An Autism Advancement

Simple imitation exercises can help young children with autism boost their social skills, found a recent Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders study.  After a series of treatments using the technique, kids made significant improvement in bringing their parent's attention to an object through gestures and eye contact.  If your child has autism, try this at least a few times a day.

Step 1: Pullout similar toys for you both to play with, such as tow stuffed animals or a couple of trains

Step 2: Watch your child's sounds and movements, and copy them.  If he/she makes her stuffed animal jump in the air, let yours do the same.  Continue this for one or two minutes.

Step 3: Switch roles and model something new to do with the toy, such as running the train up your leg.  Repeat this three times to encourage your child to imitate you.  If he/she does follow your movements, praise him/her and return to copying their actions.  If not, gently guide them through the imitation.