That would be pretty hard to do! Children with autism come with a variety of personalities, abilities, interests, etc.

The most obvious thing you'll notice is the lack of social skills, most likely. It will take some time for you to learn to communicate and understand the person you are caring for and get to know them well. You will get to understand what they like, how they prefer to communicate, etc as time goes by.

Other things you'll tackle might be other impairments that sometimes come along with autism, such as down's, cerebral palsy, retardation, etc. But not all children or adults with autism have these other conditions.

yes it effects different people differently---and some children have other behavioral issues with this than others. its really hard to find one that has all in common.

Try cafemom.com and search autism there you will find an abundence of mothers with all areas of the spec and they would be greatful for you and you're work and so I am sure they would be happy to share some insight!!!!!! You must be a very strong person and the people you are working with are very lucky that you care about treating/helping/teaching them!!!!!