The AEIOU program

The AEIOU Program

Our centre offers intensive, personalised program for children with autism spectrum disorders. The AEIOU program employs a variety of effective teaching strategies coupled with a supportive learning environment to help encourage and nurture children to be independent learners. Our program is overseen by a dedicated team of professionals including occupational and music therapists, speech pathologists and early childhood teachers.

The AEIOU program offers:

full day and part-time structured programming to help reduce stress and promote effective learning;
consistency of staffing and programming;
opportunities for children to interact socially with each other;
a combination of structured large and small group activities;
individual teaching instruction that is tailored to each child's individual needs;
speech and occupational therapy embedded into all aspects of the learning program;
circle time, learning centres and exploratory play options; and
visual, physical and verbal support.

Weekly Timetable

Most AEIOU centres operate under long day care hours from 7:00am to 5:00 with the intensive program running from 9:00am to 2:30pm Monday to Friday (excluding Wednesday when the program concludes at noon). Our regional programs operate slightly reduced hours - check our centres page for current opening hours.

Measurement of Outcomes

AEIOU recognises the importance of being accountable to families and other stakeholders, and is dedicated to demonstrating the efficiency of this unique program. The children are therefore assessed on intake, and then again at regular periods throughout the program, so that their progress can be clearly documented.

These standardised assessments will be complemented with parent interviews and observation assessments to gather data on areas such as self-help skills, play skills and social interaction. Each child's program will be evaluated frequently and adjusted where necessary.

Transition and Continuity

AEIOU's ultimate goal is to have our students transition into mainstream schools and other educational settings. AEIOU will work with the individual child and school to determine the level of support required during the transitionary period. This will vary from child to child, and will be assessed on an individual basis at the time of transition.

Eligibility

To be eligible for enrolment at AEIOU, a child must meet the following criteria:

Diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder OR Pervasive Developmental Delay
Aged between 2½ and 5 years of age at intake.

Children who meet these criteria must then undergo an assessment by AEIOU staff to determine suitability for the program.

AEIOU also considers parents and siblings of students to be an integral part of the program, and families must therefore be willing to work with AEIOU to achieve the best outcomes for their child and the entire Unit.

Fees

The AEIOU Foundation strives to provide affordable access to their autism-specific program. AEIOU feels strongly that services should be affordable so that no family should be disadvantaged. To achieve this, the Foundation fundraises and lobbies extensively across Australia. Our Parent Assistance staff are trained to provide families with support and advice about their fees. To find out the net costs in your individual circumstances, call 1300 ASD HELP (1300 273 435).

You can also download the Fees Fact Sheet which will give you an estimate of the fees based on two examples of household income.