Autism resources

Curated articles, guides, and tools for autism families, educators, and providers.

KTEA-3 in North America: How It Helps Identify Learning Strengths and Challenges — Learn what the KTEA-3 assessment measures, how it helps identify learning difficulties, and how families can use result…
Haircuts, Dental Visits, and Other Procedures Your Child Hates — Practical strategies for haircuts, dental cleanings, bloodwork, and other sensory-overwhelming procedures — including h…
Standing on the Other Side — Sometimes the Shoe Is on the Other Foot — and Your Child Isn’t the Aggressor. After years of being the family people wo…
The Importance of Getting the Right Diagnosis — A heartfelt parent’s journey through ADHD, autism, and learning disabilities — discovering how the right diagnosis can…
PPM8: Ontario Ministry of Education policy - What Every Ontario Parent of an Autistic Child Needs to Know — Navigating Ontario's special education system can feel overwhelming for parents of autistic children. This guide explai…
The Sibling Corner: Brothers and Sisters of Autistic Children — What we know about typical siblings in autism families — the common patterns of parentification, suppressed needs, and…
Therapeutic Riding & Equine Therapy for Children with Autism in the UAE — A parent-friendly guide to therapeutic riding and equine-assisted therapy programs for children with autism in the UAE.…
Therapeutic riding for children on Autism spectrum — A parent-friendly guide to therapeutic riding and equine-assisted programs for children with autism in Ontario. Learn t…
School Admission Process for Children on the Autism Spectrum in Canada (Province-Wise Guide) — This guide explains how school admissions work for children on the autism spectrum across Canada and what parents shoul…
Learning Support Assistant (LSA) / Shadow Teacher (UAE) — What an LSA (also called a "shadow teacher") is, how the role works in UAE schools, who pays, and the rules schools mus…
A Systematic Review of Implicit Versus Explicit Social Skills Group Programs in Different Settings for School-Aged Autistic Children and Adolescents. — This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to identify and evaluate the quality of randomised controlled trials (RC…
Autism Doesn't End at 18: Navigating the Transition into Adulthood — Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are neurodevelopmental disorders with a prevalence of approximately 0.7%. People with A…
Ontario Autism Funding: A Caregiver's Map of Every Program You Can Apply For — A practical guide to the 10+ government programs Ontario families with autistic children may qualify for — what each on…
How to Choose (and Vet) an ABA or Therapy Centre — A Caregiver's Checklist — Real questions to ask before signing with an ABA, OT, or speech therapy centre — including the licensure rules in Ontar…
Working with the School: IEP, IPRC, and How to Get Real Support — How Ontario's school identification process actually works, the difference between contained and mainstream classrooms,…
Claiming Therapy on Your Taxes: DTC, Medical Expense Credit, and the 2024 BCBA/RBA Recognition — How Canadian families can claim out-of-pocket therapy costs on income tax — including the recent change that lets you c…
Elopement: Keeping Your Child Safe at Home and What Happens If Police Are Called — Practical safety strategies for runners and elopers — locks, trackers, urgent-response services — and a calm walkthroug…
Potty Training a Non-Verbal or Limited-Verbal Child: Methods That Actually Work — Real strategies from parents who got there — including the bare-bottom approach, what to do when your child holds their…
Meltdowns: How to Spot Triggers, Stay Calm, and Build Real Regulation Skills — What's actually happening in a meltdown, the patterns that cause them, and the regulation tools — sensory bins, time wa…
When Your Autistic Child Won't Sleep: Strategies, Environment, and What to Investigate Medically — What's actually keeping your child awake — sensory, medical, behavioural, environmental — and how to address each. Incl…
Picky Eating, ARFID, and the Feeding Battles That Aren't Really About Food — What to do when your child eats five things and refuses everything else — distinguishing typical picky eating from ARFI…
AAC, Communication Devices, and the Modeling Approach That Actually Builds Speech — What AAC actually is, why it doesn't replace speech (it builds it), how to choose between picture exchange, communicati…
Travel and Long Flights with an Autistic Child: Strollers, Sensory Bags, and Surviving the Layover — Practical advice for travelling with autistic children — what to pack, how to handle airports, which strollers fit airl…
Camps, March Break, and Summer Programs: How to Find Them, Fund Them, and Vet Them — Where camps for autistic children actually exist in Ontario, how to use OAP and SSAH funding for camp, what 'inclusive'…
Newly Diagnosed: A Calm Map of the First 90 Days — What actually matters to do in the first three months after an autism diagnosis — what to apply for, what to ignore, wh…
Caregiver Burnout: How to Notice It, How to Treat It, and How to Stop It Coming Back — Caregiver burnout in autism families is real, common, and often unaddressed for years. A practical guide to recognizing…
Adult Day Programs and the Transition Out of School — What happens when school ends — adult day programs, life skills, employment supports, housing options, and the funding…
The Autism Acronym Glossary: A Plain-English Decoder — Every acronym you'll encounter in the autism world — therapies, professional roles, government programs, school terms,…
Adapting Faith and Religious Practice for Autistic Children — Practical strategies for teaching prayer, scripture, and religious observance to children with sensory and communicatio…
How to Read Reviews and Vet Recommendations: A Skeptic's Guide — Why Google ratings on therapy centres are unreliable, what good signal looks like, and how to actually evaluate a recom…
New to Canada with an Autism Diagnosis: A Practical First-Year Guide — What to expect when you've immigrated to Canada and your child has an autism diagnosis — what's accepted from overseas,…
Common Co-Occurring Conditions: What Else Often Comes With Autism — Most autistic children have one or more co-occurring conditions — ADHD, anxiety, GI issues, sleep disorders, intellectu…
Imaginary Friends, Stimming, and Other Things You Were Told to Worry About — Several common autistic behaviours — imaginary friends, stimming, special interests, repetitive play — are often flagge…
When Your Pediatrician Dismisses Your Concerns — What to do when a doctor brushes off early signs, says 'wait and see,' or gives you a diagnosis you're not sure about —…
Biomedical, Naturopathy, and Functional Medicine: A Caregiver's Skeptical Walkthrough — What the terms 'biomedical,' 'naturopathic,' and 'functional medicine' actually mean in autism contexts — what their pr…
Rude Comments, Stares, and Public Reactions: How to Respond Without Burning Out — What to say when a stranger criticizes your parenting, when your child's behaviour draws stares, when a relative offers…
Tools, Gadgets, and Equipment That Actually Earn Their Keep — A curated list of products, devices, apps, and equipment that autism families consistently say have made real differenc…