Any one have autistic children in school?

Question

My son is 4 and in early education. I fear the future when he is in a "regular" classroom with kids who are not autistic. Do you have children who are a bit older in regular classes or grown up. I worry about his life and what he will be like when older.

Answer 1

Look into your county resources. In my county we have a lot of outside agencies that offer "social cognition" training for children on the Autistic Spectrum. In our district we have several children on the Spectrum. One I work with has a full time aide. He has made so much progress in only 4 months of being at our school (he was in a private school before). His parents "make" him come outside his comfort zone. He would like to retreat and play in his room, but his parents make him have time with his brothers first. He is even asking for play dates with classmates. I would definately look into the programs that your district provides for Kindergarten. Advocate for your child, you know him best. A lot of districts don't want to pay for an aide with the budgets so tight. You have to push. Make sure park of his education plan (IEP) included social skills and you may even want to ask for a behavior specialist to observe him and write a functional behavioral analysis.

Give you child every oportunity to be with other kids. Try to have him give eye contact as much as possible.

There are so many resources and early intervention is so great!

Good luck.

Answer 2

I have an autistic cousin who is 11 and is in regular school. There are a few kids in his class that moved on with him from his early education 'special' classes, and he remains good friends with them now. As for the other kids, they seem to accept him pretty well. Over the years his social skills have developed quite well, and while he is not on the same level as the 'regular' kids, he interacts with them and they like to be around him too. He recently had his first 'big kid' party at the skating rink, and a few of his friends from the regular class came to celebrate and had a great time. If your son is 4 and is in early education and you know he is autistic and are accommodating that, he shouldn't have a problem making progress. Even though kids today are much different than kids when we were younger, I think we still underestimate them to a point with the old 'kids can be so cruel' addage. There are some kids who will not be open to your son, but you will find that everywhere even if you're not autistic. There are so many more options for kids with autism than there were even 5 or 10 years ago (when my cousin was diagnosed). I think that as long as your son sticks with his classes and his schoolwork and simply learns how to incorporate a social network of friends into his life, he'll be just fine. Relax and enjoy your son now; he's only this age once.

Answer 3

I teach students with autism in a special class, and they are not integrated into regular classrooms. There are good things and bad things about being included in a regular class vs. special class, even though the trend right now is inclusion.

If you want your son in a regular class, and he begins in kindergarten and stays with mostly the same kids on up it may be easier for him because the kids will be used to him and his quirks and behaviors.

If there are severe behavior and cognition problems I would seriously think about a separate class, at least until the behaviors are under control and he's able to participate more.

Our district feels that if a child needs an aide full time they are not ready to function in a full class. Your district may be different. When the time comes talk to the teachers and observe the classes. You'll be able to pick the best teacher for your child, and maybe the school can limit the number of children in the class.

It is too early to tell what his life will be like when he's older. He's very young and has quite a bit of time to grow and learn.
As I'm sure you know, there are many different methods and approaches to educating children with autism, and over the course of his life you may find many different things that work. Don't be afraid to try them.

Depending on his abilities and desires your son might do anything from live in a group home/supervised situation, live at home, or live independently. He might even go to college. There are different services now that help kids with disabilities while they're in college - they help them study, teach living skills, and even choose classes, so there's really no limit as to what he can do, especially now, at 4.

Take advantage of every program you can, be consistent at home, try different things, and use your local resources, like CARD (Center for Autism and Related Disorders) to help.

Good luck!

Answer 4

I have an 11 yr old son with autism. He was mainstreamed for kindergarten only. After that (we moved to another school district before first grade) we made the decision not to continue his inclusion. While he is extremely verbal, he has some cognitive delays and had some behavior issues that the school system we were in at the time simply could not address either in a regular classroom setting or in any of the special ed classes they had available. I shoud emphasize that my son has moderate autism, is highly verbal and could possibly have been integrated successfully in another district. However, once I saw the progress he made in his current setting..a non-public school that specialzes in kids with autism who are just like my son..with the one on one attention from teachers, the smaller class sizes and the better behavior management techniques, I have no desire to have him change his placement.

Basically, what I advise all the parents I work with is that the public school is the place to start. Do your homework and see what your district and schools have to offer a child who has simililar issues as your son. Is your district willing to put in the time, effort and exspense it takes to make inclusion a succesful placement? Are the teachers expereinced in working with autistic students? Are the ancilary services he may require readily available? And then look at your son...is he ready to be in a class with up to 30 other students? Will a dedicated aide be enough to help him in situations such as transitions and sensory overloads? Does he have basic communication skills and what is his reaction to being asked to attend to a task he is not particularly interested in? Is he on the same educational level as the peers he would share the class with?? Remember that many school systems preach inclusion as the best of all possible choices, when in reality it can be one of many choices. And know that if the first choice ends up not being an appropriate one, there are other things to try. Be open and flexable, but most importantly listen to your gut...most parents know very quickly if a placement isn't right and have good ideas on what should be done. Listen to that voice...

