Blunder with Autism Child

Substituting for autistic classes is really boring. You just sit there and let the aides do everything, feeding them and teaching them baby stuff (the kids, not aides).

Well, I could have easily just sat there and have myself wonder whether the aides thought I was a lazy fricker, but I decided to actually do something, so I took a station that one of the children was at. It was a simple puzzle game. You know the puzzles where its farm animals and they smell because the pieces are just cardboard.

The puzzles have been in the garage or closet since the 80's and so the dust flies in your nose everytime you play with it.

Well its just a flat board and you dump them out, behind them it says the animal. The point to these puzzles is that you have to figure out how to read horse or cow or pig or coaxethemen ariuous and match it to the picture on the puzzle piece.

So I was helping this child and when he got stuck I would point, you know, to try and help. He wouldn't figure it out, get bored and kept looking at what other people were doing. So I would get mad and grab the piece and put it on.

Next piece same thing, "Here! Look where I'm pointing at! This is a horse (ackkkk), so put that in there." Nope.

"La de dah dah, wow that child is walking how cool, let me ignore Steve! Who cares about this puzzle and his helpful pointing to the answers. I don't want to learn. I just want to strain my neck looking."

That was what was going through the boy's mind.

Frustrating to say the least. You point to show someone and they ignore your pointing. I thought of another hand gesture that may prove more helpful, but is frowned upon because it stings the face.

I kept trying to point and help him learn at the station. I told the aides he was incurable, commit him already, just give up, he ignores pointing (I didn't say this).

What can you do without pointing? It's very handy!

I left the class in frustration.

.......spring.....summer....fall.....winter....spring...summer...fall.....years later....... I heard someone talking about autism spectrum disorder. I happened to overhear that children with autism can't make the connection of a pointing gesture. They can't connect in their mind that your finger is actually pointing at something and you want them to look where your finger is aimed at....!

Blahhhh, I felt dumb!

Everytime I pointed and told him to look, he was understanding that I was saying LOOK! but he didn't know where to look, which is why he would become "distracted" and look at the other kids in the class. I laughed at myself.