April is Autism awareness month. Here are some stats from the CDC:
- It is estimated that between 1 in 80 and 1 in 240 with an average of 1 in 110 children in the United States have an ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder). [Read article]
- ASDs are reported to occur in all racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups, yet are on average 4 to 5 times more likely to occur in boys than in girls. However, we need more information on some less studied populations and regions around the world. [Read article]
With these kinds of statistics, there is a very good chance that you will have a child (or children) with an ASD in your ministry.
Amy Fenton Lee is helping to educate churches and their leadership about included people with special needs. This week she has been writing about the 5 Things to know about the mother of a child with autism. This is great information and I encourage you to read it and subscribe to her blog to see more of her insight and research into this area.
**Please note that every person and every parent processes a special needs diagnosis differently. If you know of someone affected by autism, pray for discernment as you read these posts. Some information may be helpful and other guidance less relevant to a particular individual or family.**
If you are twitter, you may also want to follow the hashtag #spnmin which highlights tweets related to special needs ministry.
Read some of my other posts on this topic:
