“The activities in the book capitalize on AD/HD traits because I use the traits as the vehicles to complete the task. AD/HD students like to move, so activities include jumping answers, and singing facts, and activities that are interesting enough to promote focus. The child is empowered to make tents, read on the floor, discuss emotions, and pop bubble paper.”
“There is lots of information in the book, and I really hope that people take that on board, but to me, what is more important is that they gain an understanding of, and an insight into life with Asperger Syndrome. If you understand someone with Asperger Syndrome, then knowing that it is named after Hans Asperger is redundant. While that sort of information might be interesting, it is far more useful to know how the person with Asperger Syndrome thinks: what he or she might find hard and why, what things might set them off, and what things will calm them down, what things they will be really good at, and what things they might struggle at.”
“Whatever your child’s level of verbal ability or behavior, don’t pass by the possibilities provided by animals. Non-verbal children are as capable as anyone of establishing a positive relationship with an animal. Your child may well surprise you with her compassion, connection and willingness to build a relationship with a non-human friend.”
“As a parent, you are the best judge of whether a “passionate interest” is an interest or a perseveration. If it’s an interest, it’s a spring board for community inclusion. If it’s a perseveration, it’s not a springboard at all, but rather an anchor. As with all anchors, it has a useful place – but no boat can move forward with its anchor firmly stuck in the mud.”
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.”