Concrete Thinking

Anyone who knows someone on the spectrum recognizes one of the hallmarks is concrete thinking.  Sometimes it is kind of funny.  On vacation at the beach last week Alex wanted to leave the beach house and go to the beach.  I said he had to find his aunt who was already there so an adult would know he was down there.  I said "If you can't find Aunt Lucy come back and wait for me to take you."  He said "OK!" and went running down the steps, only to turn around and say "What do I do if I find her?" 

I am thinking the average 4-5 year old would not need an explanation of what to do if he found his aunt.  However, at almost 9 Alex needed to ask.  There is a definite deficit with abstract thinking and inferencing.  We do inferencing activities at home which he does pretty well on for the most part, but using those skills in real life is sometimes a challenge.  Sometimes it makes for a chuckle!