Every child perceives and understands the world in their own way. For many autistic children, that way is through bottom-up thinking. Instead of starting with a big-picture concept and then noticing details (a common top-down pattern in neurotypical/allistic development), autistic kids often build understanding from the details upward. This means they might notice every speck of dust dancing in a sunbeam, catch the faintest hum of a fluorescent light, or recall detailed facts about a favorite topic – all before grasping the overall gist of a situation.
This different processing style is not a deficit; it’s a valid form of cognition with its own strengths and challenges.
In this article, we’ll explore what bottom-up thinking is, how it appears in autistic children’s sensory and cognitive experiences, and – most importantly – how parents, teachers, and therapists can support these bottom-up thinkers with neuroaffirming strategies. We’ll use real case examples and insights from experts like Dr. Mona Delahooke, Dr. Stephen Porges, and Dr. Ross Greene to illustrate ways to create a safe, supportive world for children who process the world from the ground up.
Top-Down vs. Bottom-Up: Two Ways of Understanding the World
Human brains use two broad approaches to process information: top-down and bottom-up. In top-down processing, we interpret what we see or hear based on prior knowledge, context, and expectations – essentially using the “big picture” to make sense of details. This approach strengthens as neurotypical children grow; they learn to apply past experiences (“I’ve seen something like this before”) to new situations, which helps them predict and generalise. Bottom-up processing, on the other hand, is more detail-driven. It involves taking in raw sensory or factual data first and building it into an understanding without a strong preset filter.
Neurotypical development features an increasing balance toward top-down thinking – for example, a typical adult quickly recognises a dog as a dog because their brain immediately fits the image into the “dog” category from past experience. An autistic child, however, might first notice the specific patterns of the dog’s fur, the sound of its bark, and the shape of its ears, and only later piece together that it’s a dog. As Dr. Temple Grandin (a prominent autistic advocate) describes, “I’m a bottom-up thinker—I take the details and put them together.” Autistic people are often “details-before-the-concept” thinkers, whereas non-autistic people tend to be “concept-before-the-details”. In other words, the autistic mind approaches its environment through bottom-up processing, while the non-autistic mind leans more on top-down thinking drawn from prior memories and context.
This difference means that autistic individuals are less constrained by preconceptions and sometimes catch details or patterns others overlook. A top-down thinker might see a set of behaviours and immediately fit them into a preconceived category (for instance, assuming a child is “being naughty” because that’s a familiar category). In contrast, a bottom-up thinker (or observer) will gather numerous specific clues first. In fact, research suggests that individuals with higher autistic traits show a brain connectivity pattern where bottom-up signals “overcome” or outweigh top-down inputs.
While neurotypical brains constantly use predictions to interpret sensory input, autistic brains may rely more on the actual data coming in. This can lead to incredibly keen observation and novel insights – one reason autistic minds are often behind “outside-the-box” ideas and creative problem-solving – but it can also make the world feel overwhelming or chaotic if the “data” never seems to settle into a predictable pattern.
To illustrate, one autism specialist uses a puzzle metaphor: In a neurotypical top-down approach, you might have the puzzle’s picture on the box as a guide (a global idea of what you’re putting together). But a bottom-up thinker is working with blank puzzle pieces – they focus on each piece’s shape and color, assembling the picture only after painstakingly examining and fitting each piece. The big picture emerges last. This means autistic kids may excel at noticing fine details or remembering specific facts, yet they might take longer to understand the overall context or might interpret situations very differently than expected.
How Bottom-Up Processing Appears in Autistic Children
What does bottom-up thinking look like in day-to-day life for an autistic child? It often shows up in both sensory processing and cognitive style:
Sensory Experiences
Autistic children frequently have differences in sensory processing – many are hyper-sensitive (or sometimes hypo-sensitive) to sounds, sights, textures, and other inputs. Bottom-up processing amplifies the impact of these sensations. Rather than automatically tuning out background noise or unimportant details (as a top-down brain might do), the autistic nervous system takes it all in.
For example, in a classroom, a neurotypical child might hardly notice the ticking clock once focused on the teacher, but an autistic child might still be processing the clock’s ticking, the flicker of the fluorescent lights, the tag in their shirt scratching their neck, and a distant lawnmower all at the same time. Their brain isn’t filtering out the “extras” as much, so they receive a flood of detail-rich input. It’s no wonder that many autistic kids become overwhelmed in noisy, busy environments – their bottom-up minds are working overtime to process a torrent of details. In fact, neurophysiological research has found “enhanced bottom-up processing of sensory stimuli in people with autism,” correlated with increased sensory sensitivity.
In practical terms, an autistic child might detect sounds or visual details that others miss, or feel discomfort from stimuli that wouldn’t bother a neurotypical peer. A sudden loud PA announcement at school, a strong smell in the canteen, or an unanticipated touch on the shoulder can trigger a big reaction because it’s a jarring piece of input hitting an already overloaded sensory system.
Cognitive Style and Attention
Autistic thinkers often have a detail-focused cognitive style. Psychologists once described this in terms of “weak central coherence,” meaning an autistic person may excel at noticing constituent parts but struggle to see the forest for the trees. While the term “weak” is falling out of favor (since it frames a difference as a deficit), the observations remain: Autistic children can typically perceive details better than non-autistic people, but might not automatically synthesise those details into a broader concept.
For example, a 5-year-old neurotypical child drawing a house might draw a simple square with a triangle roof (capturing the general idea of a house). An autistic 5-year-old might draw every brick or include intricate elements seen on their own home’s facade, yet still miss that their drawing doesn’t resemble a typical house shape. Their mind goes bottom-up: “brick, window, door, shingle” and so on.
This detail focus can be a strength – it’s why some autistic people are outstanding at tasks requiring precision, pattern recognition, or extensive factual knowledge. But it also can mean that generalising from one situation to another is hard. A slight change in how a maths problem is worded might stump an autistic student even though the underlying concept is the same as yesterday’s homework, because to them the details make it a new problem (whereas a top-down thinker sees the familiar pattern).
Similarly, communication can be very literal for bottom-up thinkers. Figures of speech or sarcasm rely on top-down interpretation (understanding the intention beyond the literal words), which might not be intuitive for an autistic child. They hear exactly what is said – the precise words – first and foremost. For instance, telling an autistic student “hold your horses!” when they’re rushing might lead to a perplexed look or them replying, “But I don’t have any horses,” because they’re parsing the phrase literally, from the bottom up.
Emotional and Social Signals
Social interactions are full of unwritten rules and implied meanings – essentially a lot of top-down processing demands. Autistic kids, processing from the bottom up, may notice a peer’s individual words but not the subtle shift in tone that signifies teasing, or they may be so struck by one aspect of a facial expression that they miss the overall emotional message.
They might also have what Dr. Stephen Porges calls a heightened “neuroception” of danger. This means their nervous system is constantly scanning and sometimes over-detecting threats in the environment. A situation that seems benign to adults – say a busy, brightly lit school assembly – might register as overwhelmingly unpredictable and scary to an autistic child’s nervous system. The child doesn’t choose to be scared or upset by it; their bottom-up sensory and emotional processing automatically kicks them into “fight or flight” mode if things feel chaotic or novel.
One researcher noted that from an autistic child’s perspective, the world can appear “magical” (random and not following expected patterns) rather than orderly, precisely because of a reduced ability to unconsciously predict what will happen next. This can understandably cause anxiety. The strong need for routine and sameness often seen in autistic children can be viewed as a logical coping strategy: if you can’t easily form top-down predictions, keeping the environment and schedule extremely consistent helps life feel more manageable.
Real-World Case Example: Sensory Overload at the Supermarket
Six-year-old Aiden clings to his mother’s hand as they enter the supermarket. Within minutes, Aiden starts whining and covering his ears. The glaring lights above him buzz ever so softly – a hum most shoppers don’t even notice, but it sounds like an alarm to Aiden. The PA system chimes and a voice booms, “Cleanup in aisle 3,” which sends Aiden crouching down, tears in his eyes. He’s also caught a whiff of the fish counter as they passed by, and the wheels on the shopping trolley are squeaking. There are just too many sensory details at once. He throws himself to the floor in a meltdown, sobbing and screaming.
Aiden’s mother used to feel embarrassed, thinking he was “throwing a tantrum” for attention. But after learning about bottom-up processing, she understands this is a bottom-up stress response – Aiden’s nervous system is overwhelmed, not naughty. She gently places her hand on his back, speaking softly to help him feel safe until he can calm down. Now she brings noise-canceling headphones for Aiden when they shop, and goes at quieter hours. She also uses a visual picture schedule to show him their grocery list, so he knows exactly what to expect in each aisle (bringing a bit more predictability to this chaotic place). With these supports, Aiden gets through short shopping trips with far less distress.
This example highlights how an autistic child’s behaviour can be driven by bottom-up reactions. Dr. Mona Delahooke, a pediatric psychologist, emphasises that many meltdowns or “challenging behaviours” in autism are instinctual stress responses from the lower brain and body – not willful misbehaviour. These bottom-up behaviours won’t respond to traditional discipline or scolding; the child isn’t choosing to act out, and consequences or rewards don’t address the root cause. Instead, the child needs compassion and adjustments to feel safe and regulated.
Understanding this difference – is a behaviour coming from a deliberate (top-down) place or an automatic (bottom-up) place? – is key. “Bottom-up behaviours are brain-based stress responses that require understanding, compassion and actively helping an individual feel safe,” Dr. Delahooke explains. In Aiden’s case, once his mum recognised the supermarket meltdown as a bottom-up response, she shifted her approach from frustration to empathy and proactive support.
Real-World Case Example: Rigid Routine and the Morning Struggle
Eight-year-old Bella insists on wearing the same purple top every day. She lines up her cereal boxes just so on the breakfast table. One morning, the top is in the wash and her mother offers a different one – and Bella erupts into panic, crying and yelling that she can’t go to school. Later, at school drop-off, Bella has another meltdown when she finds out the class schedule changed and music class is today instead of art. She refuses to leave the car.
Bella’s parents and teacher collaborate to support her need for routine. They create a visual daily schedule that Bella reviews each morning, with any changes clearly indicated with picture cards. If something will be different (like music class swapping days), they let her know as early as possible and mark it on her schedule. Bella’s mum now keeps two identical purple tops on hand to avoid laundry crises.
Over time, with a more predictable environment and gentle preparation for transitions, Bella’s morning meltdowns decrease. She still likes consistency (that’s how her brain finds calm), but she’s gaining trust that changes won’t be random surprises.
What’s happening here? – Bella’s bottom-up mind relies on predictability to feel safe. Any unexpected change – a different clothing texture, a schedule swap – sends her nervous system into alarm.
Bella’s story underscores a common bottom-up processing experience: difficulty with transitions and change. Autistic children thrive on routine and predictability because it reduces the torrent of new details their brain must process. When they know what to expect, their system can stay regulated. On the flip side, a sudden change means their bottom-up processing has to deal with a flood of new information (and possibly a sense of dread since they can’t anticipate what the new situation will hold).
Research consistently notes that transitions are often especially hard for kids on the spectrum – even moving from one activity to the next can feel overwhelming if it disrupts their established flow. As the Child Mind Institute explains, “Children with autism have a hard time transitioning from one thing to another because they prefer routine and predictability. Anything that takes them out of their routine can feel overwhelming.”
For Bella, wearing the same top and expecting art on Tuesday aren’t just preferences; they are anchors of predictability that keep her feeling safe. Remove them without warning, and her whole world tilts. The solution was not to punish Bella for her outburst and refusal, but to adapt the environment and provide supportive tools (like visual schedules and advance warnings) so her bottom-up system isn’t thrown into chaos.
A Quick Note About How Bottom-Up Processing in People With ADHD: Doing First, Thinking Later
While bottom-up processing is often associated with autism, many ADHD individuals also experience a version of bottom-up functioning—but in a different way. Rather than processing sensory input or data from the ground up, ADHD brains often operate through bottom-up *action* or *doing*. This means responding to immediate stimuli or ideas without first mapping out the bigger picture—leading to action-first, think-later dynamics.
This form of bottom-up doing can look like:
– Jumping into a new hobby or project without prior planning, driven by novelty or excitement.
– Responding to external cues (e.g., an ad, a conversation, a song) and taking immediate action before reflecting on long-term consequences.
– Experiencing difficulty pausing or inhibiting actions, especially when dopamine is involved.
This pattern is driven by key ADHD traits:
Dopamine-seeking behaviour – gravitating to what’s stimulating or novel.
Time blindness – difficulty envisioning future outcomes, making the present detail feel more real than future consequences.
Impulsivity – a decreased ability to inhibit responses or “wait to think.”
Where autistic children may analyse details before understanding the whole, ADHD children may act on details before considering the whole. Both approaches require different support strategies. Autistic children may need help integrating information into a broader context, while ADHD children may need support in pausing, planning, and anticipating outcomes.
Case Study
Liam (ADHD, 10 years old) hears his teacher mention a science fair. Within minutes, he’s already signed up, brainstormed a volcano project, and ordered materials online—without realising it overlaps with soccer finals weekend. His parents notice that he’s acting on impulse, driven by the excitement of the idea. While his enthusiasm is fantastic, Liam needs scaffolding to pause, assess feasibility, and co-plan steps to succeed without overwhelm.
Support Strategies for ADHD Bottom-Up Doers
— Use visual timers or reminders to help ADHD children pause before acting.
— Break tasks into small chunks, but allow flexibility for creativity and spontaneous action.
— Teach “stop, think, act” scripts in playful, non-punitive ways.
— Provide dopamine-positive outlets that allow spontaneous action within a safe framework.
Practical Strategies to Support Autistic Bottom-Up Thinkers
Supporting an autistic child who processes from the bottom up starts with respecting their experience. Instead of trying to force neurotypical top-down expectations (“She should know better,” “He’s just being dramatic,”), we adjust our approach to meet them where they are. Here are some practical, neuroaffirming strategies – useful at home, in the classroom, or in therapy – that honor bottom-up processing and help these children thrive:
Emphasise Co-Regulation Over Punishment
When a child is in the throes of a meltdown or anxiety, our first job is to help regulate their overwhelmed nervous system, not to discipline. Co-regulation means an adult or caregiver provides calming support through their presence, tone, and actions. Think of it as lending your own well-regulated nervous system to the child until they can find their balance. This might involve speaking in a soothing, gentle voice, offering a hug or simply staying nearby with a calm demeanor, and validating what the child is feeling. Neuroscience tells us that a sense of safety and connection is the prerequisite for a child to be able to use any coping skills or to even hear what we are saying.
Dr. Stephen Porges’ polyvagal theory emphasises creating a “neuroception of safety” – an unconscious feeling of safety – for autistic individuals, who may be especially prone to sensing stress in those around them. In practice, co-regulation might look like a teacher crouching down next to a child who is crying under his desk, keeping her voice soft and steady: “I’m here. You’re safe. We’ll figure this out together.” Only after the child’s breathing slows and their tears subside (indicating the bottom-up flood is receding) might the teacher gently review what happened or guide the child in problem-solving.
Never punish a child for a bottom-up behaviour like a meltdown or shutdown – as Dr. Delahooke notes, punishing a stress response can “easily make matters worse” by adding fear on top of an already dysregulated state. Instead, focus on calming the storm first. Over time, this approach actually builds the child’s own capacity for self-regulation, because they learn that when big feelings or sensory overload hits, they can move through it to safety (rather than being punished, which just confirms to their brain that the world is dangerous when they’re in distress).
Create Predictable, Structured Environments
Consistency is calming for bottom-up thinkers. The more an environment is predictable and tailored to the child’s sensory needs, the less often their system will go into overdrive. In practice, this can mean maintaining consistent daily routines (meal times, school schedules, bedtime rituals) and giving lots of forewarning and explanation for any changes. Visual schedules are a fantastic tool here (more on that shortly).
As one research team put it, “the need for sameness is one of the most uniform characteristics of autism,” likely because a predictable environment helps compensate for difficulties in making spontaneous predictions. Autistic children often develop strong routines or rituals (for example, always greeting people in the same way, or wanting to play with toys in a particular pattern). Rather than viewing these as “obsessive” behaviours to eliminate, we can recognise that these routines provide a sense of stability that the child truly needs. Honoring their need for sameness – within reason – is a way to show we respect their neurotype.
In a classroom, this might involve having a clear, posted schedule for the day, using consistent signals for transitions (like a gentle bell or a particular clean-up song), and if something unexpected must happen, taking time to explain it to the student individually: “Our assembly was rescheduled to this morning. I know that’s different from our usual plan. After circle time, we will go to the auditorium. I will walk with you and we have your noise-cancelling headphones if it’s loud.”
In therapy settings or doctor’s visits, practitioners can help by letting the child know what will happen next (e.g., “First we’ll do some jumping exercises, then we’ll play with the putty.”) and by keeping their approach predictable (starting sessions the same way each time, etc.). A predictable environment significantly reduces anxiety, because the child’s bottom-up system doesn’t have to be on high alert for surprises at every moment.
Use Visual Supports and Concrete Cues
Autistic children are often strong visual learners. Visual supports like picture schedules, illustrated step-by-step instructions, cue cards, or sign language can make communication more concrete and less fleeting than spoken words. For a bottom-up processor, spoken language can be here and gone in an instant – it’s transient and requires quick top-down interpretation. Visual supports, on the other hand, stay put, allowing the child to process the information at their own pace and refer back to it as needed.
A visual schedule is essentially a series of pictures or icons that represent each activity or segment of the day. Using one can dramatically improve an autistic child’s understanding of “what comes next,” thereby easing transitions and reducing anxiety. For example, in a home setting, a morning routine chart with pictures (toothbrushing, getting dressed, eating breakfast, packing backpack, etc.) can help a child move through each step with less prompting because they can see what to do and what’s next. In a classroom, a visual schedule might be a large poster with images for each subject in order, and an indicator moving along as the day progresses.
Other visual tools include first-then boards (showing “First [task], then [preferred activity]” to motivate and clarify expectations), feeling charts (to help the child identify and point to their emotions, since discussing feelings abstractly can be hard), and visual timers (like a timer app that shows a shrinking pie or a red bar that gets smaller – giving a visual sense of time remaining). These supports play to the strengths of bottom-up thinkers by making information concrete, clear, and retrievable.
They also reduce the reliance on the child’s language processing in the heat of the moment. For instance, instead of repeatedly telling a child who’s getting antsy “Not yet, we’ll go to the playground after the maths session,” a teacher can silently point to the schedule or a “first math, then playground” card. The child can see the sequence, which often clicks better. Research and clinical guidance widely endorse visual supports because they “provide structure and routine, improve understanding, and help avoid frustration and anxiety,” among other benefits for autistic individuals. And importantly, using visual supports is a neuroaffirming practice – it doesn’t force the child to process the way we do; it communicates in the way they process best.
Allow Extra Processing Time and Slow Transitions
A bottom-up thinker might take longer to respond to questions or shift between activities, simply because they are still sorting through all the incoming details. It’s crucial to give them adequate processing time. For example, if you ask an autistic student, “Can you tell me one thing you learned from the story?”, they may not answer as quickly as another child – perhaps they’re still recalling specific details of the story in their mind. Rather than immediately prompting again or rephrasing (which can flood them with even more to process), give a generous pause. They often will answer given a bit more time.
