Splintered development

Splintered development is skills that are significantly better than would be expected based on an individual's overall level of intellectual development. In other words, they are not essential to the main task but are special skills others may see as exceptional abilities (10; 14). Approximately one in ten individuals with autism possess splinter skills (10). An example of a splinter skill is the ability to list football statistics without understanding the game of AFL or reciting an entire script of a movie but cannot answer any questions about the characters or storyline.

There are some benefits to developing splinter skills. Teachers can use these special abilities to lay a foundation for real-world interests and abilities. Additionally, teachers can utilise student's splinter skills and integrate them into classroom activities. Finally, teachers can use students' splinted skills as a self-calming strategy if the students are heightened. However, there are disadvantages, such as finding a way to incorporate their splinter skills into real-world situations (14).