Autism

Introduction

I have been working at a mental disability home for three years. I have encountered a lot of different clients while working at these kind of facilities, but the person that stand out to me is Patrick.

Meet Patrick: Patrick is a 45 year old white male who suffers from severe autism. Patrick can barely comprehend words that are spoken to him and he has a severe speech impairment. When I first start working with Patrick it was hard for me to understand what he was saying. After working with Patrick for quite a while I gained the ability to comprehend what he was saying and I'm able to have a more fluent conversation with him. People with autism are just like us it just takes time to understand them personally. 

Task

  • Understand what autism is 
  • Learn how to communicate with people who have autism
  • Hear stories about individuals who have autism 

Process

I want to start off by giving you an insight and also providing a definition of what autism really is. Below are various links to give you a better idea of what autism really is. 

https://www.autismspeaks.org/what-autism 

http://www.dictionary.com/browse/autism?s=t

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Flcy0XK5j3I

There are a lot of people living with autism in the world. Here are some stories of people who suffer from this disorder. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=id8nHbKrsJI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QHC0FzywHGY 

https://www.autismspeaks.org/news/news-item/5-inspiring-success-stories-people-autism-finding-employment

Now that you've had a good look of what autism is, I want to let you give you information on how to enhance your communication with people that have autism. The links below provide this information:

http://autismum.com/2012/05/07/10-tips-on-how-to-communicate-with-autistic-people/

http://www.autistichoya.com/2012/02/15-things-you-should-never-say-to.html

Evaluation

1. What are 5 tips to help you better communicate with people that have autism?

2. What is Autism?

3. What is the most interesting thing you learned from this webquest on autism? 

Conclusion

Autism is a common disorder that a lot of people are diagnosed with. People dealing with this disorder already have a hard time everyday, so it's important when communcating with these individuals you have a better idea of how to communicate properly. People living with autism are people just like us, we can learn a lot from these individuals if we just take the time.