The balance between helping autistic people and doing it for them (and how to get it right)
During my work in special education, one story that really stuck with me involved a sixteen-year-old girl who came to us after a lifetime in mainstream schools. The most revealing moment of her first week came in an English lesson. She sat down with the rest of the class. The task was set and the other students began to work. But this girl did not. Upon further investigation, this sixteen-year-old student was waiting for a...
A survival guide for Year Sixes preparing for their SATs (from an autistic teacher)
There are so many advice articles out there for parents. This one’s for children. In particular, this is for the thousands of Year Six children who are about to take their end-of-primary-school SATs tests. You know, the tests that are famous for causing enormous amounts of stress for teachers, headteachers, parents, and (worst of all) ten and eleven-year-old children. So, as a former primary school teacher who’s guided children...
Asperger’s versus the Bullies: 8 Important Tips for Coping with Bullying
This may turn out to be the most important article I have ever written. And it may not be light reading: powerful subjects need powerful words. Teenagers, this one’s for you again. The story of Kennedy, sadly, is not a unique one. Kennedy LeRoy, a 16-year-old student from Chino Hills, California, had Asperger Syndrome and suffered from bullying. He was an extremely compassionate young man who loved helping other people....
Ten reasons your autistic child needs to learn chess right now
Ah, chess. The game of kings… and Aspies. Now, before I begin, I expect a few readers will come up with the following reasons for their autistic child to not learn chess. Oh, he’ll just throw the board across the room if he loses. Oh, she won’t have the patience for it. Oh, he’s not got the brains to become really good at it. Oh, she’ll find it boring. My responses are as follows: Chess is not an impulsive game. That’s...
How hard can it be to fund a school for disabled children?
I’ve often heard that you can judge a whole society on how it treats its most vulnerable. And I’m not going to reinforce that sentence with anything. You’re all bright enough to draw your own conclusions from it. Just keep it in mind while you read the rest of this article. Funding in special schools is a sore point for many people. Personally I once lost a job in special education because the school, built to help...
Story of an Autistic Teacher: encouraging Aspies beyond their ‘natural limits’
I usually make my posts very personal. I think the human element is extremely important. This may be one of the more difficult posts to write. Because this one doesn’t just describe my brain. It tells my story. So, here we go. Before I left teaching last Christmas, I had played just about every role you can play in education- or, at least, the roles you can play in your twenties. I had been a volunteer. I had been a teaching...
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Today's Awesome Story:
"I am currently a qualified baker, employed by two employers, a youth leader at my church, on my green Ps driving license, and planning on a 6 month trip overseas for discipleship training school. I just turned 22 years old, and I can't wait to see what more I can do."
-Gavin Walker
I was very early in my speaking career when I filmed this. But it's nice to look back on my second ever talk and how things have changed since then. :) (not least the lack of beard.)
It's quite striking when I compare this to the Sydney Opera House talk.
Autism, from an autistic perspective (Chris Bonnello, Autistic Not Weird)
Excerpt from a training seminar for MacIntyre No Limits: "Autism, from an autistic perspective": Oxford, 17th July 2015. Delivered by Chris Bonnello, author ...
Question from Veronica:
Hello! I am a mother of a 6 year old boy with high functioning autism (asperguer). I think my boy goes through a lot with therapy, at school, and behavior modification program. He is very considerate,...
Just to keep you in the loop, I've chosen my next article already. (Yes, and I know the last one went up two days ago. I'm feeling productive.)
It'll be entitled "AUTISM AND EXAM STRESS: FIVE TIPS FROM EXPERIENCE.". :)
I plan to get it completed quickly, not least because there are people I know (personally and professionally) who could do with it sooner rather than later.
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