When parents are given a diagnosis of an autism spectrum disorder for one of their children, they often scramble to find resources and information to understand how to help their child.

Autism is a lifelong, neurobiological disorder that affects how a person perceives the world and communicates. Symptoms can range from very mild to quite severe. The disorder has no specific cause, but it is quite prevalent, affecting one of every 150 children.

The Kenosha Public Library has compiled a new autism resource collection with the ultimate goal of helping children with autism navigate their world.

About 200 items were purchased for the collection, said Roxane Bartelt, head of children’s services, who noted that this includes 30 items for the developmental resource collection, a group of bagged puppet kits, flannelgraph boards and special toys. A flannelgraph board has felt characters that stick to the board and uses a script for storytelling.

The autism resource materials — which also include books, CDs and DVDs — were funded by a Library Services and Technology Act grant from the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services.

“With this grant, parents have the opportunity to get these kinds of resources on their library card for free that normally they would spend a lot of money out of pocket for,” said Lisa Rivers, children’s services librarian assistant.

Rivers, who’s 14 year-old son, John, has autism, brought it to Bartelt’s attention that the library was lacking materials that could assist those with the disorder. As a result, the grant was written seeking funding for the purchases.

Children with autism have very visual minds, Rivers said, and those working with autistic individuals need to break things down in really small steps.

“The earlier you get to this disability, in theory, the greater the outcome, the more engaged and involved the child would be,” Rivers said.

The collection contains books for adults on social skills training, communication, including non-verbal communication, and special diets, as some experts believe gluten-free and casein-free diets are beneficial for those with the disorder.

There are items in the resource collection specifically geared toward children and young adults, and some aimed at adults.

One of Rivers’ favorite books in the collection is Jed Baker’s “The Social Skills Picture Book for High School and Beyond,” which contains photos of actual students engaging in a wide variety of social situations.

The photos show, rather than tell, the right (and wrong) ways to interact in different circumstances and illustrate the positive and negative consequences of both.

Juvenile books include some written for children with autism, their siblings and friends.

In the developmental resource collection, parents and caregivers can find a wide range of sensory and motor-skill-development items, including Squishy Handprints and Footprints and Teachable Touchables Texture Squares, and social skill games.

“It’s a wonderful way of enhancing their in-home therapy program,” Rivers said, adding that often such items are very expensive.

Because some items have many small parts, only patrons 18 and older with a library card may check them out from the developmental resource collection, which is housed at the Southwest Library along with the autism resource collection.

Not long ago, the Kenosha Public Library staffers had a workshop on autism, facilitated by the Autism Society of Southeast Wisconsin.

Even the official name of the grant — Public Library Resources for Children with Autism and their Families — reflects the awareness manifested by the library.

“You always put the child first, and then the disability. We have really drilled that into our staff,” Bartelt said.

The Southwest Library is at 7979 38th Ave. For more information, call Children’s Services at the library at (262) 564-6150.