{"id":351,"date":"2025-04-23T13:42:08","date_gmt":"2025-04-23T12:42:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/fi\/autisticgirls\/?page_id=351"},"modified":"2026-04-09T11:37:40","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T10:37:40","slug":"autistic-girls-profile-2","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/fi\/autisticgirls\/autistic-girls-profile\/autistic-girls-profile-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Autistic girls profile"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Autism is a <span style=\"color: #ff6600\"><strong>neurodevelopmental condition<\/strong><\/span>, meaning that autistic people&#8217;s brains develop and function differently to the general population.<\/p>\n<p><i><span data-contrast=\"none\">Characteristics of autism include:\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span data-contrast=\"none\">Communication differences<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span data-contrast=\"none\">Sensory sensitivity or processing difficulties\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span data-contrast=\"none\">Differences relating to others\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span data-contrast=\"none\">Differences understanding feelings and emotions\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span data-contrast=\"none\">Restricted or repetitive\u00a0behaviours\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span data-contrast=\"none\">Need for routine\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li>Preference for routines and having particular ways of doing things<\/li>\n<li>Particular interests or passions for particular topics or<br \/>\nactivities<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><span style=\"color: #ff6600\" data-contrast=\"none\">Autistic girls<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">Autistic individuals are <\/span><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">unique<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u00a0in how they present and\u00a0<\/span><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">no two learners are the same<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"none\">. However, research does indicate that girls may present differently from boys. These different traits\/behaviours\u00a0may include:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"2\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Greater\u00a0<\/span><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">interest in social relations<\/span><\/b><\/li>\n<li data-aria-posinset=\"2\" data-aria-level=\"2\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Better at demonstrating\u00a0<\/span><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">complex emotions\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/b><\/li>\n<li data-aria-posinset=\"3\" data-aria-level=\"2\"><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">Increased flexibility\u00a0<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"none\">in their interests and\u00a0behaviours\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li data-aria-posinset=\"4\" data-aria-level=\"2\"><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">Special interests\u00a0<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"none\">that more closely align with<\/span><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u00a0\u2018mainstream\u2019 interests of girls\u00a0<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"none\">(e.g. animals, celebrities or literature); the difference might be the intensity of their interest (e.g. very interested in only one celebrity)\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li data-aria-posinset=\"5\" data-aria-level=\"2\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Less likely to show\u00a0externalising\u00a0behaviours\u00a0(impulsivity or hyperactivity), and may be\u00a0<\/span><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">more likely to\u00a0internalise\u00a0(anxiety or depression)\u00a0<\/span><\/b><\/li>\n<li data-aria-posinset=\"6\" data-aria-level=\"2\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Behaviours\u00a0might also<\/span><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u00a0resemble typical gender differences,\u00a0<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"none\">but are exaggerated\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 id=\"_XsAOCoavUQScZ1\" dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"color: #ff6600\">It is<strong> not always as easy to spot the signs of autism in girls<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Differences may go unnoticed in school but could display as anxious, distressed, or unsettled behaviour at home.\u00a0In school, autistic girls might blend into friend groups, making it less obvious to teachers, or they may appear sociable because they are masking their autistic traits.\u00a0Academic success can also hide difficulties they face in other areas.<\/p>\n<p id=\"_1Jdz9o6KTWzSVy\" dir=\"ltr\">Due to possible differences in presentation across contexts (home and school), it is important to work closely with the entire team around the child to gain a holistic assessment picture of the young person&#8217;s needs.\u00a0\u00a0If there are concerns that a female pupil you support may be autistic, please see the<em> Neurodevelopmental Tile<\/em> on the Fife Intranet Page. It is important to remember that support in education is<strong> needs-led<\/strong> and does not require a diagnosis.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span class=\"TextRun SCXW267562116 BCX8\" lang=\"EN-GB\" xml:lang=\"EN-GB\" data-contrast=\"auto\"><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW267562116 BCX8\">Remember that all of us are unique and<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW267562116 BCX8\">,<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW267562116 BCX8\"> particularly during teenage years, many young people experience feelings of social differences and periods of anxious thinking. This can be typical teenage development; however, it is worth discussing the wider picture<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW267562116 BCX8\"> of needs.<\/span><\/span><span class=\"EOP SCXW267562116 BCX8\" data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"color: #ff6600\"><b>Hear from some autistic girls and their experiences<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Autism Documentary: Inside the UK\u2019s only school for autistic girls\" width=\"474\" height=\"267\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Iy3jYIqRIJg?start=18&#038;feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Autism is a neurodevelopmental condition, meaning that autistic people&#8217;s brains develop and function differently to the general population. Characteristics of autism include:\u00a0 Communication differences Sensory sensitivity or processing difficulties\u00a0 Differences relating to others\u00a0 Differences understanding feelings and emotions\u00a0 Restricted or repetitive\u00a0behaviours\u00a0\u00a0 Need for routine\u00a0 Preference for routines and having particular ways of doing things Particular &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/fi\/autisticgirls\/autistic-girls-profile\/autistic-girls-profile-2\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Autistic girls profile<\/span> <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25183,"featured_media":0,"parent":9,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-351","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/fi\/autisticgirls\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/351","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/fi\/autisticgirls\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/fi\/autisticgirls\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/fi\/autisticgirls\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/25183"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/fi\/autisticgirls\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=351"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/fi\/autisticgirls\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/351\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":787,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/fi\/autisticgirls\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/351\/revisions\/787"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/fi\/autisticgirls\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/fi\/autisticgirls\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=351"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}