Tag: Asperger’s
Autism in Summer: For some, it’s time for camp
For a lot of kids, summertime means summer camp. In recent years, more children with autism have been getting in on the summer camp fun.
There are a variety of autism camps being held this summer. In Florida, Joey Travolta, (brother of John Travolta) runs a film camp for children with autism.
In North Carolina, Funshine Camp lets children and adults with autism and other disabilities enjoy the outdoors for four days at no cost (they bring caregivers).
In Wisconsin, the organizers at Camp Awesum say they try to provide a traditional summer camp experience but accommodate the needs of autistic children with things like special sensory areas.
My Summer Camps, a directory of summer camps around the country, has a list of camps for children and teenagers with autism and Asperger’s syndrome.
Here is Spirit of Autism’s list of questions to ask when looking at summer camps for your autistic child.
Is your child at camp this summer? How’s it going? Any tips to share on making the transition to camp?
Posted on June 29, 2010 | No Comments | Category: Autism, Caregiving | Tags: Asperger's, Autism, camp, summer, teens
Parenting teenagers on the autism spectrum
Boston.com
One of the hardest things about parenting older kids who are on the autism spectrum is recognizing that the issues they’re dealing with as teens are very different from the ones they dealt with in elementary school. It’s so much easier — and more comfortable — for us to think about birthday parties and playground friendships than it is to tackle the prom and dating, isn’t it?
“Suddenly, the question is not simply, ‘How do I teach my child this or that?’ but a much more complicated ‘How do I teach my child not to need me to teach him anymore?’” writes Claire Scovell LaZebnik in Growing Up on the Spectrum: A Guide to Life, Love, and Learning for Teens and Young Adults with Autism and Asperger’s.
via Parenting teenagers on the autism spectrum – In The Parenthood – Boston.com.
Posted on May 6, 2010 | 1 Comment | Category: Autism, Caregiving | Tags: Asperger's, Autism
Autism and girls
The Independent
The U.K. seems to be talking about autism and girls recently. Below is a story from The (London) Independent on “Why autism is different for girls.” The London Times, meanwhile had a story recently on autism and Asperger’s being underdiagnosed among girls and women.
We may think it only affects boys. But the female variant is often much harder to spot – and that means thousands of girls may be going undiagnosed.
With hindsight, Nicky Clark says early signs of autism were present in both her children. The elder one, though very bright, had a love of routine and was not interested in fantasy games like other children. The younger one liked to line things up in rows and would watch the same video clip over and over again for hours. When she got the diagnosis it came as a huge shock, as it would be for any parent. But there was an additional reason why it was unexpected – both her children are girls.
via Why autism is different for girls – Features, Health & Families – The Independent.
Posted on March 22, 2010 | No Comments | Category: Autism | Tags: Asperger's, Autism, girls
Asperger’s syndrome on Arthur
YouTube
Watch the character Brain explain Asperger’s syndrome on the PBS animated kids’ series Arthur. One of Arthur’s friends, Carl, has Asperger’s:
Posted on March 18, 2010 | 1 Comment | Category: Autism | Tags: Asperger's, children with Autism, TV
NBC’s ‘Parenthood’ brings real-life autism to TV
Washington Times
Stimeyland blogger Jean Winegardner writes about a character with Asperger’s syndrome in this Washington Times post:
As a parent of a child with autism, I have watched with interest several television programs that have featured autistic characters. NBC’s new hour-long drama “Parenthood” is the newest of these programs, and one that holds a great deal of promise.
I am interested in autistic characters on television for the same reasons many other minority groups are interested in seeing people representative of them on television. It educates, it normalizes and it includes. I’ve been disappointed in the past by autistic portrayals on TV, notably Mary McDonnell’s doctor with Asperger’s on “Grey’s Anatomy,” because the characters just didn’t ring true and seemed to perpetuate stereotypes.
I’ve been seeing commercials for “Parenthood” for a long time, but just learned last week that one of the characters, Max, is a child with Asperger’s Syndrome, a form of autism. This is intriguing because I can’t think of any instances in which a child has played a person with autism. I was further compelled to watch after learning that “Parenthood” producer Jason Katims has a 13-year-old son with Asperger’s, which means the situations surrounding Max come from a place of experience.
via NBC’s ‘Parenthood’ Brings Real-Life Autism to TV | Washington Times Communities.
