Supporting Autistic Children in the Early Years: From Understanding to Everyday Play

Is this for you?

You work with children aged three to five in a nursery, pre-school, kindergarten or another early years setting.

You support a child who becomes overwhelmed by noise, touch, changes, group activities or everyday transitions.

You want to understand what behaviours such as shouting, pushing, withdrawing, rocking, hand-flapping or repeatedly lining up toys may be communicating.

You work with a child who speaks little, finds it difficult to express their needs or needs more time to process instructions.

You want to create clearer routines, introduce changes more gently and respond before tension escalates.

You are looking for practical play, movement, creative, music and sensory activities that can be adapted to the child’s interests and needs.

You need ready-to-use tools for observation, support planning and cooperation with parents, carers and specialists.

This programme is not for you if you are looking for clinical diagnostic training or a therapeutic programme that replaces specialist assessment and support. It is designed for early years educators who need practical strategies for everyday work with children on the autism spectrum.

What you'll implement?

Ready to use tomorrow

Understand what behaviour may be communicating

Learn how to look beyond the behaviour itself and identify what may be happening before, during and after a difficult moment. You will be able to distinguish more clearly between sensory overload, communication difficulties, frustration and a need for predictability.
Communicate in ways the child can process

Learn how to adapt the length of your messages, allow more processing time and use visual or alternative forms of communication when speech is not enough. You will be able to make instructions, choices and transitions easier for the child to understand.
Support regulation before distress escalates

Learn how to recognise the early signs that a child is becoming overloaded or losing balance. You will be able to adjust the environment, introduce movement or sensory breaks and provide a calm space before the situation reaches crisis point.

A different way of seeing the problem

The child before age-based expectations

Move away from comparing the child only with what a three-, four- or five-year-old is expected to do. Start from the child’s current abilities, needs and way of functioning, then choose support that offers a realistic next step.
Regulation before participation

Recognise that a child who is overloaded may not yet be able to communicate, learn, join the group or follow an instruction. Reduce pressure, restore a sense of safety and support regulation before expecting active participation.
nterests and play as pathways to development

Treat the child’s interests and preferred ways of playing as starting points rather than distractions to remove. Use them to build shared attention, communication, relationships and gradually more varied play.

Learning that actually stays

A complete implementation system

Combine the video training with a 91-page Teacher’s Toolkit and practical resources, including observation tools, communication cards, visual boards, support plans, ready-to-use scripts, activity ideas and printable worksheets.
A 30-day follow-up

The Knowledge Booster returns to one essential idea every three days. Eleven short emails guide you back to specific materials and give you one manageable action to try in your setting.

What's inside this programme?

Video modules

6 modules · approx. 105 min total · one film per module

1

Understanding the child and connecting with them

14 min
Available after purchase
Learn how to begin with acceptance, interpret behaviour as information and build support around the child’s strengths. You will also explore communication adapted to the child and predictable routines that can make everyday situations feel safer and easier to understand. We use AI as a tool to support production, but we do not hand over responsibility for the content. Our materials are based on real webinars by our trainers and are reviewed and approved by a person before publication. The videos feature an AI-generated avatar and voice of the trainer, used with her consent.

Lessons in this module
1. Understanding and acceptance
2. Communication
3. Predictability, routines and flexibility
2

Regulation, learning and relationships

14 min
Available after purchase
Explore how sensory processing, emotional regulation and the environment can affect the child’s ability to participate, learn and connect. You will learn how to reduce overload, develop shared attention, use specific praise and support emotional understanding, turn-taking and agency.

Lessons in this module
1. Regulating emotions and sensory input
2. Learning and play through hands-on experience
3. Relationships and emotions
3

Working together and what really helps

19 min
Available after purchase
Learn when specialist advice may be needed, how to discuss your observations with parents and carers without making a diagnosis and how to create greater consistency between home and the setting. This module also brings together the boundaries, language, movement breaks and pacing that support the child in everyday situations.

Lessons in this module
1. Specialist support
2. Supporting parents and carers, and working with the home
3. What really helps in the setting
4

Why play matters and how to begin

18 min
Available after purchase
Understand why play is a foundation for early development and why a child on the autism spectrum may need an adult to show how shared play can begin. Follow a practical sequence: observe, stay nearby, model the play, involve another child and gradually step back.

Lessons in this module
1. Play - why and how
2. Movement games
5

Table-top games and games with sound

21 min
Available after purchase
Discover practical activities supporting fine-motor skills, visual analysis, attention, turn-taking, imitation and early learning. The module includes construction activities, art and craft ideas and music and rhythm games that can be adapted to the child’s interests, abilities and sensory needs.

