If you have a child on the autism spectrum who struggles with the challenges of daily life, then this book is for you! Hints and Tips is peppered with vignettes and stories of real-life situations and successes, and offers clever ideas for tackling everyday difficulties, such as bathing, bedtime, school trips, and selecting the right child minder.

Dion E. Betts and Nancy J. Patrick provide creative, practical strategies to help parents and caregivers to support their child, and to enable their child to develop the social skills needed to manage and enjoy daily life to the fullest. The book is split into five parts: home life, hygiene, community, medical, and schools and organizations. Common problem areas are also tackled in a toolkit section, which includes checklists, to do lists, visual schedules, and mnemonics to aid memory and retrieval.

Hints and Tips for Helping Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders is an essential aid for parents and carers to make small and simple changes that result in big improvements in the quality of life of children, their families, and carers.

Dion E. Betts Ed.D. is a special education administrator, adjunct professor, writer, and presenter. He and his wife have five children, one of whom has AS. They live in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Nancy J. Patrick Ph.D. is Assistant Professor of Special Education at Messiah College, Grantham, Pennsylvania. She is both a certified school psychologist and licensed psychologist, an author, teacher, writer, and presenter. She lives near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, with her husband and their three children, one of whom has a disability.

Introduction: What is So Special about Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders? What are Autism Spectrum Disorders? Experiences of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders. What Parents and Caregivers Need to Know. How to Use this Book. 1. Home Life. Babysitters. Bees. Breastfeeding. Dates for Parents. Discipline. Dogs. Finances. Food. Friendships. Holidays. Marriage Issues. Mealtimes. Morning and Nighttime Routines. Noise. Organization. Preferences. Preparing Simple Meals. Respite Care. Restaurants. Siblings and other Relatives. Support Groups. Talking about Disabilities. Tantrums. Telephone Skills. Television and Video Games. Textures and Temperatures. Weather. 2. Hygiene. Bath Time. Brushing Teeth. Clothes. Grooming. Hair Cuts. Nail Clipping. Toilet Training. 3. Community. Airplanes. Birthday Parties. Car Travel. Car Travel II. - Child Safety Seats. Hotels and Vacations. Play Dates. Reading Faces and Emotions. Shopping. Shoe Stores. Sleepovers. Swimming Pools. Visiting other Families. 4. Medical. Dentist and Doctor Visits. Emergencies. Emergency Phone Calls. Immunizations. Medications. 5. Schools and Organizations Breaks. Bullying and Teasing. Bus rRdes. Clubs. Evaluations. Hobbies. Homework. Mental Health Agencies. Puberty and School. Religious Services. Report Cards. School Lunches. School Team Meetings. School Trips and Excursions. Selecting Childcare Providers. Sports: Hallie's Story. Sports: John's Story. Teacher Assistants. Therapists. Valentine's Day. 6. Tools for Adapting the Environment for Success. Behavior Plans. Choice Boards. Direct Instruction. First-then Statement Cards. Macro and Micro Schedules. Role-playing. Scripting. Symbol Communication Systems. Task Analysis. Wait Boxes. Conclusion. References.