Similarly, plan for slow, supported transitions between activities. Transitions are those moments when bottom-up overload frequently strikes, as we saw with Bella. To ease transitions, use warnings like “Five minutes until we switch to the next activity” and then “Two minutes…” along with possibly a visual countdown or a simple ritual to end one activity and start another. Some teachers use an object or sign to signify the next activity (like holding up a book to show storytime is next, giving the child’s brain a head start to shift gears).
Others find success with transition objects – for instance, letting a child carry a favorite small toy from home during the walk from class to the bus, to keep something familiar with them as they move into a new environment. The key is not to rush a bottom-up processor suddenly from A to B. If abrupt transitions are forced, the child might react with what looks like defiance or meltdown, but it’s actually that their system is overwhelmed by the sudden demand to recalibrate.
Keeping transitions calm and predictable (e.g., using the same song to signal clean up every day, or giving the child a job like “please help me shut the lights off” to positively engage them in the transition) can turn a chaotic moment into a manageable one. Remember, as much as possible, no surprises – or if a surprise is inevitable, try to package it in a gentle way. For example, if an unexpected event occurs (“Fire drill in 1 minute!”), grabbing the child’s noise-cancelling headphones, briefly explaining what will happen (“there will be a loud bell, we’ll line up and go outside safely, it’s just a practice”), and perhaps covering their ears or having them cover their ears before the alarm rings can help contain the shock.
Supporting transitions in these ways respects the child’s need for a little extra time and support for their bottom-up brain to catch up.
Accommodate Sensory Needs
A neuroaffirming approach treats the child’s sensory sensitivities as genuine needs, not misbehaviour or quirks to ignore. If a child is distressed by cafeteria noise, consider letting them eat in a quieter spot or wear headphones. If fluorescent lights bother them, see if they can use natural light or wear a cap in class. Many autistic kids benefit from sensory tools that help them stay regulated: noise-canceling headphones, sunglasses, chewable jewellery, fidget toys, weighted lap pads, or access to a “sensory corner” where they can calm themselves with dim lighting and soft cushions.
Occupational therapists often work with families and schools to identify a child’s unique sensory profile and suggest accommodations. For instance, a child who craves movement might need frequent dance or jumping breaks between seated tasks; one who is easily overwhelmed by touch might do better if people approach them from the front and avoid unexpected pats on the back. By meeting these sensory needs proactively, we prevent a lot of bottom-up distress.
It’s important to frame these accommodations as perfectly acceptable supports, not spoiling the child. Just as a child with vision impairment needs glasses, a child with sensory processing differences might need modifications to the environment. Meeting these needs helps the child engage more successfully with the world. An autistic advocate might say, “Our world is built for the neurotypical,” and indeed, things like bright lights and constant noise are taken for granted in many settings.
Making the environment more autism-friendly (quieter, more structured, less cluttered) is an act of inclusion and respect.
Collaborate and Problem-Solve Together
In line with Dr. Ross Greene’s philosophy “Kids do well if they can,” assume that your autistic child wants to succeed and behave well, and if they aren’t, there is a reason or unmet need. Adopting this mindset leads to collaborative problem solving rather than adversarial conflict. For example, if every day recess ends in a meltdown because the child doesn’t want to stop playing, instead of labeling the child “stubborn” and punishing, work with the child (at a calm moment) to understand and address the issue.
You might discover they feel overwhelmed lining up with all the kids (too noisy, jostling). Together, you could agree they get to be line leader or line up last with a buddy, and also use a visual timer to show when recess is ending. By involving the child in finding solutions, you not only fix problems more effectively, you also show them that their feelings and insights matter. Ross Greene encourages adults to identify lagging skills or triggers and solve them upstream. For a bottom-up thinker, this approach is golden.
It treats them as a partner in creating a better fit with their world, rather than someone who is “broken” and needs to be fixed. It’s also inherently neuroaffirming because it respects their point of view. If transitions are hard, we don’t simply demand they “toughen up”; we work together to ease transitions. If certain school assignments always end in tears, we ask why – maybe the instructions were too vague (not enough detail for a bottom-up mind to grasp), so the solution might be to provide a concrete example or template for them. In short, listen to the child and validate their experience.
