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For this painting, Renuka asked him what he had painted. He said, house. When
Renuka nodded, he added, plane.
Renuka realized that was how houses looked when airplanes took off or landed!
Isnt it incredible how he threw light on his perspective?
Sanjeev is vocal and always communicated using words. He reads and writes and
attended school up to grade six.
While language developed early, it was need-based. Sanjeev wasnt able to articulate
his thoughts and emotions.
45 minutes of painting a day created the bridge from need-based communication to
experience-sharing communication, besides giving Sanjeev an outlet to be his
authentic self.
Renuka put in the effort to build a relationship with Sanjeev. She used experience
sharing communication while engaging with him. The results are there for us all to
see.
Dear Parent, we are under the mistaken belief that more language and speech training
will enable children with autism to share their thoughts and feelings.
It may increase their repertoire of words and sentences. But it doesnt guarantee
an increase in emotional sharing and authentic communication.
Sharing comes from awareness and knowledge of self.
Art gave Sanjeev a means to discover and connect with himself.
Every child needs an avenue where he is free to explore and be himself. It could be
any form of art, music, sport or anything that the child is interested in.
You and I need this too, isnt it?
Heres how you, the parent, can develop for your child, what Renuka developed for
Sanjeev.
Figure out what your child enjoys and expand it for him.
One of my students makes beautiful paintings. He doesnt use brushes, but he uses his
hands. The results are spectacular.
Who says we need to go by the norm or convention?
Your child has shown you glimpses of his potential. Its now up to you to help him
achieve that potential.
Here are words of wisdom from a person with autism:
I have seen a process in the ability to adopt an attitude of autistic empowerment for
some persons. It begins with the idea that autism is a thing to be eradicated. This is
ignorance. From this emerges the idea that one might be able to accept autistic
persons but has an attitude of pity and feels bad that they are different. This is
tolerance. The next stage is where one is able to see autism as not a thing but a mode
of being of the person. This is awareness. Beyond this one begins to focus merely on
challenges but to also see strengths. This is acceptance. One then starts to
understand the diversity in means of communication. This is furtherance of
acceptance.
From this point, once is able to incorporate respect, dignity, presuming intellect,
embracing diversity and promoting self advocacy. This is empowerment. So one moves
from ignorance to tolerance to awareness to acceptance to empowerment.
Dan L. Edmunds, Ed. D
Dear Parent, Where are you on your journey with your child?
Remember, communication is not just about words. There are many avenues through
which communication can be strengthened.
Thats the diversity in means of communication that Dr. Edmunds mentions above.
We want our children to be independent and navigate this world competently. The
onus is on us to make the leap from acceptance and empowerment.
I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments. If you also have any questions,
feel free to leave a comment or get in touch with me.