Leigh has totally rocked her return to campus and even added her first major activity outside school: playing in a rock band. Her first show will even be in a local bar known for live music. Living in Austin, the home of “Austin City Limits” and SXSW, performing in a…
Tag: parenting
Anne is now nine, which for our schools would be the age for entering fourth grade. Instead, we’re back to homeschooling her and trying to identify why she struggles so much with academic tasks. My cousin has a master’s degree in speech and language pathology (SPL) and helped guide us…
It sometimes seems that schools want to make it impossible to obtain supports for our students. Every child has a legal right to a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE); sometimes, an assessment determines which supports ensure an appropriate education. Unfortunately, school district evaluations can be superficial and incomplete. There is…
Podcast 0091, Season 6, Episode 1; 16 August 2022 Back to School Each school year begins with preemptively contacting the teachers, administrators, and special education coordinators to ensure our daughters receive the supports necessary for success. My wife and I know that we need to communicate early, and clearly, to…
Podcast 0090; Season 6, Episode “0”; 2 August 2022 Welcome to Perspectives on Neurodiversity, hosted by The Autistic Me, C. S. Wyatt. Yes, I’m rebranding the podcast (and just the podcast). It has taken me too long to do this since the podcast has always been about all neurodiverse experiences.…
Podcast Episode 0087, Season 5, Episode 18; 10 May 2022 Sleep, Autism Parenting, and More with George Bailey George Bailey is a father of five children, two of whom are autistic. He and his wife are also Neurodiverse; George has ADHD and his wife is a self-diagnosed autistic. He earned…
Unsolicited advice comes from many directions, including from other autistics. “You just need to be more patient.” “You probably don’t understand your daughters’ Neurodiversity.” “You might not know the difference between a tantrum and a meltdown.” Our many failings as parents have been documented and relayed to us by teachers,…
Podcast Episode 0076, Season 5, Episode 7; 9 November 2021 Navigating Autism Published in September 2021, Navigating Autism: 9 Mindsets for Helping Kids on the Spectrum by Temple Grandin and Debra Moore offers a positive approach to supporting young autistics. I can see my daughters and myself in some of…
Podcast Episode 0071, Season 5, Episode 2; 28 September 2021 Parenting and Food Challenges A follower wrote: Do your children eat anything other than chicken nuggets? My autistic child won’t eat fruits, vegetables, or most meats. It’s cereal, chips, and nuggets. Susan and I are fortunate. The girls and I eat mostly healthy foods. Fruits,…
“I celebrate every autism diagnosis!” declares a post circulating among autistic self-advocates. I read this in several ways. First, the positives. Diagnoses help individuals receive services and supports. For many people, a diagnosis also helps understand struggles. Diagnoses also ensure, with disclosure, some legal protections. The negatives exist, too. Believe…