Therapies used for children with autism

There were made a lot of years of research, and it was reached to the result that applied behavioral methods really show benefit in improving communication, learning and appropriate social behavior, also reducing inappropriate behavior in children with autism.
It was seen that started early, usually in the preschool years, these interventions are more effective.
Based on the principle of reinforcement, which says that behavior can be changed by rewarding desired behavior and removing reinforcement for unwanted behavior, the applied behavior analysis is designed to both correct behavior and teach skills for dealing with specific situations. It was seen that the person will repeat behaviors for which is rewarded, and this principle is applied in many different ways like discrete trial training, errorless learning, incidental teaching,  shaping and fading, and it is known that most treatment programs include a number of applied behavior analysis therapies.
In order to provide a comprehensive treatment program individualized to meet each child's specific needs, the behavioral therapists collaborate with parents, teachers, and community professionals.

The main principle of education suggests that each person with autism has his or her own strengths, abilities, and functional level, so it is very important that education to be adapted, to meet everyone’s personal requirements.
When it is possible, it is important that children with disabilities to be educated together with children with no disabilities, because they will serve as models for appropriate language, social, and behavioral skills.
Some children with autism are educated in mainstream classrooms, others in special education classes within mainstream public schools, and others in specialized programs separate from mainstream public schools.

There were made specific programs for persons with autism. For example, TEACCH, a program developed in North Carolina comprehends different theories and techniques to develop an individualized program for each person with autism. This program focuses more on providing the child with the skills needed to understand his or her environment and communicate his or her needs, and less on changing specific behaviors.
To teach children social skills there is an approach that uses stories, in each story a person being faced with a situation or an event. These stories are adapted for each individual, they often contain music and illustrations, and help the child develop an understanding of the appropriate or expected response to the situation.
An approach that helps the child with autism progress on the natural developmental ladder is the floor time. It is based on the theory that children cannot progress to advanced learning until they have completed all the required steps of this ladder; this theory says that children with autism have not completed the ladder.

There are also complementary therapies. These therapies include art therapy, music therapy, animal therapy, and sensory integration therapy. For example, music therapy involving singing helps the child to develop speech and language skills, art therapy offers the child a nonverbal way to express his or her feelings, and animal therapy has the role to improve the child's motor skills while increasing self-confidence.
Sensory integration tries to help the child reorganize and integrate his or her sensory information, tries to make the child to better understand the external world.