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Asperger's Syndrome for a teacher unfamiliar with it can be a daunting mountain, even terrifying. These children are wonderful beings full of insight, creativity, and have unique needs that have to be considered in order to make their classroom experience successful. The first aspect of Asperger's to understand is that children diagnosed with it are at the high-functioning end of the autism spectrum. Their biggest obstacles come primarily in the social arena, which encompasses everything from socializing with teachers and friends, transitioning from one activity to another, dealing with change and environmental stimuli effectively, and finally using and reacting to social cues (body language, facial expression, etc.). There are academic and behavioral challenges, but you will find most of your time with the student being used to deal with social awareness and related behavioral issues.

Children with autism often have difficulty with socializing. Body language, facial expression and other "social cues" that we read and react to every second of our day is done in a natural, instinctive manner. But, for a child with autism, even at the high functioning end of Asperger's, this world of social cues is a nightmare at times to read. The child might say something completely out of character in the wrong situation, insult someone without realizing it, or many other similar examples. This kind of social "blunder" is common because the child may not have the tools that they need to navigate these situations successfully. In your classroom, be aware of this and help the student by using reminders such as a written list of how to handle a particularly problem situation is often helpful for children with high functioning autism. Here is an example:

When I have a conversation with another person, I need to wait until they are done before I start talking.

I look them in the eye and do not stand too close as this makes the other person uncomfortable.

This kind of list can be put on a small card and taped to the desk as a reminder. Another wonderful tool that is almost essential with all of these children is a visual schedule of the day's activities. Discuss it at the start of the day, go through each item, and before you change from one activity to the next , make sure that you use this it as a visual reference to help the child successfully deal with the transition. This has to be consistently done, or the child can be

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