Lessons in this module
1. Fine-motor and construction games
2. Art and craft activities
3. Music and rhythm games
6

Sensory games and conclusion

19 min
Available after purchase
Explore simple sensory activities using materials commonly available in early years settings, including paints, modelling materials, water, rice, dry grains, different textures and sound. The programme concludes by returning to its central principle: effective support begins with a calm adult who is willing to understand the child.

Lessons in this module
1. Sensory games
2. Understanding the child and staying calm

Teacher's Toolkit

91-page implementation guide · PDF · Professional package only

The Teacher’s Toolkit follows the same six-part structure as the video training and can be used alongside the modules or as an independent reference guide. It helps you quickly find practical guidance for a particular behaviour, difficulty or everyday situation.

Guidance organised by behaviour, difficulty and everyday situation.
Communication, regulation and home–setting support.
Over 30 movement, table-top, music and sensory activities.
Step-by-step instructions, adaptations and safety guidance.
“What if…” scenarios and ready-to-use next steps.

See sample pages

The Living Library

A resource library that grows with the programme

From the start, you get immediate access to selected classroom-ready materials - printable, fillable or ready to display. Additional resources are unlocked according to your access option: Essential or Professional. Some materials are available right away, while others are added gradually according to the programme schedule. And this is not the final version of the library. It is a living, evolving space - we are continuously working on new tools, templates and classroom resources to support your everyday teaching.

55

materials total
3

free for everyone
11

in Essential
55

in Professional

Getting started

1 materials
- Four-Week Implementation Plan
  
  A four-week roadmap for observing the child, choosing one priority, introducing one strategy and reviewing its impact.
  
  Essential Open
Observation and understanding behaviour

2 materials
- Observation Checklists
  
  Eight focused checklists for recording the child’s communication, sensory responses, play, transitions, relationships and distress.
  
  Essential Open
- ABC Behaviour Chart
  
  A practical chart for identifying what happens before a behaviour, what the child does and what follows.
  
  Free Open
Support plans and de-escalation

4 materials
- Behaviour and De-escalation Plan
  
  A worked example showing how to identify triggers, prevent escalation and respond at each stage of a difficult situation.
  
  Essential Open
- Distress and Behaviour Strategies
  
  A collection of practical strategies and ready-to-use language for preventing distress, responding safely and reconnecting afterwards.
  
  Professional Open
- Short Intervention Plan
  
  A concise worked plan for managing one recurring difficult situation from prevention through to follow-up.
  
  Essential Open
- Child’s Mini Support Plan
  
  A one-child plan bringing together strengths, communication, sensory needs, routines, play and one priority strategy.
  
  Essential Open
Communication

3 materials
- Communication Cards
  
  More than 30 printable cards helping children communicate needs, feelings, choices, transitions and requests for support.
  
  Essential Open
- Ready-to-Use Scripts for Adults
  
  Short, consistent phrases for common situations such as giving instructions, offering choices, setting boundaries and supporting regulation.
  
  Free Open
- Communication Support Session
  
  A worked individual session plan for developing communication and social interaction through play.
  
  Professional Open
Individual sessions

1 materials
- Individual Session Plan
  
  A flexible template for planning individual sessions supporting communication, interaction and thinking skills.
  
  Professional Open
Predictability and daily structure

3 materials
- First–Then Boards and a Mini Daily Plan
  
  Printable visual boards and daily plans helping children understand routines, transitions and what happens next.
  
  Essential Open
- Weekly Plan of Support Activities: Ages 4–5
  
  A weekly example combining communication, movement, sensory and play activities for children aged four to five.
  
  Professional Open
- Weekly Plan of Support Activities: Age 6
  
  A weekly activity plan for children ready for a greater level of challenge, with options for adaptation.
  
  Professional Open
Calm and self-regulation

1 materials
- Calming and Self-Regulation Toolkit
  
  A set of breathing, grounding, sensory and relaxation activities for use in the setting or at home.
  
  Essential Open
Play and development

1 materials
- Play Activities to Support Development
  
  Ready-to-use activities supporting communication, interaction, movement and thinking through play.
  
  Professional Open
Working with parents and carers

2 materials
- Parent and Carer Conversation Guides
  
  Six practical frameworks for conversations about communication, sensory needs, behaviour, screen use and progress.
  
