Abstract

Cognition refers to our ability to know or understand our environment. In the first year of life, a “normal” baby learns that objects have weight, size, taste, and feel. Between 18 and 24 months, the young child begins to develop an imagination and can make pretence. From about two years to seven years, the child becomes adept at thinking in abstract terms and no longer needs to see or touch an object in order to learn about it. All through childhood, cognitive development has a profound effect on development in other areas, but particularly on a child's ability to use language. In contrast autistic children have a neuro developmental disorder with a strong genetic basis but unknown etiology. It is characterized by a behavioral phenotype that includes qualitative impairment in the areas of language development or communication skills, social interactions and reciprocity, and imagination and play. Most children have some problems in cognitive abilities. Intellectual functioning can vary from mental retardation to superior intellectual functioning in some select areas.