Norwaymom:Those are the best resources I have ever seen. I looked at them to see how Branden is doing(he will be three in less then 2 weeks). I am now even more worried, he can't do a lot of those things on there. Is that what the doctor uses to check their development?
That's a tough one. If your supervisors say no, then I assume you could get into trouble for going against their wishes.
I don't know what behaviors this child has or symptoms. If s/he has a language delay, is that something you could bring up? I think you could bring up all the "issues" without mentioning the word autism. But I would stress your concern about delays in this child's development and encourage them to get Early Intervention involved or talk to their pediatrician about it (of course most pediatricians aren't very informed about autism).
I don't know - that's a tough one when your supervisors are saying you can't. I think it's good to be concerned about a child's development. Early intervention is key in getting a child help, so the earlier the child gets help - the better off s/he will be!
Keep us posted - maybe someone else will have better advice than I!
Hello everyone.
I have worked with Autistic children for over 7 years. I am currently working at a daycare with "typical" children however one of my students, i'd be my life, is somewhere on the spectrum. mild to severe. i spoke with my directors as parent teacher conferences are coming up if i could bring it up to the parent. they said no. should i have even suggested it? is it my place to say something? i'm no doctor but i am educated about autism. any suggestions please?
First Signs has some good advice about how to raise concerns, but I agree with snoopywoman that you should tread extra careful since your supervisor is against it.
Here's the link to First Signs:
http://www.firstsigns.org/concerns/parent_parent.htm
You might also want to check out the resources for caregivers provided by the Center for Disease Control as part of their "Learn the Signs, Act Early" campaign (www.cdc.gov/actearly). Even if you decide not to pursue your concerns about this individual child, you could propose using these materials to help your daycare center be more proactive in terms of all developmental delays.
Good luck with everything.
Thanks for all the info. I will definitely keep you updated as to what happens. The parents don't know about any services. I will definitely tell them, when it comes time about the different services. Thanks again so much. You have put a lot of confidence in me to tell them.Caculatorgirl --
If the parents seem "strange", it could be that they have autistic tendencies themselves (after all, it's genetic). They may have needed someone to tell them directly that a speech delay means they need to arrange speech therapy, contact the Birth to 3 program (do they even know about it?), etc. They might also respond better to information in writing.
If you decide to share your concerns with them, I think you should follow the advice given by the CDC (Tips for Talking to Parents), and maybe share a completed checklist -- explaining that children behave differently in different environments, but that this is what you've observed in the daycare environment.
Good luck with everything.
NorwayMom,
Thank you so much for these resources. I printed them out and went to my actual Director to plead my case again and ask for clarity as to why we cannot look into this as childcare providers. She loved that I had this information and knew that I felt strongly about the situation so we are using our daycares steps to assessing the student! I'm so happy and grateful. Thank you so much =0)
KCardoza --
It makes me SO happy to hear that your Director responded favorably to these resources, and that this is leading to assessment of the child you're concerned about. Wonderful news.
Caculatorgirl --
I doubt that an anonymous letter is the way to go. What other steps have you taken?
Wishing you both all the best.
I haven't really taken any steps into telling the parents(they are a little strange). I have told them that he does have some speech problems. I have been waiting mainly to see what happens at the 3 year check up. I honestly have no clue as to what I can do. I'm kind of afraid that even if he did get the diagnosis, that they would just blow it off. Because at the 2 year check up, the doctor told his parents that he is behind in his speech and they did nothing about it. What should I do?
Caculatorgirl --
I'm glad you liked those resources. The CDC's milestone lists are, in my opinion, the best. They are written by the American Academy of Pediatrics, so there's a good chance that many pediatricians use them or are at least familiar with them. The problem is that many pediatricians don't do a formal developmental screening, they just go by gut-feeling.
I get the impression that it's not necessarily worrisome if a child hasn't mastered each and every milestone, as long as they're in progress on them. The big concerns are listed under "developmental health watch" at the end of the lists (they don't appear on the interactive checklists).
http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/actearly/milestones_3years. html - list for 3 year olds with "developmental health watch" red flags.
http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/actearly/interactive/checkl ists/3years.html - interactive checklist for 3 year olds, without the red flag list.
Thanks for the new links. With the one that has the developmental health watch, there are four of them that he can't do. Norway Mom, do you think I should write an anyomous letter to his pediatrician about my concerns or just wait till his three year check up? I have been working with his speech a lot. I print off the picture cards off of babybumblee's website and he can do some of them, just not where other people can understand him that well. I'm thinking of making him a book with common used phrases and words. I also do some sign language with him(about 6 or 8 words) so that he can tell me what he wants(hopefully). he is pretty good with his movement and his behavior is actually very good when he is with me. I can take him anywheres and he will be very good. I have only had to get on him just a handful of times since he was born. The areas that raise concern are his fine motor skills, language, and social skills. He doesn't hold a crayon right and he colors weird. He colors in an up and down motion and it is very lightly done, not like a scribble. He also doesn't play with kids that much(I'm his sunday school teacher as well) his age or older then him. He will play occasionally with kids that are like a year younger then him, but not that often.