‘All those child psychologists who said “John prefers to play by himself” were dead wrong’.

 “I did not want to play alone, I played alone because I was a failure at playing with others.” -John Elder Robison

Another touching, yet scary realization John Elder Robison shares in his book, Look Me in the Eye.

“As a functional Aspergian adult, one thing troubles me deeply about those kids who end up behind the second door. Many descriptions of autism and Asperger’s describe people like me as “not wanting contact with others” or “preferring to play alone.” I can not speak for other kids, but I’d like to be very clear about my own feelings: I did not ever want to be alone. And all those child psychologists who said “John prefers to play by himself” were dead wrong. I played by myself because I was a failure at playing with others. I was alone as a result of my own limitations, and being alone was one of the bitterest disappointments of my young life. The sting of those early failures followed me long into adulthood, even after I learned about Asperger’s.”

Passage taken from: Robison, John Elder. Look Me in the Eye: My Life with Asperger’s. New York: Crown, 2007. Pg 211.

I do not know about you but this passage hit me hard. As a teacher, I wonder how I am supposed to encourage the play of all students when some students on the outside seem unwilling to play with others. Students tend to avoid activities that are hard so it should not come to a shock when a student with Asperger’s removes themselves from a group of people to feel “safe” or more “secure”.

Throughout my years of interacting with students, I have learned that every child wants to be accepted and loved for who they are as individuals. While some people are definitely more extraverted than others, no one wants to live life fully alone. We must be sure to include students the best we can and create opportunities of play for students who struggle. Without the child knowing, teachers can be consciousness of who they pair a student with Asperger’s with and create environments that encourage structured playing time. Structured playing time may help the child with Asperger’s to play with more ease and not feel the bitter disappointment of playing alone.

Students with Asperger’s can also be taught and instructed in what is considered appropriate behavior. Students without Asperger’s must also be taught how one should treat and include all human beings. With this said, teachers can have classroom discussions that include all students about appropriate behavior during play, recess, or lunch to help create an inclusive and safe environment for all students to interact and feel included.

I believe the teacher or the parent plays a huge role in setting the standard of how students in her classroom or home treat one another. Students can be taught basic principles of respect, understanding, and manners. This simple classroom discussion can lead to happy people and happy students, and prevent more passages as the one read above about John Elder Robison.

 As stated in a previous post, I highly recommend the book: “Look Me in the Eye” by John Elder Robinson to gain a better understanding on people with Aspergers.

In light of the tragic event at Sandy Hook: Mental Illness

As a future elementary school teacher, I am horrified at the tragic event that took place on Friday, December 14th at Sandy Hook Elementary School. My heart goes out to every parent, friend, and community member directly and indirectly affected by the event.

The story has been provoking lots of discussion on gun rights in America, but this one mom has asked Americans to think about mental illness. Please read her blog below as she relates to the tragedy through raising her 13 year old son.

http://anarchistsoccermom.blogspot.com/2012/12/thinking-unthinkable.html

I would love to hear your thoughts on what can be done about mental illness in America after reading this blog post. How can we better serve those with mental disabilities?

 

 

“Treat me with the same respect”

Author of the book Look Me in the Eye, John Elder Robison share’s his experiences growing up as a boy with Asperger’s. So far, the story throughout has powerful messages and themes. Below, I highlighted a section I found particularly eye-opening as Robison shares the difficulties ‘Aspergians’ have with communication everyday. Aspergians don’t necessarily have an external sign of a disability, which can lead outside people to false conclusions or thoughts when interacting with a person with Asperger’s due to misunderstandings and a lack of knowledge about the disability. Robison aims to break this barrier by sharing an analogy about how society treats someone in a wheelchair compared to how someone would treat him with his own difficulties. He asks society to treat him with the same respect and wishes for compassion and grace for all.

“My conversational difficulties highlight a problem Aspergians face every day. A person with an obvious disability-for example, someone in a wheelchair-is treated compassionately because his handicap is obvious. No one turns to a guy in a wheelchair and says, “Quick! Let’s run across the street!” And when he can’t run across the street, no one says, “What’s his problem?” They offer to help him across the street. With me, though, there is no external sign that I am conversationally handicapped. So folks hear some conversational misstep and say, “What an arrogant jerk!” I look forward to the day when my handicap will afford me the same respect accorded to a guy in a wheelchair. And if the respect comes with a preferred parking space, I won’t turn it down.”

Passage taken from: Robison, John Elder. Look Me in the Eye: My Life with Asperger’s. New York: Crown, 2007. Pg 194.

I encourage society to treat all human beings with the same respect, dignity, and grace we all deserve. We must be careful not to jump to conclusions and understand the social difficulties people with Asperger’s face. I believe this will happen when people better understand what Asperger’s is and how social interaction is a struggle. We all struggle with communication and must extend grace to all.

 As stated in a previous post, I highly recommend the book: “Look Me in the Eye” by John Elder Robinson to gain a better understanding on people with Aspergers.

