Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Squeaky Wheel

The boy is in his third year of special needs pre-K.  (He's a November baby and so he aged out of Early Intervention with almost an entire school to go.)  In previous years, we'd get lovely reports from his teachers.  So happy!  So charming!  What a sweetheart!

The boy is in a decidedly un-charming phase.

I'm starting to think that's a good thing.  You see, when he wasn't a problem, we weren't getting a lot of input as to how to help him.  Now that he's being a royal pain in the ass, his teachers, therapists, doctors, and parents are being really proactive. 

Today, the boy had a victory!  We all had a victory!

He's been hitting and pinching when he's frustrated and not getting his way.  When he gets angry, his teacher prompts him with a picture of an "angry face" and cues him to say, "I'm mad."  Then she asks him to tell her what he wants, and he eventually calms down and uses his words.

Well, today was a big day!  During circle time, the boy grabbed his teacher's hand and was about to pinch, when he stopped himself.  He let go of her hand, looked her in the face, and said, "I'm mad."

"Why are you mad?"

"I want the monkey book."

"OK, you can work for it during work time."

And that was it!  He accepted that and returned to the circle.  He didn't hulk out or throw a fit or anything.  And he did it all without prompting.

A miracle.

If you a parent of a child on the spectrum, you understand what a big deal this is.  If you are not, you probably feel sorry for me.  Don't.  It's been a good day.

2 comments:

  1. I don't have any children, let alone a child with ASD. But I have over a dozen friends with children who register somewhere on the spectrum, and I see their daily struggles to navigate through the underfunded and misunderstood waters of autism. I just found your blog today, and I don't feel sorry for you over this post, or any other post. I think you are an honest, whitty Mom, who is doing a bang up job of raising her two boys. Thank you for sharing this milestone with the world. You've made me, a complete stranger, swell with pride for a family I don't even know.

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    Replies
    1. OMG! I'm so hoping to be able to claim my son had this victory some day!

      Love your posts and am there with you...

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