I have seen a few similar posts in the past months and have commented that I also had a kid just like this when I was doing daycare. I honestly think a lot of kids "present" with a ASD or another disability because of certain popular parenting styles lately. In my case, I knew the parents very well. I had watched their older child who became great friends with one my kids so we saw each other outside of daycare quite a bit and somewhat became friends. Their parenting style for the little boy that presents with a disability was DRASTICALLY different than how they parented the little girl that is friends with my daughter. I really think it was disservice to him. He is very catered to and babied. He is never allowed to cry or feel discomfort. Therefore, he had a really tough time in daycare where he was expected to find things to do on his own throughout the day. It wasn't a matter of "not knowing how to play" (which I think is not so much a 'thing') but it was more that he couldn't trust himself to make the right decision in any situation when his parents weren't present. He had zero confidence and learned that adults should set up play and direct it.

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