Parenting the Siblings of Children With Autism

A diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder, or ASD, affects the whole family. The child with ASD and the parents may see the most immediate impact, but typically developing siblings have concerns as well. There are several steps parents can take to help their typical children cope with a diagnosis of ASD in a sibling.

  1. Talk About Autism

    • Explain the disorder to your typically developing child at an age-appropriate level, suggests HealthyChildren.org, a website of the American Academy of Pediatrics. Help your child to understand what his autistic sibling can do well and what he struggles with. Encouraging your typical child to interact with your autistic child will help both children to have a healthy sibling relationship and may help your autistic child with social skills. While you don't want to task your typical child with providing social skills therapy, find opportunities for their play to help your child with ASD with social skills, and for your typical child to learn more about ASD and how it impacts interactions. Discuss your family̵7;s position on talking about your child with ASD to those outside the family. Some families encourage questions about their child's behavior and abilities, while others prefer to keep the diagnosis private.

    Find Alone Time

    • Autism Speaks suggests you provide your typical children with alone time with Mom and Dad together, or, if that̵7;s not possible, with Mom or Dad. Having an activity that the typical child shares only with one or both parents will create a special bond. Assure your typical child or children that they are special, too, and that wanting to do things with their parents, without their autistic sibling, doesn̵7;t make them selfish. Even if you did not have a child with autism, each child would want to have time alone with one or both parents.

    Set Appropriate Expectations

    • According to the Healthy Children website, you should set expectations for all of your children in terms of personal responsibility and helping around the house. Even parents of typically developing children hear cries of, ̶0;That̵7;s not fair!̶1; when chores are assigned. Parents of a child with autism may hear this more often, and may have to explain that each child is being asked to contribute on a par with their abilities.

    Find Peers Who Can Relate

    • Children who have a sibling with autism often feel isolated, according to the Autism Society website. They may be embarrassed about the way their sibling behaves, and they may be frustrated that they cannot bond with the sibling the way that they do with friends. They may even be teased or ridiculed because of the autistic sibling. Support groups for siblings of children with autism are available in many communities, and can help siblings feel like they are not alone. The Sibling Support Project website offers training and workshops for sibling support group administrators, and offers physical and virtual support groups for children, teens and parents.

    2. Previous:

    Next:

    • How to Tutor a Child
      Tutors develop a personal technique that meshes instructional technique with the personality and age of the child. Everyone, regardless of age, learns better when the instruction involves high-interest information and a bit of fun, but creating tutor
    • How to Teach a Child English
      Parents who are immigrants or are raising older, adopted children might have to teach them English as a second language. This can be challenging, especially if the parent has limited English language skills, or the child is quite young. Learning a la
    • How to Teach Children to Take the Perspective of Others
      The expressions "walk a mile in someone elses shoes" and "look through someone elses eyes" are asking people to focus outside themselves, and adults understand their meaning. Teaching your child to be mindful of other involves tak