Parents make a big difference to help autistic children overcome their challenges and get the most of life.

We will provide some parenting tips to help make daily home life with an autistic kid easier.

Being personally equipped with all the knowledge about autism and getting involved in your child’s treatment will go a long way in helping your child.

Here are a series of 4 video showing how a family makes the effort to intervene at home to assist and help their child with autism.

Intervention at Home with a Child With Autism- part 1

Intervention at Home with a Child With Autism- part 2

Intervention at Home with a Child with Autism - part 3

Intervention at Home with a Child with Autism - part 4

Additionally, the following tips will make daily home life easier for your both you and your autistic child:

* Be consistent in what you wish to do to help your child. Autistic children find it difficult to adapt whatever they have learnt in one setting to a different setting. Even environments might upset them and give them a hard time. For a child with autism, it is always better to create a consistency in your child’s environment as that will help to reinforce learning. One way to do that is to find out exactly what your child’s therapists are doing, and then apply the same techniques at home. Since consistency is so important to the autistic child, you need to be consistent in the way you interact with your child, bearing in mind a child with autism is like any other normal child and has moods as well, and at the same time, you need to demonstrate a consistent way in dealing with challenging behavior from the autistic chilld.

* Stick to a schedule. Together with consistency, a highly-structured schedule or routine will go a long way in helping the autistic child because an autistic child finds it easier to cope with repeated consistency. Scheduling would involve putting up a schedule for your child, with regular times for meals, therapy, school, and bedtime. There should be minimum disruptions or changes to the routine, and if there is any unavoidable schedule change, it is important to prepare your child beforehand.

* Reward good behavior. Rewarding good behavior is a good way to provide positive encouragement to the autistic child. When you do find your autistic child doing something good, be profuse in your praise and hearty in your approbation. Praise them when they act appropriately or learn a new skill, being very specific about what behavior they’re being praised for, so that they understand exactly why the praise has been given. Be practical when rewarding them for good behavior or learning a new skill, such as by giving them a sticker or letting them play with a favorite toy.

* Create a home safety zone. Setup a private space in your home where your child can relax, feel secure, and be safe. An autistic child will require help in understanding clearly demarcated boundaries, so it will be useful to use colored tape to mark physical areas that your child can recognize as being off-limits, and labelling certain items with pictures and images that the child can see clearly and identify with.

For example, consider the treadmill in the house, or the exercise bike - these are heavy items that can cause harm if they are not setup properly or fall on your child. Also, these can be tampered with and subjected to child tempering as well.

You may also need to safety proof the house, particularly if your child is prone to tantrums or other self-injurious behaviors. The areas of the home covered are as follows:

The Attic
The Master Bedroom
The Bedroom
The Corner
The Family Room
The Play Room
The Music Room
The Kitchen
The Study
The Bathroom
The Broom Closet
The Front Door
The Back Door

* Have fun with your child. Enjoy time with your child because apart from being autistic, a child is every inch normal, and a child coping with autism is still a child who will enjoy the love and affection from his parents. Therapy at home is not a lifeless chaing that stifles the bonding which can be a joyous time for the child. Find ways to play and have fun together. Don’t be driven by an obsession to tag any activity into the therapeutic or educational mould, and find it burdensome to help your child. The important thing is to enjoy your child’s company! Find ways to make your child smile, learn the difference between temper tantrums and panic attacks, shake pom-poms over their head or on their belly and the chore suggestions the child can learn to do with enthusiasm and for which you can give profuse praise.

Educate your babysitter, respite worker, grandparents and friends about your child with autism, and you can bring an awareness about autism to them. This will help give them insight into the daily lives of the family and offer tips on what they can do ahead of time at their home if they are coming in for a visit or to babysit.

In time to come, if you are considering to let your child learn more responsibilities about caring for others, you may wish to grant him his wish to have a pet, like a puppy. Some autistic children are afraid of the neighborhood dog or cat, and you will need to find out if indeed he is keen to have a pet, and you will need also to prepare him to handle one- the child with autism can accidentally injure a pet or scare one, and the pet can, in all possibilities, retaliate and bit the child.

What can a parent with a child with autism do when it is time for the child to start schooling?

Like any normal child, the child with autism will need to attend school at around 5 or 6 years old.

While some parents simply enroll their child in the local kindergarten, the parents of an autistic child can play a more active role in determining the child’s schooling.

The question to be asked is this: “Will your child be best catered for in the typical classroom with typical normal peers or will he require specialized classrooms or private schooling? Will he require mainstreaming or inclusion?”

Here is a video that shows the Pioneer Learning Center, an autism school.

Each child with autism is unique, and so the school setting will be dependent on the child.

Some questions to consider as you begin thinking about your options are:

* Is your autistic child verbal and engaged, or is he verbally challenged? If he is verbal and engaged, he may be more likely to do well in a typical setting (though social, sensory and emotional issues may get in his way if they aren’t specifically addressed).

* Is your child displaying good academic skills at the childcare center? While it may seem strange, some children with autism are advanced well beyond their typical peers, while others are far behind. If your child is already reading and doing math compared to his peers, it will be important to find a setting that accommodates her gifts as well as her challenges.

* How is your child’s social behavior? Can he handle large groups? If loud noise and large groups are likely to cause your child to “melt down,” a typical classroom or school could be a disaster — even if your child is bright and verbal.

* Does she do well with a lot of sensory input? Bright lights, loud noise, stiff uniforms and other factors can sabotage even the most capable child with autism. It may be possible to minimize these issues, but if your child is very sensitive she may need a smaller, quieter setting.

* Does he have difficulties with focus? Some children with autism are easily distracted. Typical elementary school classrooms are loaded with mobiles, colorful posters, class pets, and a whole slew of tools for engaging — and distracting — a child with special needs.

* Has she had a tough time in typical classrooms in the past? If your child has found typical preschool easy to manage, she’s much more likely to do well in a typical kindergarten. If not, that may be a warning to start slow and work your way into a more challenging environment.

* What kinds of programs can your public school offer? Some districts have classrooms and programs specifically set up for kids with autism. Others have general purpose special needs classes. Still others have no special settings, but integrate all children into typical classes. Find out what’s available, and ask other parents how well each setting seems to be managed and supported.

* How well do local programs fit your child’s needs and abilities? The vast majority of children with special educational needs are socially typical and academically challenged. Children with autism may be just the opposite — and may throw in sensory challenges to make things even more difficult. As a result, a special needs classroom may be a poor match for your child if the teacher stresses academic remediation but assumes everyone will do just fine at recess.

* Are there local private or charter options that make logistical and financial sense for your family? In some communities there are a variety of private, charter, or co-op schools that may be worth considering for your child with autism. Don’t assume that your district will pay for a private setting, though — this happens more rarely than you’d think.

Interestingly, the choice of smaller/larger, mainstream/specialized isn’t always based on a child’s intellectual ability: typical school settings can be tough on even the brightest, most articulate children with autism. And even when a district works on accommodations, there may be severe limits to teachers’ resources, support, and time.

Once you’ve looked into your options and evaluated your child’s particular strengths and needs, you’ll be better prepared to make smart choices for your child’s educational setting. Before you meet with your school, though, you’ll need to learn much more about special education law and its significance for kids with autism. You’ll also need some ideas about the kind of program you feel will work best for your child.