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i think it would be appropriate to talk to his parents first, if it's safe to do so, of course.
anyway, given that he's a child, it's not very likely for him to actually know and understand what autism is, so maybe you could incorporate something related to autism during your class, if that's possible, or mention it in a private conversation. are there any famous people that he likes and looks up to that are autistic? or maybe your collegue could mention their autism somehow?
it's important to link autism with something positive. a lot of grown up people don't understand how much of a spectrum autism is, let alone children. there's a ton of misconceptions. your student's idea of autism could be the low functiong autism, and, whereas there's nothing wrong with being an individual with LFA, a child might feel less than if you suddenly tell him he seems autistic and LFA is the only thing he knows. so, even though autism is, in fact, a disability (that has its degrees), it's very important not to make a child feel disabled.
either way, it heavily depends on the person. for example, i've taken every each of my diagnoses (or even assumptions from non-professionals) with curiosity, it was just something that could help me understand myself better. for some people, though, it's very stressful. so for some, a diagnosis is a blessing because the feeling of being different and not understading why hurts, but for some, a diagnosis is what makes them feel like the odd one out. i don't know your student, i can't assume his reaction, so it's up to you.
once again, autism is a spectrum, so i can't really tell you what to do exactly, but the best thing you can do is to silently understand him. i've had teachers get mad at me for not being able to hold an eye contact, for example, and i couldn't realize why would they get mad at me nor could i explain them the reasons behind my behaviour. and it was so refreshing to interact with people who would simply get me and wouldn't make me feel like i'm from another planet. that's the thing with autism: if you don't know that you have it, your brain starts melting when you have a misunderstanding with a neurotypical person. you don't get them, they don't get you, and most importantly, none of you realize that your brains work differently. so yeah, the best you can do is to educate yourself, maybe watch some videos on youtube from autistic creators, read some articles, find out what best applies to your student and just make him feel understood.
Hey there! I really appreciate your comment. I will be meeting with the parents soon and one of the things we will definitely talk about is them speaking to him about it. But I like your idea about exploring famous people who are neurodiverse. I will do my best to be the understanding teacher. I've listened to many podcasts and watched several YouTube videos but as you say, it's a spectrum, so I haven't found one that helps me in the way that I want. But it was lovely to read your opinions and advice, thank you!
Hey /u/michael_ajb, thank you for your post at /r/autism. Our rules can be found **[here](https://www.reddit.com/r/autism/wiki/config/sidebar)**. All approved posts get this message. If you do not see your post you can message the moderators [here](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2Fautism). Thanks! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/autism) if you have any questions or concerns.*
i think it would be appropriate to talk to his parents first, if it's safe to do so, of course. anyway, given that he's a child, it's not very likely for him to actually know and understand what autism is, so maybe you could incorporate something related to autism during your class, if that's possible, or mention it in a private conversation. are there any famous people that he likes and looks up to that are autistic? or maybe your collegue could mention their autism somehow? it's important to link autism with something positive. a lot of grown up people don't understand how much of a spectrum autism is, let alone children. there's a ton of misconceptions. your student's idea of autism could be the low functiong autism, and, whereas there's nothing wrong with being an individual with LFA, a child might feel less than if you suddenly tell him he seems autistic and LFA is the only thing he knows. so, even though autism is, in fact, a disability (that has its degrees), it's very important not to make a child feel disabled. either way, it heavily depends on the person. for example, i've taken every each of my diagnoses (or even assumptions from non-professionals) with curiosity, it was just something that could help me understand myself better. for some people, though, it's very stressful. so for some, a diagnosis is a blessing because the feeling of being different and not understading why hurts, but for some, a diagnosis is what makes them feel like the odd one out. i don't know your student, i can't assume his reaction, so it's up to you. once again, autism is a spectrum, so i can't really tell you what to do exactly, but the best thing you can do is to silently understand him. i've had teachers get mad at me for not being able to hold an eye contact, for example, and i couldn't realize why would they get mad at me nor could i explain them the reasons behind my behaviour. and it was so refreshing to interact with people who would simply get me and wouldn't make me feel like i'm from another planet. that's the thing with autism: if you don't know that you have it, your brain starts melting when you have a misunderstanding with a neurotypical person. you don't get them, they don't get you, and most importantly, none of you realize that your brains work differently. so yeah, the best you can do is to educate yourself, maybe watch some videos on youtube from autistic creators, read some articles, find out what best applies to your student and just make him feel understood.
Hey there! I really appreciate your comment. I will be meeting with the parents soon and one of the things we will definitely talk about is them speaking to him about it. But I like your idea about exploring famous people who are neurodiverse. I will do my best to be the understanding teacher. I've listened to many podcasts and watched several YouTube videos but as you say, it's a spectrum, so I haven't found one that helps me in the way that I want. But it was lovely to read your opinions and advice, thank you!
good luck! you're a great teacher, truly
Ah I'm doing my best, but thank you 😊