Asperger's Syndrome Schools

Schools will focus on the student's individual and emotional needs, learning gaps and unique learning styles.

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For parents with children suffering from Asperger's Syndrome, private schools offer notable advantages over public schools including:

• smaller class sizes
• flexibility in budgeting for Asperger's support
• relief from (unfortunate) bullying
• in some cases, specialization in dealing with this syndrome

For children with Asperger's, schools may offer a focus on their individual and emotional needs, learning gaps, and unique learning styles.

Some of the help they may offer might include discrete instruction, occupational or behavioural therapy, social skills training and more.

For parents considering schools with Asperger's support

For parents of children with Asperger's, schools may present wide variation in support they offer. As you consider schools, consider the following questions:

• How much experience does the school have in dealing with Asperger's Syndrome students?
• What successes with previous Asperger's students can they point to?
• What is the school environment in terms of bullying and social integration of special needs children?
• How well does staff understand the severity of your particular Asperger's Syndrome child?
• What gut feelings do you get as you investigate each of the schools?
• How does each school deal with other learning differences?

Asperger's Syndrome and the Need for an Educational Plan

Asperger's Syndrome is often counted as one of several disorders in the autism spectrum. In the USA, autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are often called Pervasive Developmental Disorders (PDD).

On the autism spectrum Asperger's is considered a mild variant. While characteristics can vary widely between individual students, Asperger's typically manifests in poor social intuition, fixation on specific subjects and repetitive behaviour.

Asperger's Syndrome got its name from the Austrian physician Hans Asperger, who first described the disorder in a 1944 paper. In June of 2010, the journal Nature published a study positing that there exists no specific gene identifiably related to autism.

All autism sufferers are genetically unique. Whether this helps at all in dealing with the disorder is unlikely, though.

Guidance for families is needed to help determine specific strengths and challenges their children face. By doing this, it will help you decide if the school is able to address the specific, unique needs of your child. Children with Asperger's Syndrome cannot develop these skills on their own, so the eaelier a plan is in place, the more likely they are to build the confidence they need to be independent and find successful outcomes.

Finding a professional with expertise in the field of autism and Asperger's can assess a child's specific needs and how they are currently being addressed.

Each stage of development brings new challenges to all children. A school that was able to provide a wonderful environment in third grade may not be able to address the new challenges that middle school brings. Therefore, it's cruciail to reassess the student's maturity and development every year.

The appropriateness of the educational situation is a critical part of academic and personal success from preschool through college.