and that's wonderful!

Some differences are easy to see:

Height,

hairstyle,

eye colour and so on.

Other differences can't be seen:

Our favourite foods,

fears,

or special skills.

Interestingly,

the way we see the world is also different!

For instance, what do you see in this drawing?

Most people see a duck,

but some of you might have seen a rabbit!

Whichever you saw, you are correct!

This is just a trick drawing

to show you that all brains work differently.

The brain is your body's computer,

it works differently for all of us,

and controls:

how you learn

that's why we are all good at different things

how you feel

which is why we all feel different emotions

and how you communicate.

Sometimes the brain is connected in such a way

it affects the senses

and how we perceive and read situations and interactions.

This is known as autism.

Many people have autism

so it's likely you already know someone who is autistic,

and for this reason

it's useful to know a little bit about autism.

The special wiring inside an autistic brain

can sometimes make the person

good at tasks we may find difficult

such as mathematics,

drawing or music.

It can also do the opposite

and activities we find too easy

are incredibly difficult to them

such as making friends.

The senses constantly send information to your brain

about your surroundings and other people.

However,

when a person's brain and its senses don't communicate well,

the brain can become overwhelmed and confused

affecting how they see the world.

Picture yourself walking down the street.

This is how an autistic brain

may experience the same walk.

Scary, isn't?

Sadly in many cases the person

can't say out loud how they feel.

So even though there's chaos going on in their heads

they seem OK on the outside,

unable to ask for help.

We all develop behaviours to help us feel calm

in uncomfortable situations:

We may look away,

hug ourselves,

chew our fingernails,

fidget,

bite our lips and so on.

Equally, autistic people develop behaviours

that help them cope with these intense moments.

These actions may seem unusual

but they're just their way to feel calm.

When they happen it means they are having a hard time.

The kind thing to do

is not to give them an even harder time by:

getting cross...

ignoring them...

or mocking them.

Remember,

just because a Playstation can't read an XBox game,

it doesn't mean it's broken.

People with autism

need friends who are willing to take

the time to know them.

With good communication and plenty of patience,

everyone would be better off.

People with autism are not ill or broken,

they simply have a unique view of the world

and with a little support from their friends

they might just be able to share that view with us.

Autism can make amazing things happen.

Subtitles by the Amara.org community