Often autistic kids have very logical explanations for what others see as “problem behaviour.” By collaborating, we not only resolve specific challenges but also empower the child with self-advocacy skills over time (“I can ask for a break when I feel overwhelmed,” “I can tell my teacher I don’t understand the question”).
Celebrate Strengths and Special Interests
Bottom-up thinkers often develop deep knowledge in areas of interest (sometimes called “special interests” or passions). Rather than discouraging these as “fixations,” caregivers and educators can harness them as entry points for learning and connection. An autistic child who knows every fact about trains, for example, could be encouraged to write a story about trains for a language assignment, or do math word problems using train cars and passengers. This not only motivates the child, but it also validates their way of thinking.
Their detailed memory and focus become an asset in the learning process. Strengths-based approaches acknowledge that autistic processing comes with advantages: maybe the child has an extraordinary memory, a unique way of seeing patterns, an honesty and directness that peers admire, or a vivid creative imagination. When adults recognise and praise these traits, it helps the child build a positive self-concept. They start to see that they’re not “bad” or “weird” – they are different and talented.
Neuroaffirming care is all about sending the message that “you are understood and appreciated as you are.” For example, a therapist might notice that a child communicates better while drawing than speaking, and so the therapist joins in drawing time and converses through pictures – honoring the child’s communicative strength. A teacher might notice a student is excellent with technology and allow them to present a project as a video instead of a written report, showcasing that student’s skills.
By working with their bottom-up style (perhaps allowing them to include lots of factual detail, visual elements, or hands-on components), we keep the child engaged and confident. This stands in contrast to approaches that might label the child’s intense interests or need for detail as problematic. Embracing their unique minds builds trust – the child feels seen and validated, which only further improves their ability to cope and learn.
All these strategies come down to a simple but profound shift: seeing the child’s perspective as valid. We adjust the environment and our expectations to support the child, rather than trying to force the child to fit an environment that is mismatched to their needs. This is the heart of neurodiversity-affirming practice. It aligns with expert guidance that we must “look beyond behaviours” and accommodate the underlying sensory, emotional, or cognitive needs. For instance, instead of focusing on stopping Bella’s morning outburst, her parents focused on the upstream need for predictability and adjusted the routine – and the outburst naturally lessened.
By meeting the bottom-up needs, the “behaviours” often improve without the need to address the behaviours directly – focusing on the cause, not the “problem”.
Embracing Differences: A Neuroaffirming Mindset
Perhaps the most important thing for any parent, teacher, or therapist supporting an autistic child is to adopt a neuroaffirming mindset. This means recognising that autistic brains are not defective versions of neurotypical brains – they are different, with their own powerful abilities and understandable difficulties. Bottom-up processing is a core aspect of many autistic people’s experience. It can lead to overload and challenges, yes, but it also contributes to the unique perspectives and talents that autistic individuals offer the world.
As one clinic put it during Autism Acceptance Month, “the world needs all kinds of minds, especially those with autism,” because bottom-up thinkers can invent novel solutions and see connections others miss. They may approach problems without the conventional constraints, leading to genuine innovation.
A neuroaffirming approach frames these processing differences as valid. We don’t want to “train” the detail-oriented, bottom-up approach out of the child; we want to help them leverage it and cope with a world that isn’t always detail-friendly. We send the child the message: “It’s okay to be who you are. Let’s find strategies that help you navigate challenges, and let’s celebrate what’s great about how you think.”
For example, if a child gets caught up in small details when learning, instead of constantly pushing them to “see the big picture,” we might allow them time to indulge their detail curiosity and then gently guide them to the broader concept. We might say, “I love how observant you are! You noticed something no one else did. Now, let’s see how that fits into the whole story.” This way the child’s bottom-up nature is acknowledged as a strength (keen observation), and we provide a bridge to the top-down skill (seeing the theme of the story) without devaluing their natural style.
