WELCOME TO JIM'S AUTISM BLOG





Hi everyone and thanks for visiting our blog. My wife and I created this blog to chronicle our experience while raising a son with Asperger's syndrome. Since our son was diagnosed with an ASD at age 5, we've had a lot of questions. Lucky for us we have a great support network in place. And our blog gives us an opportunity to share what we've learned with our readers. We hope you find our blog informative and interesting. Thanks again for visiting.


"It seems that for success in science and art, a dash of autism is essential." Dr Hans Asperger 1906-1980



Thursday 24 May 2012

STORY BOOK WEAVER VS GRAMMAR AND LITERACY

Thunderstorm Is Coming
Can you feel the storm coming?
Yesterday was supposed to be Jacob's first at home grief counselling session.  We only spoke with the school less than 2 weeks ago so we're thankful for the quick response.  But one of the conditions that we and the grief counsellor agreed upon, was that Jacob had to have a good day at school.  Well, Jacob had a rough afternoon for no good reason.

Luckily for us, the grief counsellor specializes in ASDs, and it shows.  Everyone involved knows that if Jacob is emotionally low on any given day, then trying to get him to talk about Max on that day would be impossible.  And it's great to work with someone who doesn't need an ASD lesson themselves.  So we had to cancel. 

So we re-scheduled the session for today.  But already today, we have to cancel.   I actually had to go into Jacob's classroom to get him, because he refused to leave.  And when I got there, he was smashing his pencil box on his desk and telling his EA that she was stupid.  (deep breath)  Then for a change, Jacob explained the reason for his meltdown.  It was because he wanted to practice his grammar and literacy on the CPU.  But his EA wanted him to use the Story Book Weaver program for 10 mins first which was also on the CPU.  Needless to say, Jacob did NOT accept the terms of the deal and therefore the re-scheduling.  (exhale)

I mean, really?  When I asked him why he didn't do the story weaver for 10 minutes, even he couldn't answer.  Doing something for 10 mins could have prevented the whole situation and it really got though to him. So again, we're going to re-schedule, for sometime next week.  Hopefully we'll get a session in before school ends.

Another nice quality about the counsellor is that they agree that Jacob needs some counselling in school, not just at home.  Our school is like many others in that because our child has issues in class, they want us to do something extra.  But Jacob's behaviour is much better at home, so why all the in home consultation?  It looks like we'll be doing a lot of Summer programming again.  And here we were looking to have a relaxing Summer, but the work of an ASD parent is never done.

And then I also found out yesterday that Jacob's teacher is leaving for another school closer to home.  So now we've lost a teacher with ASD experience at our school and a familiar face.  I'm sure Jacob will have at least 1 bad day when he realizes that his old teacher is gone.  But what can be done?  It's tough to try and teach a boy like Jacob that these things happen all the time.  Especially when something so simple can set him off.

Hopefully tomorrow will be better.  And with a relaxing weekend, Jacob should be able to get a session in next week, but I shouldn't jinx myself, because we all know, that anything can happen.

2 comments:

  1. Hi Jim, I felt so sad reading your post. Sad for you, and for Jacob. Not because he is disabled, but because I can't imagine having so many frustrating days and feeling so helpless about it. It's amazing that things so simple for us, concepts that seem so easy to grasp for us, are very difficult for Jacob, and that's just got to be so frustrating for him. Keep posting....I love reading your posts. I wish a happy upcoming week for Jacob.

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    1. Thanks Jewel. It can be tough at times, but it can also be very rewarding. Being a parent of a child with Asperger's teaches you patience and understanding. Which I think, that many people could benefit from.

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