The American Academy of Pediatrics suggests some common features of effective early intervention for autism, including: 1) early intervention once ASD is diagnosed; 2) provision of developmentally appropriate, targeted learning activities for a minimum of 25 hours per week for 12 months of the year; 3) small group learning activities, while ensuring that each child has one-on-one time with a therapist or teacher 4. have special training for parents and families; 5. set up activities for children with ASD to do with normal children, while requiring children with ASD to meet specific learning goals during the activities; 6. assess and record each child’s progress and adjust intervention programs when appropriate; 7. provide a highly structured, rule-based environment with visual cues; 8. guide children to learn 9. the following are often included in the curriculum: lessons for language and communication; learning of social skills, such as joint attention; learning of self-care skills, such as dressing and grooming; applying research-evidence-based methods to reduce problem behaviors, such as aggressive behavior and tantrums; learning of cognitive skills, such as pretend play or understanding others’ perspectives; and traditional school skills, such as word recognition and numeracy.