A must read: “Look me in the eye”

“As sweet and funny and sad and true and heartfelt a memoir as one could find.”—from the foreword by Augusten Burroughs

Look me in the eye” by John Elder Robison is a must read for anyone wishing to have a better understanding of people with Aspergers.

John Elder, a natural storyteller, remarkably shares a personal and detailed narrative of his life and his battles of feeling accepted by family, friends, and teachers who did not understand how his brain worked. He was not diagnosed until the age of 40 and was simply labeled as a “social deviant” growing up.

From overcoming his painful childhood, he persisted to become a successful business man repairing high-end cars. In his humorous, yet at times sad acount, John Elder creativly takes readers into the mind of an Asperger’s boy. This book will open up the minds and eyes of readers who may lack understanding or grace for people with Aspergers. This is a great summer read and is highly recommended.

 A note from the author: “When I wrote “Look Me in the Eye”, I wanted to show readers what it was like to grow up feeling like a freak or a misfit. I thought my book would show how people with Asperger’s are different from everyone else. To my great surprise, my book actually shows the opposite: Deep down, people are very much the same”.

 I agree with the author and would encourage all to buy and read this book! 🙂

Cultivate A Love for Learning

“Learning was never something you did because you had to, it was something you did because you loved it”

-Francis Collins

As educators, parents, and people of this world; we must cultivate a love for learning for all students of all abilities. We must never grow weary of new knowledge and new experiences. We must differentiate our instruction and style of teaching to engage each student to their maximum potential (which is usually higher than we first assume).  Learning should be incorporated in all that we do and say. Learning, to all, should seem natural and fun. We are not fully engaged in this world if we are not consistently questioning all that we see, hear, taste, smell, and feel around us.

In conclusion, a love for learning is a cultivated attitude which can be created by educators, parents, and friends.

From Pain to Promise: Nick Vujicic

Imagine living a life with no arms or no legs. Imagine living in a world where everyone could see your differences, your ‘abnormality’, your ‘weakness’…

Would you still have hope? Would you still believe in yourself?

Nick Vujicic does.

Nick Vujicic was born in 1982 with a rare disorder called Tetra-ameilia syndrome. Without any medical explanation or warning, Vujicic (pronounced Voy-a-chich) was born limbless. Having no arms or legs, he could not live life the way other ‘normal’ children could. He eventually became so lonely and depressed that he tried to take his own life when he was 10. He often wondered if his life had a purpose, and why God would create him with no arms ands legs.

With the help and support of his parents, Vujicic began to embrace his disability and adapt to his situation. He began to do the ‘impossible, and found ways to accomplish the daily tasks of life, which usually required the use of limbs such as: writing, typing (by using the “heel and toe” method, brushing teeth, answering the phone, shaving, and throwing a tennis ball.

Now 27, Nick is known as a motivational speaker, a pastor, and an author. Nick believes that there is a distinct purpose of each struggle we encounter, and that our attitude toward those struggles is a salient tool in overcoming them. He be

lieves in dreaming big, and using personal difficulties for good. He now travels the world to encourage others with his story of finding hope and joy through the struggle of his physical disability.

He is the founder of a non-profit organization called Life without Limbs, and has his own motivational speaking company called Attitude is Altitude. He published a book in October 2010 called Life Without Limits: Inspiration for a Ridiculously Good Life and has talked to many people (and even leaders) around the world. He recently got married (which was a life-long dream of his) to Kenae Miyahara on February 12, 2012.

He is truly an inspiration to me, and I encourage you to read his book and watch his talks on YouTube.

Stephen Wiltshire: The Human Camera

Stephen Wiltshire, diagnosed at age three with severe autism, is known for his remarkable ability to draw something he has only seen once with precise detail and accuracy.

Scientists have been unable to explain this phenomena and why some people have these unique genius-like talents.

Until the age of 5, Wiltshire was mute. He began to communicate through pictures and was encouraged by his teachers to continue drawing.  He later went for formal instruction in the subject matter as his interest grew.

He has now drawn many large cities from memory and has sketched legendary skyscrapers such as the Empire State Building and the Chrysler Building. Watch the video below to see a glimpse of Wiltshire’s incredible talent.

Stephen Wiltshire: The Human Camera (Click on link)

 

 

A Deeper Look into the Autistic World: An Incredible Testimony

This is an incredible video that changed the autistic world forever.

Ever since Carly was three, she has had one-to-one therapy that took about 40-60 hours a week. Carly’s parents never gave up on her, despite the slow progress and criticism given by some friends.  Carly had a breakthrough moment and started to type her thoughts one letter at a time at the age of 13. Carly gives great insight to educators and parents alike. Carly’s story is unbelievable and should provide great  hope to the development of understanding autism.

 You can follow Carly on twitter at @Carlysvoice or visit her website http://carlysvoice.com. She has a book coming out called  Carly’s Voice: Breaking Through Autism which will be released March 27, 2012.

Click on the blue link Autistic Girl Expresses Unimaginable Intelligence to watch the incredible video.