Helping Autistic Children

[Kxdxj16]

Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Pennsylvania
Posts: 1
Helping Autistic Children

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I am 15 years old, and I don't remember exactly when, but I became interested in Autism. In seventh grade we learned about neurological disorders, and that is when I started wanting to become a neurologist. I started hearing more about Autism and I started researching it. I saw the movie on Lifetime, I think it was called "Miracle Runner." I thought it was a really great movie. I go to William Tennent High School in Warminster. I have been wanting to start a program at my school where we somehow work with kids with autism. I saw a news program about Autism and how hard it is to teach because there aren't a lot of programs and it can become very expensive. That is why I think it would be great to start a program where high school students are trained to help kids, maybe tutoring them in a way. I am in Student Government in school and I talked with them about maybe helping me to start a program. Please tell me your opinion and any suggestions on what I could do to help with autistic children.

[J'smom]

This is my first time on this site and in this forum. So your post is the first I have actually read. I have a 7 year old son who is autistic as well as a 10 year old son and a 6 year old daughter who are normal developmentally. Before I had my children I had worked with autistic adolescents in a group. Having done that and having parented my own child has taught that one of the best ways to help autistic children is to involve them in activities in much the same way that you would children without special needs.

It's difficult for my 7 year old sometimes, because people don't always understand when he starts to exhibit the autistic behaviors. But we deal with that because the more important aspect of it all is the joy I see on his face when he is able to do something that he genuinely enjoys the same way his siblings are able to do.

Physical activity is essential in development as it helps in keeping the autistic child involved in the world in a fun way as well as allows them to learn more about interacting with other people in an appropriate way.

Good luck to you.