Before They Read the Report: Introduce Your Child as a Person
Teachers, therapists and carers often meet an autistic child through a report first. A one-page profile written with your child, so the people around them meet the person before the diagnosis.
Before anyone reads a report about your child, let them meet the person you know. Write a one-page profile with your child: what they love, what they’re good at, how they tell you things, what helps, and what people often get wrong. Update it every term and share only what helps.
When a child has autism or other extra needs, the first thing a new teacher, carer or therapist often sees is a report. A diagnosis, scores, a list of difficulties. All useful. None of it is your child.
Your child is someone who loves trains, or drawing, or a particular song. Who laughs at a certain joke. Who needs a warning before a change. Who is brilliant at something nobody has asked about.
The people around them should meet that person first.
A one-page profile
Write it together with your child where you can. Short lines are enough. Use their words.
- Hello, I’m… Name, age, and what they like to be called.
- How to say my name. The way it sounds.
- One thing I want you to know about me. If someone reads nothing else, this.
- What I love. Favorite things, topics, games, people, places.
- What I’m good at. Their strengths, the things they do well.
- How I tell you things. Words, signs, pictures, a device, a look, a sound.
- What makes me feel safe. A person, an object, a routine, a place.
- What helps me. A quiet corner, warning before a change, a picture schedule.
- What’s hard for me. Sounds, light, touch, crowds, changes, waiting: whatever applies. Ask what helps instead of assuming.
- The best way to help me. Ask first? Show me? Give me time?
- Please don’t assume… What people often get wrong.
- When I’m upset, please… What to do, and what not to do.
- Please call… Who to contact, and how.
How to use it
- Give it to a new teacher before the first day.
- Bring it to meetings, on top of the reports.
- Update it every term. Children change.
- Share only what helps the person reading it. It’s your child’s page, not a file for everyone.
Why it matters
People treat a child the way they first see them. A child first seen as a list of problems is treated as a list of problems. A child first seen as a person, with loves and strengths and a way of telling you things, is treated as a person.
That’s not a small difference. Over years of school, it’s everything.
Next step
Prepare for the next conversation about your child. Check the moment, and get the first words. Before you talk → What to say →