It was a big weekend for Samuel.
First he went to a birthday party at Pump it Up. Then we got a silly inflatable dolphin toy he adores and then, to cap it off, today he is going swimming at Cameron’s.
He was so verbal at the party it was…. rather remarkable. Normally he is more subdued in this sort of situation. He keeps to himself, happily plays in tandem with the other kids but yesterday he was Mr. Conversational, Mr. Insight, Mr. “Let me entertain you”. In other words, much more like his sisters than the past versions of Samuel.
A couple things I have discovered about raising my child who happens to be on the autistic spectrum is – he has his own unique timeline. I read somewhere that kids on the spectrum tend to be, emotionally, about three years behind their peers. Even though Samuel is ridiculously bright, he has always been quite immature, following this “three years behind” maturity arc, but this Summer a shift seems to be happening.
I also revel in watching how Samuel uses the Summer months to integrate the social skills and the language skills he learned throughout the school year. He seems to be on overload during the year and in the Summer, he catches up. Fourth grade was tough but it seems to have aged him in a positive way, now. It is like a delayed reaction maturity, a slow-burn integration.
He still reserves being angry and ornery within the safety of his family.
I also noticed since our children (Samuel’s peers from Valley Achievement Center) are having more birthday parties, we parents are also getting more social with each other. I am now facebook friends with some of the other parents and am thinking more playdates are in order. The kids are requesting it, which is something else that is different.
I discovered, too, that our children are in a wide assortment of classroom types and apparently none of the local schools know how to effectively place our kids who happen to be on the spectrum. I listened and nodded and inside, I was shaking my fist and making a check list of research topics to take on with my district SELPA and others.
I know, I know… push the soapbox in when I’m done. I can’t help myself and wow, my five minutes are gone.
This was my 5 minute Stream of Consciousness Sunday post. It’s five minutes of your time and a brain dump. Want to try it? Here are the rules…
- Set a timer and write for 5 minutes only.
- Write an intro to the post if you want but don’t edit the post. No proofreading or spellchecking. This is writing in the raw.
- Publish it somewhere. Anywhere. The back door to your blog if you want. But make it accessible.
- Add the Stream of Consciousness Sunday badge to your post.
- Link up your post below.
- Visit your fellow bloggers and show some love.
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© 2011
Julie Jordan Scott
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