Parenting an autistic child is challenging, even if you, the parent, are autistic yourself. This is particularly true when your child is very young, and not yet on a schedule. Even when they’re starting to sleep regularly at night, through the night, you then have the challenges of trying to help them navigate a difficult, frustrating world without the tools to make it easier.
The good news is that you are not alone. There are many apps out there that can help you and your child throughout their childhood. These tools can help you develop effective strategies designed to help your child in their day-to-day routines. They can also help your child build essential skills like communication themselves.
There are so many apps out there, of course, which is why it’s so important to know which ones are right for you.
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What to Look for In Every App
Before we get into the specific autism app that can help you better parent your child, it’s important to understand what every app you use should include. This way, you can skip past the poor-quality options, especially if they will only hurt your child in the long run.
There are a few traits the apps you use need to have, in order to help you build a healthy, holistic, and supportive environment for your child. These are:
- The ability to personalize recommendations, activities, and resources to suit your child’s specific needs.
- The backing of licensed therapists with a good reputation in their field
- Positive reviews from autistic individuals who have used the tools themselves, not just caregivers
Using tools that are advocated and supported by the autistic community itself, not just caregivers, is essential, since it’s those tools that will help your child the most become the best version of themselves. You will also want to rely on tools that can be personalized to suit your child’s needs and developmental journey, and are backed by licensed therapists (either in the creating of, or in direct support).
Essential Apps for Families (and Educators)
The good news is that there are a few go-to applications that families and educators can use to help them care for and guide their children.
- Autism 360: This all-in-one app works to provide everything an autistic child needs to help with their development. This is thanks due in part to its on-demand access to licensed therapists, with no appointment needed. A wealth of resources are available to help the child, the caregiver, and the educator provide a higher standard of care and guidance.
- Proloquo2Go: Communication apps like Proloquo2Go is an augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) app, meaning that they helps children put together simple sentences by using pictures and symbols. With a library of over 14,000 such symbols, it’s highly customizable for each individual child. There are other tools, of course, such as Otsimo Speech Therapy and Speak Easy Home Speech Therapy, which are also designed to help children with communication needs.
- Autism Tracker Pro: This app can help parents and educators track a child’s outbursts and behaviors throughout the day. This way, the parent can then start either understanding how other therapies are working, or make adjustments to their child’s routine, diet, and even communication methods.
For more on this topic, check out the full Mental Health collection
