the world through a different lens -- and when their perspective is respected, they can change the world.
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Source: http://autism.about.com/od/whatisautism/tp/topmyths.htm
I got this from answers.com. I think their number of 10% is also way low and their definition even includes remembering license plates. They use the term"prodigious savant" for the spectactular stuff. Maybe it's just the crowd I see/hear about but I would have guessed that the majority of ASD's would qualify if the standards include something like license plates. I know my son remembers and can recite the license plate #'s of most cars he sees regularly - not that that is a good thing. I guess their all just terms anyway. That would be a good poll
autistic savant
An autistic savant is a person with autism or mental retardation who has extraordinary mental abilities in a specific area of intellectual functioning. Often, these extraordinary skills, which are sometimes called splinter skills, are found in the fields of numerical calculation, music, and art. The paradox of the combination of superior intellect and mental handicap was originally given the name "idiot savant," the use of which has been discontinued. Today, the term Savant Syndrome is often used to describe this condition, since approximately 50% of people with the rare combination of impaired intellectual functioning and remarkable skills are people with autism, while the other half are people with other developmental disabilities.
Approximately 10% of people with autism have savant abilities. These people range from people with "splinter skills" -- obsessive preoccupations with and memorization of trivia and obscure information such as license plate numbers and sports statistics -- to "prodigious savants," who have spectacular skills that would be remarkable even if they were to occur in non-handicapped people. Most autistic savants have a single special skill, while others have multiple skills. Usually these skills are concrete, non-symbolic, right hemisphere skills, rather than left hemisphere skills, which tend to be more sequential, logical, and symbolic.
Thank you, I think I will hang those up somewhere..................I think the definition of savant is pretty limited. Lots of our kids have "splinter skills" in which they do something better than most kids their age. But "savant" is used for those who can play the piano like Beethoven at age 4 for instance.