Change in the Weather and Autism

BROWNSVILLE, Texas -- Fall had finally come to Deep South Texas. It had been an incredibly hot summer in 2011, one for the records. Most everyone in the area was ready for cooler weather to move in. That was particularly true for the children and staff in room 623. Yet, the teacher knew that while the weather changes brought benefits it could also create difficult behavior situations in the classroom.
The teacher thought back to the winter of 2011. Some unusual weather patterns at the beginning of February brought the city and much of Texas to a standstill. As a brutal cold front moved across the state temperatures plummeted and ice coated the city’s streets and homes. Electricity outages were scattered throughout the community. The children in the Structured for Life Unit were especially impacted by the cold front. The teacher noticed that as cold fronts and storms came in, moods changed with some of the children. She knew that science didn’t provide a direct correlation between weather changes and behavior. However, parents and teachers could easily argue that weather affects not only children but adults too.