Answer 5

I don't have a child with this , but I have a friend that does and he has never been put in a regular class room with regular children because they do make fun of him and he is smart and has been reading since kindergarten and now he is in the 2nd grade and his vocabulary is not where it is suppose to be. But his mom is not very intelligent either. He has great teachers at school and his mom is trying to help him but he is smarter than her in many ways he is a computer brain and spelling, math, reading. I think it depends on the child and how willing you and other in his life are willing to work with him on a daily basses. He should be with specialist that help him have some what of a normal life that will make him independent if possible there should be a state fund for your area that helps Autistic and you should check into this and there are class's for you as well so you can understand him and help him try to make a future. Good Luck.

Answer 6

I am a teacher, and I have had quite a few autistic students in my classrooms. Usually they have an aid who is with them. Autism comes in varying levels, some students are higher functioning with regard to school work than others. One of my past autistic students has just been awarded a full scholarship to a four year college just this year. He is going to go into college this next year. Others have a harder time with the school work and are taught skills they can use in their home like changing batteries etc. It depends on the capabilities of each different student. Some of the most successful students have been so because of the involvement of their parents. These parents have insisted on teaching their child's classmates, at the earliest possible, about autism and how they can help. If not the parent, then whoever the teacher is should do it. It just seems to have a bigger impact on students if a parent is involved.
Students who have had an autistic classmate have always been very supportive. Most of the time the student is treated very well. New students sometimes have difficulty, but once they suffer the wrath of a classmate in support of the student, they too learn to be tolerant.
I teach in a small school district, and I think it may have a great deal to do with how close students become to their special needs classmates, because they are with them for 12 years.
My advice is get involved with the school as much as possible. You may start asking questions of the schools right now, with the increase in diagnosed autism, school personal should have answers.

Answer 7

My youngest son is 9, severely autistic and non-verbal. He is in public school and spends part of his day in a classroom for autistic children where they focus on life skills, speech therapy, occupational therapy, etc. He spends the rest of the day in a regular classroom (with or without an aid depending on the class). He is reading at about a late first grade level, he has to read in sign-language due to being non-verbal (due to motor skill delays he has a limited sign vocabulary). His mainstream classmates have always been very supportive of him (he has only ever had 1 problem with them picking on him and that was in kindergarten). I don't know if he will ever be functionally independent, but it would be impossible to predict at this point, he continues to make progress (with occasional plateaus and regressions).
Pay very close attention to your child and learn what works for him and what doesn't, don't be afraid to try new things, but if they don't work know it is OK to move on and try something else (I know some people are strong believers in ABA, some people are very against it - neither is right or wrong, it just depends on what works for their child). All you can do is give him every opportunity, work with him to teach him life skills and academics as best as possible, love him, prepare for the worst, hope for the best and be thankful for what you get. Celebrate every milestone and progress, no matter how small it may seem, because the true measure of how far he has come.

Answer 8

I work at a school and we have three kids with ASD. I find that they do very well. They each have their own aide and attend mostly regular classes. The other kids seem to do really well at helping out when needed and making sure not to be too loud or do things that will be distracting. I think so much depends on the teacher and the kids in the class. Be a strong advocate for your child, attend every IEP or 504 meeting and speak up. You know your child best!! Good luck.

Answer 9

My children are not autistic, but my 11 year old daughter has had an autistic boy in her classes for 4 years now, he has a helper for his schoolwork and he can't stand loud noises so he has to wear something that blocks the loud sounds. The kids have treated him well over the years, they really enjoy being around him because he has such a great sense of humor. I think your son will do fine

Answer 10

It is terrific that your son is getting the early intervention he needs to do well. Listen to your child's teachers. They are there to help him become the best person he can be. He is going to have to not just survive in a regular classroom, but a regular world. Please don't make the mistake of sheltering him. Every child is different, but the one thing that counts the most is giving the child proper tools to survive on their own. There is so much out there now we are learning about autism. There are so many new methods being used. Make sure you make connections with others who are using the latest advances to give your son the best education he can get.

All parents worry about their child, and whether he or she will be able to do well, or thrive in the world. Worrying is normal, but it is not going to help him become all he can be. Focus your energy on what you can do to help him reach his full potential. You are the advocate for your son. Research and make sure that all the options available are given to him.