Inclusion or Specially-Designed Community Programs? How to Choose.
By Lisa Jo Rudy, author of Get out, Explore, and Have Fun! How Families of Children with Autism or Asperger Syndrome Can Get the Most…
By Lisa Jo Rudy, author of Get out, Explore, and Have Fun! How Families of Children with Autism or Asperger Syndrome Can Get the Most…
“Kids with autism spectrum disorders get an awful lot of therapy…[all] in support of a single goal. In the long run, we hope, kids with autism will grow up to be adults who enjoy their lives and achieve to their fullest potential. In an ideal world, we hope they’ll learn to navigate interpersonal relationships, build friendships or even romances, work in a job of their choosing, and operate as independently as a typically developing child.
The truth is, though, that neither school nor a therapist’s office is an ideal setting for meeting new people, exercising new skills, finding shared interests, or just having fun in the world…”
“Autism can be an incredibly isolating disorder. Not only do parents wind up spending a huge amount of their time, energy, money and love on therapies and care – they also feel like outsiders in their own communities and families. It can be even worse for siblings who, through no fault of their own, are often excluded from ordinary activities. By getting out and getting involved in the community as it’s possible, families are able to reconnect with clubs, churches and synagogues, sports leagues… and often with their own families. Another huge plus for getting out into the world with a child on the autism spectrum is that families discover their child’s real strengths and abilities in ways that would never be possible in the school or therapeutic settings.”
JKP first published Ann Cattanach’s work in the early 1990’s, by which time she was an established play therapist, confident in her ability to help…