Posted on March 8, 2010 | No Comments | Category: Autism | Tags: Asperger's, Autism, TV
For Some Jobs, Asperger’s Syndrome Can Be An Asset
NPR
Statistics on the unemployed have been dominating the news for months.
And while the current portrait of the jobless might seem dire, consider this: According to new data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, less than 20 percent of the disabled population in the country has work.
But Aspiritech, a nonprofit in the suburbs of Chicago, is trying to help improve the job outlook for people with Asperger’s and high-functioning autism.
The company trains people in data entry and computer program testing — skills that come naturally to many with the disorder.
via For Some Jobs, Asperger’s Syndrome Can Be An Asset : NPR.
Posted on February 18, 2010 | No Comments | Category: Autism | Tags: adults with autism, Asperger's, employment
Autism: transitioning to college and the real world
San Francisco Chronicle
I used to envy my friends who had children with learning disabilities and Asperger Syndrome. I watched their sons and daughters move from special education classes to regular classes–some even landed in our school district’s gifted and talented program. My understanding at the time was that since these kids were on the “graduation track”, they would likely go to college, enter the work force and go on to live independently.
I would later learn that academics alone are not enough.”My daughters have the grades and intelligence to get into college,” said my friend, Marnie Raymond. Her twin teenage girls have Asperger Sydrome.”But their underdeveloped social skills, lack of central coherence and poor executive functioning impact their ability to function without a great deal of support.
Now there is an option in the Bay Area for college-age youths with Asperger Syndrome, high-functioning autism, dyslexia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and other learning differences to help them transition into the real world–The College Internship Program CIPin downtown Berkeley.
via City Brights: Laura Shumaker : Autism: transitioning to college and the real world.
Posted on January 16, 2010 | No Comments | Category: Autism | Tags: adults with autism, Asperger Syndrome, Asperger's, California, children with Autism, College, school
Boy with Asperger’s lives 11 days in NYC subway system
New York Times
Day after day, night after night, Francisco Hernandez Jr. rode the subway. He had a MetroCard, $10 in his pocket and a book bag on his lap. As the human tide flowed and ebbed around him, he sat impassively, a gangly 13-year-old boy in glasses and a red hoodie, speaking to no one.
After getting in trouble in class in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, and fearing another scolding at home, he had sought refuge in the subway system. He removed the battery from his cellphone. “I didn’t want anyone to scream at me,” he said.
All told, Francisco disappeared for 11 days last month — a stretch he spent entirely in subway stations and on trains, he says, hurtling through four boroughs. And somehow he went undetected, despite a round-the-clock search by his panicked parents, relatives and family friends, the police and the Mexican Consulate.
Via Runaway Spent 11 Days in the Subways
Posted on November 24, 2009 | No Comments | Category: Autism, Caregiving, Wandering | Tags: Asperger's, Autism, children, family, missing, Wandering
Asperger’s Syndrome Symptoms
HubPages
Asperger Syndrome is different from other autism spectrum disorders in part because it is often diagnosed in older children and adults to very young children. That’s because Asperger syndrome is a relatively mild form of the CIA, which does not include problems with basic language skills. Many people with Asperger syndrome are very bright and capable.
via Asperger’s Syndrome Symptoms.
Posted on October 20, 2009 | No Comments | Category: Autism | Tags: Asperger's
Autism Through a Sixth-Grader’s Eyes
ADVANCE for Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is becoming a household phrase. The prevalence of autism has risen to one in every 150 American children and almost one in 94 boys.
No two cases of ASD are exactly alike. Some individuals are nonverbal, but others are quite verbal. Some benefit from special diets, while others do not. Autism can be very difficult to recognize in young children, pre-teens, teenagers and adults because characteristics vary.
Paul, 12, is a sixth-grader with Asperger’s syndrome, which is considered a milder form of autism. According to Paul, “This is probably the hardest case to recognize, as it always appears that the child with Asperger’s is acting weird. They are also the most picked on due to their lack of social skills.”
via Autism Through a Sixth-Grader’s Eyes on ADVANCE for Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists.
Posted on October 12, 2009 | No Comments | Category: Autism | Tags: Asperger's, children with Autism, school