Autistic Children

A library that creates programs specially designed for autistic children and who openly show understanding and patients towards the behaviour of people with autism will however, help families to feel welcomed and support by their community and will encourage them to visit the library and make use of its various resources more often. Libraries who work to meet the needs of autistic children in the community will also be benefiting its own staff. In the beginning creating and carrying out these kinds of programs may prove to be very stressful for the staff however, overtime the library and the staff will be able to learn from these programs and become more skilled in conducting these programs and properly interacting with children with …show more content…
For example, through doing more research library staff members will know that it is important to be very patient when interacting with children who have autism. Through more research the staff will also learn that it is better to speak to those with autism slowly and directly, avoid open-ended questions and wordy instructions, provide a non-verbal way to communicate such as using pictures or signs, be empathetic and helpful towards the child’s caregiver and give positive reinforcement to the child (Akin, Lynn and
Donna Mackinney). It is also important that the library staff communicate effectively with the child and their parents (Cottrell). Parents can provide a lot of useful advice on their child’s needs, what should be avoided in order to make the child feel more comfortable and the most effective techniques to use when communicating with that particular child. Since all child with autism are very different from one another this type of information will be very useful when creating and conducting a program (Cottrell). It would also be very beneficial for the library to designate …show more content…
There are now many apps available that were specially designed for autistic children. The Expanding
Language app use photographs along with attractive themes that provide a fun learning platform and a voice for children struggling to communicate on their own (Teaching Children with
Autism: Benefits of Integrating Technology into Education). Libraries who wish to support children with autism who use that particular library should also try to create programs that incorporate oral readings, songs, and sensory story times which have proven to be very beneficial to children with autism in the past (Cottrell). Sensory story times for example, are conducted by reading a story while at the same time using figures or felt shapes in order to help children with autism process and understand the story better than they would have if the librarian simply showed the children the pictures of the story as they read (Cottrell). Library’s should also ensure that the programs they create for autistic children are flexible but at the same time follow a routine. Many autistic children feel most comfortable when in a routine and some will