  Professional Open
- Home–Setting Cooperation Sheet
  
  A structured form for agreeing shared goals, routines, messages and responses across home and the setting.
  
  Professional Open
Printable activity cards

15 materials
- Modelling Clay Play
  
  A sensory and fine-motor activity based on squeezing, rolling and shaping modelling materials.
  
  Professional Open
- Trace the Lines: Balloons
  
  A pencil-control activity in which the child traces lines connecting children with their balloons.
  
  Professional Open
- Match the Pictures
  
  A visual-perception activity for finding and joining identical pictures.
  
  Professional Open
- Cutting Practice: Cats
  
  A cutting activity for practising scissor control along clearly marked lines.
  
  Professional Open
- Picture Sequences: Set 1
  
  A sequencing activity for arranging photographs in the correct order.
  
  Professional Open
- Sorting: Food and Animals
  
  A categorisation activity for sorting pictures into food and animal groups.
  
  Professional Open
- Colour to Match
  
  A visual-attention activity in which the child colours a picture to match the model.
  
  Professional Open
- Picture Sequences: Set 2
  
  A second set of photographs for practising sequencing and describing events.
  
  Professional Open
- Match the Pictures: Set 2
  
  An additional visual-matching activity using a new set of pictures.
  
  Professional Open
- What Do People Need?
  
  A vocabulary and thinking activity for matching people with the objects they need.
  
  Professional Open
- Circle the Food
  
  A visual-search activity for identifying and circling food items.
  
  Professional Open
- Trace the Lines
  
  A pencil-control activity for tracing paths without lifting the pencil.
  
  Professional Open
- What Goes in the Fridge?
  
  A categorisation activity for deciding which foods and objects belong in a fridge.
  
  Professional Open
- Body Parts
  
  A vocabulary and body-awareness activity for recognising and naming body parts.
  
  Professional Open
- Cut-Out Jigsaw
  
  A cutting and visual-analysis activity in which the child reconstructs a picture from pieces.
  
  Professional Open
Dot-to-dot worksheets

22 materials
- Dot-to-Dot: Cat
  
  Free Open
- Dot-to-Dot: Christmas Tree
  
  Professional Open
- Dot-to-Dot: Clock
  
  Professional Open
- Dot-to-Dot: Clown
  
  Professional Open
- Dot-to-Dot: Crown
  
  Professional Open
- Dot-to-Dot: Easter Egg
  
  Professional Open
- Dot-to-Dot: Fence
  
  Professional Open
- Dot-to-Dot: Fish
  
  Professional Open
- Dot-to-Dot: House
  
  Professional Open
- Dot-to-Dot: Kite
  
  Professional Open
- Ladybird
  
  Professional Open
- Dot-to-Dot: Leaf
  
  Professional Open
- Dot-to-Dot: Lollipop
  
  Professional Open
- Dot-to-Dot: Mouse and Cheese
  
  Professional Open
- Dot-to-Dot: Present
  
  Professional Open
- Dot-to-Dot: Rocket
  
  Professional Open
- Dot-to-Dot: Socks
  
  Professional Open
- Dot-to-Dot: Spider’s Web
  
  Professional Open
- Dot-to-Dot: Star
  
  Professional Open
- Dot-to-Dot: Sun
  
  Professional Open
- Dot-to-Dot: Toadstool
  
  Professional Open
- Dot-to-Dot: Toys
  
  Professional Open

Knowledge Booster

The Knowledge Booster helps you return to the programme after completing the video course - step by step, without trying to implement everything at once. Inspired by Ebbinghaus’s forgetting curve: short emails sent at the right intervals to help you remember and apply what you learn.

Professional: 11 emails over 30 days

Certificate of completion

Each Edutimo programme includes a short end-of-programme test. After completing the modules, take the test to confirm what you have learned and download your certificate of completion. The test is included in the programme and can be retaken if needed.

Ready? Take the test and get your certificate.

10 questions · approx. 10 min · available after completing all modules

What's the difference between Essential and Professional?

Essential includes the core programme and selected practical materials. Professional gives you access to the full implementation library, extended materials and case studies.
How long do I have access?

You receive 12 months of access to the programme after purchase.
Does the programme include ready-to-use materials?

Yes. Depending on your package, you receive templates, scripts, cards, procedures, case studies and classroom tools.
What is the Knowledge Booster?

It is a 30-day email sequence that helps you revisit the most important ideas from the programme and apply them step by step.
Do I receive a certificate?

Yes. After completing the programme, you can download your certificate of completion.