Language matters too. Avoid pathologising terms in front of the child like “fixated,” “obsessed,” “too sensitive,” or “behaviour problem.” Instead, use respectful language: talk about their “interests,” their “sensory needs,” and how everyone’s brain works differently. This normalises their experience. For instance, you might explain, “Your brain likes to get all the details first. That’s really cool – it’s why you remember so much. My brain works differently, it sort of skips to the big idea. Sometimes I might help you see the big idea, and sometimes you can help me notice the details!” Conversations like this bolster the child’s self-esteem and help them understand themselves in a positive light.
Expert voices in child development increasingly advocate for this respectful, brain-body approach. Dr. Mona Delahooke urges us to respond to behaviours by considering a child’s nervous system state and not by imposing harsh discipline. Dr. Ross Greene reminds us that if a child could meet our expectations they would – so if they aren’t, it’s our job to figure out why and help solve it, rather than assume the worst. And Dr. Stephen Porges’ work highlights the importance of feeling safe: only when an autistic child feels safe (through accommodations, co-regulation, and understanding) can they fully engage socially and learn. All these insights direct us to the same conclusion: meet the child where they are, and support them from the ground up (quite literally, in terms of brain processing!).
By incorporating co-regulation, predictable supports, visual tools, and sensory accommodations, we communicate to autistic kids that their needs will be met. In turn, these kids often blossom. A child who once lived in constant fight-or-flight can relax enough to show their humor and creativity. A student who frequently melted down can, with the right supports, demonstrate incredible focus and knowledge in class.
The journey isn’t about “fixing” the child, but about partnering with them and sometimes educating others in the child’s world to do the same.For example, a parent might work with the school to train peers on understanding autism, or a therapist might coach a family on how to structure home routines in an autism-friendly way. This community approach ensures the child isn’t facing constant friction between their bottom-up style and a top-down world.
To Sum Up
Bottom-up thinking in autistic children is a profound difference in experiencing life that calls for empathy and adaptation. These children vividly feel the textures of the world – its sights, sounds, and patterns – and with our support, they can learn to navigate it without being overwhelmed. By providing co-regulation, maintaining predictable and gentle environments, using visual and sensory aids, and working collaboratively, we support them in building the skills (and trust) they need to thrive.
We also send a powerful message that their way of processing is legitimate. This not only helps them in the moment but paves the way for them to grow into autistic adults who understand their own needs and advocate for themselves. As caregivers and educators, when we embrace bottom-up thinking, we aren’t just managing behaviours – we are nurturing a child’s authentic development and honoring the neurodiversity that enriches our human community.
References
- Embrace Autism – Thinking styles in autistic people (explains bottom-up vs. top-down thinking).
- Menninger Clinic – Great Minds Don’t All Think Alike (Autism Acceptance article illustrating puzzle metaphor for bottom-up thinking).
- Delahooke, Mona (2019) – Beyond Behaviors (concept of top-down vs. bottom-up behaviors; need for safety and understanding in bottom-up responses).
- Child Mind Institute – Why Do Kids Have Trouble With Transitions? (notes autistic children’s preference for routine and overwhelm with change).
- MIT News – Autism as a disorder of prediction (hypothesis that autism involves impaired predictive ability, hence need for sameness as coping).
- Porges, Stephen – Polyvagal Theory / Neuroception (importance of safety cues and co-regulation for autistic individuals’ social engagement).
- National Autistic Society – Visual supports (describes how visual supports provide structure, improve understanding, and reduce anxiety for autistic people).
- Psychology Today – Promoting a Neuroception of Safety for Autistic Adults (emphasises personalised support, combining top-down and bottom-up methods, and the need to help individuals feel safe).
- Ross Greene – Children Do Well if They Can (paradigm that challenging behavior is due to lagging skills or unmet needs, not lack of motivation).
- Karhson & Golob (2016) in Frontiers in Neuroscience: evidence of enhanced bottom-up sensory processing in autism.
- Temple Grandin interview – The New Idealist (2015) (Grandin describing herself as a bottom-up thinker).
