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Your AIM This Week:
Be Curious
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Children and adults with autism experience their environment and social interactions differently.
We have been afforded insights into these differences, often sensory-related but also cognitive, emotional, and physiologically-based, from first-hand reports.
There are now dozens of books written by autistic individuals, including children. They are insightful and essential to learn from for parents and professionals alike.
“My autism makes things shine. Sometimes I think it is amazing but sometimes it is sad when I want to be the same and talk the same and I fail. Playing the piano makes me very happy. Playing Beethoven is like your feelings – all of them – exploding.”
– Mikey Allcock, 16-year old who was non-speaking until age 10
Having read a good number of these books, blogs and lectures, several takeaways for me are:
Not all people with autism experience things the same way. They/we are all unique and have our own individual experiences of the world.
One person’s account of their autistic experience should not be assumed and imposed on another person with autism.
There is an infinitely wide range, a spectrum, of how each sense (smell, touch, taste, vision, and hearing) can be experienced.
Given the individuality and range of autism, I believe that the only way to better understand any one individual like your child is to stay curious, to observe, join, and not judge.
This week I encourage you to put aside your assumptions to spark your curiosity.
Become a detective… observe your child’s patterns, observe their behavior, listen closely to their sounds, join in more to imitate their movements.
Do all of this from a place of pure child-like curiosity… no pre-judgment… no pre-conclusions… no assumptions. Join them in their play and movement as a way to learn about them.
Enjoy this week, filled with curiosity and wonder!
Jonathan Alderson
Autism Expert
Founder, ThriveGuide
Author, Challenging the Myths of Autism
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Explore All AIMs
Be Curious
Children and adults with autism experience their environment and social interactions differently. We have been afforded insights into these differences, often sensory-related but also cognitive, emotional, and physiologically-based, from first-hand reports. There are now dozens of books written by autistic individuals, including children. They are insightful and essential to learn from for parents and professionals alike...
Autistic Voices, In Their Words
On this week’s A.I.M., we look at voices of children and adults with autism to understand and to gain insight from their personal lived-experience. And we explore the tension between prioritizing learning from autistic lived-experience and recognizing the broad diversity within it. If we are all unique and different, then how relevant is one personal experience?
Wordplay
This week, your focus is to strike the balance between expecting more language and longer phrases from your child, while keeping communication with them light and effortless. Find new ways to turn saying words and speaking into play. Give yourself permission to be a little more silly with communication to entice your child to want to share more of it with you!
Created by Autism Specialist.
Jonathan Alderson, Ed. M., draws on 25+ years of supporting autistic children.
Completely free resource.
No strings attached. Just a way for us to support as many families as possible.
Completely free resource.
No strings attached. Just a way for us to support as many families as possible.
Created by Autism Specialist.
Jonathan Alderson, Ed. M., draws on 25+ years of supporting autistic children.