Building a Profile of the child

An important step in facilitator training is learning to write a comprehensive child profile that captures the child’s needs, strengths, and baseline functioning to inform goal-setting and interventions. This profile is a foundational document that integrates information from parents or caregivers with the facilitator’s direct observations, using neuro‑affirming language (for example, “interests” instead of “obsessions,” “distress behaviours” instead of “challenging behaviours”) so that differences are respected and strengths guide insight.

Parental input

Information gathered from parents or caregivers typically includes:

• Demographic details such as the child’s name, age, class/grade, and family structure. Communication needs, including the modes used (speech, AAC, gestures, typing) and how effective each is.
• Parental perspectives on the child’s strengths and interests, including topics, activities, and routines the child gravitates towards.
• Challenges experienced by both the child and parents, such as sensory sensitivities, food preferences or aversions, sleep patterns, tolerance for haircuts or nail cutting, self‑help skills (dressing, eating, hygiene), and distress behaviours.
• Safety awareness, oral‑motor skills (e.g., blowing, sucking), emotional regulation, and toilet training status.

Facilitator’s observations

The facilitator supplements parental input with naturalistic observations across key domains:

• Cognitive: attention span, response to tasks, emerging academic abilities, problem‑solving approaches.
• Physical: fine and gross motor skills, coordination, posture, and stamina.
• Social‑emotional: play skills, leisure preferences, social interactions, joint attention, and comfort with peers/adults.

The profile notes the child’s inclinations and repeated interests, how they ask for items or help, and how they engage during unstructured times such as breaks or transitions. These observations help anchor goals in what is meaningful and regulating for the child.

Detailed assessment domains

Structured observations should explore how the child responds to different kinds of stimuli and demands, including:

• Verbal instructions and auditory cues.
• Visual prompts (pictures, written words, schedules).
• Objects and materials used for learning or play.
• Tasks involving discrimination and differentiation (matching, sorting, choosing, categorising).

Facilitators note what the child initiates independently, how they react to “No” and to changes in routine, whether they can follow redirections, and how they process information across these domains. This supports a holistic view of baseline functioning rather than a narrow focus on isolated deficits.

Intervention planning elements

Based on the profile and assessment, the facilitator:

• Outlines target goals tailored to identified needs, keeping them specific, realistic, and respectful of the child’s pace.
• Describes instructional procedures, breaking tasks into manageable, clearly sequenced teaching steps to avoid overwhelm.
• Specifies reinforcements (what is motivating for this child, how and when it is offered).
• Defines mastery criteria for moving to the next level or fading supports.
• Chooses data collection methods to track progress and evaluate the effectiveness of strategies.
• Plans for generalisation so that skills can be used across settings (home, school, community) and with different people.

Assumptions and stance

Facilitators are advised not to make fixed assumptions but to remain curious in order to discover each child’s unique strengths and needs. This stance keeps the door open for individualised therapy programs rather than a single programme that attempts to fit all autistic learners, recognising that autistic people differ from one another just as non‑autistic people do, each bringing their own combination of strengths and challenges.

How to talk to the child

When speaking with the child:

• Use simple, clear language and avoid sarcasm or indirect hints.
• Identify the modality in which the child understands and answers best (spoken, written, pictures, AAC) and use it deliberately.
• If the child responds more reliably to written questions, write the question; if they answer best by pointing to pictures or typing, accept that as their valid response mode.
• Do not bombard the child with rapid verbal input; give them time to process and respond, as excessive language can quickly become overwhelming.
• This communication approach honours the child’s preferred modality and supports genuine participation, rather than forcing them into a single “acceptable” way of responding.

Comprehensive assessment and baseline functioning

A comprehensive assessment integrates parental input (demographics, sensory needs, daily routines) with the facilitator’s naturalistic observations across developmental domains. The aim is to understand what supports regulation and engagement so that learning goals are pitched at an appropriate level.

To establish baseline functioning, the facilitator evaluates how the child responds to visual, auditory, and object‑based stimuli and how they process different types of prompts. This helps determine the right starting point for instruction, the intensity of support required, and the most respectful ways to invite the child into shared work.