NAS EarlyBird and EarlyBird Plus

Are you a parent, teacher, or other professional struggling to get to grips with a child's autism? If so, the EarlyBird and EarlyBird Plus courses might interest you. Run by the NAS, the EarlyBird courses focus on practical ways you can manage behaviour and cope with other problems related to autism.

EarlyBird is open to parents and of children under 4 with a diagnosis of an autistic spectrum disorder, plus a professional who works with the child. For EarlyBird Plus the child must be between 4 and 8 and have a diagnosis. However you don't have to be a member of the National Autistic Society to take part, and you don't even have to have a child attending the school or institution running the course. Another major bonus is that unlike many autism courses there is no fee to pay.

EarlyBird Plus is a 10-week programme, including two home visits. Each week a different topic is covered, such as behaviour, communication, or encouraging interaction. In practice the topics aren't as clearly delineated as you might infer from the schedule. For example, problems with behaviour are often linked to language difficulties, and understanding the nature of autism itself sheds light on all the other subjects that are dealt with.

One of the goals of EarlyBird is to pool experiences, and interacting with others who are in a similar situation is one of the benefits of doing taking part. There is the opportunity over the 10 weeks to get to know people and share stories. But there is more to EarlyBird than just forming a support group. The approach consists of taking the best aspects of methods such as ABA, TEACCH and PECS. These are presented in an accessible way with a minimum of jargon. It's backed up with various videos and a programme book, so if you miss anything you can always read up on it later.

The main disadvantage of doing EarlyBird is that it means making a fairly large commitment of time. However you may pick up some useful methods that could make the time invested very worthwhile for many people. There's nothing radical about EarlyBird - it's all tried and tested methods, such as simplifying your language for easier communication.

If you're interested in doing an EarlyBird or EarlyBird Plus course, be aware that it's not yet countrywide. It was originally piloted in Yorkshire and is slowly spreading through the rest of the UK. Contact the NAS for details, or ask your local special school if they are planning to run an EarlyBird course, or whether they would consider doing so.