What they may find challenging

Children and young people may find social interaction difficult, which can impact their ability to do some of the following: 

• Start or hold a conversation.
• Understand non-verbal communication cues including body language and facial expressions, that gives context to what is being said.
• Make and maintain eye contact.
• Talk about something that is outside of their interest.
• Understand non-literal language such as sarcasm, idioms and metaphors.
• Understand when people use language to hide their feelings or words in a way that doesn’t make their meaning clear.
• See things that other people might not notice. For example, some people hyper-focus on minute details, hearing every leaf rustle in the wind or making connections that others don’t.
• Accept touch. They may find hand-shaking or big groups and crowds confronting.
• Filter out less important information such as background noise.
• See other's point of view.
• Alter interactions to suit environmental or social contexts. For example, changing behaviour when interacting with grandparents, compared to peers or work colleagues.