Myth: Children with autism are all alike in behavior. They spin in circles, stare blankly for long periods of time, have violent outbursts, and exhibit strange repetitive behaviors.
Reality: Children with autism are as unique as all other children. No two children with autism are exactly alike, and movies and television shows may not accurately depict individuals with autism. Some children may have good language skills while others are nonverbal; some may exhibit repetitive behaviors while others do not.

Myth: Children with autism can often perform unusual and amazing tasks, such as memorizing things, multiplying large numbers in their heads, playing advanced songs on the piano, or painting great works of art.
Reality: A few children with autism have very high IQs and exhibit some "splinter skills" despite their disabilities, but the vast majority children with autism do not. Children with autism have varying degrees of intelligence, just like children without autism. Some children with autism have some degree of mental retardation, without any extraordinary mental abilities.

Myth: Most children with autism never learn to talk.
Reality: With early identification and speech-language intervention, as many as three-quarters of children with autism can learn to talk. Speech and language skills may never be like those of a typically developing child, but many children with autism can express themselves through language. Children with autism who never acquire spoken language often have some degree of mental retardation in addition to their autism, making the learning of language very difficult. With training, even these children can sometimes learn to communicate non-verbally.

Myth: Children with autism never make eye contact. If a child is able to make eye contact, it means that he or she does not have autism.
Reality: This can be a difficult skill for children with autism, but some children with autism do make eye contact, and others work in therapy to learn the importance of eye contact. A child may have autism even if he or she is able to make eye contact.

Myth: If children with autism are taught enough rote language, they will be able to have conversations.
Reality: Listing, naming, memorization, and other such activities are not sufficient to provide a child with the tools necessary to engage in conversation. In order for a child to successfully converse with others, he or she must be able to understand communicative functions of words and must have some conversational pragmatic skills.

Myth: Children with autism are completely unable to establish personal relationships. People with autism may not have the same emotional or social needs as everyone else. They might be happy living a life without friendships and intimate emotional relationships.
Reality: Children with autism have difficulty forming social relationships, but many of them are able to show love and affection for friends and family members, and many of them crave interaction. Many autistic people do build strong friendships through shared interests. There are also plenty of autistic people who marry and have satisfying romantic relationships.

Myth: Children with autism who can “fit in” with their peers and appear normal at first glance often have happier lives and better friendships than those who are obviously socially impaired.
Reality: People often adjust their expectations when a child appears to have a disability, but when a child appears typical, other children and adults may be confused by outbursts, social awkwardness, and behavioral rigidity when it occurs. Teachers, classmates, and those who are likely to interact with children who have autism should be educated about the disorder so that they can better understand what to expect.

References

“Autism: It’s probably not what you think.” South Carolina Autism Society. April 4, 2006. <http://www.scautism.org/myths.html>
Needleman, Robert. “Autism myths and realities.” Ask Dr. Spock. April 6, 2006.
<http://www.drspock.com/article/0,1510,4937,00.html>
Thompson, Tracy. “Popular autism myths.” April 6, 2006.
<http://autism.suite101.com/article.cfm/autismmyths>
“Top 7 autism myths.” Autism Spectrum Disorders. April 4, 2006. <http://autism.about.com/od/whatisautism/tp/topmyths.htm>