Assessment in 13 days. Advice x

[kmummy]

DS3 is 3.5years. We've had concerns since he was one. He's being assessed for Autism over three two hour appointments. It says ADOS on the sheet. We were last saw in the holidays where he was still non verbal, but over the summer his speeh has come along loads, echos an awful lot but does actually talk on his own to :D

The thing is we've been working really hard on his name (lots of picture work) and also saying hello (still hit and miss but a huge improvement to before) I guess my worries are what if he passes the ADOS part because of this? Do they go by anything else, we have the report from pre school which details his complete lack of social skills, obsessiveness, routine need and anxiety) but what happensoff its just this ADOS that counts for anything? Six months a go it wouldn't be an issue as he literally didn't interact but now he will on his own terms.

I'm so scare did failing him at this final hurdle. My little
man needs the doors opened for extra support, I'm so worried we won't get it.

[porridgelover]

The ADOS isn't just looking at whether or not he has speech...it's looking at how he uses language...so all his social interaction. That is things like his ability to interact in conversations, turn-taking, reacting to body language, humour, eye-contact, understanding non-verbal signals, imagination, Theory of Mind. Autism isn't just a language impairment ..it's a social disabilty (I'm sure you know that, just trying to re-assure).

My DS is highly verbal with speech and language scores way above average,...but he is still Autistic because he doesnt get the many social uses of language. I can play pretend with my 3yo in a way that is far too complex for ASD DS to get. He is too literal with language. He would completely struggle with pretending a piece of string is a snake or that it could be a piece of pasta for a doll or that it could be a lasso etc.
If your DS has poor social skills, has obsessive interests, needs strict routines and is anxious, that all sounds more ASD than not.

[Tiggles]

When DS1 was dx-ed with AS he was 8 (I think) we had been working for years to teach him lots of coping strategies. They fool a lot of people, but the ASD team could see past them/through them and still easily saw the autism. It was noted in his report what a good job we had done in teaching him strategies to cope though.

[kmummy]

I know it's not assessed on speech, my worry is more the fact we've taught him to recognise his name and saying hello (although he says it with no emotion iyswim?) reading online I know this is two of the things they score on. I guess I'm just hoping for reassurance they will look at the whole picture not just this one test? I'm worrying to much arnt I? Just reading around I've seen how lucky we have been to get this far with no hold up or door closing. The paediatrician who saw him (and is chairing his assessment) gave a probable diagnois of Autism, but I'm guessing it means nothing.