Noah missed the bus the other day and I'm so delighted that he did. I mean, I was took- the- boys-out-for-ice-cream delighted. Noah had a question about one of his homework assignments, and he {sniff...tear} went to talk to his teacher after school about it. Then, as if I weren't proud enough, he upped the stakes. The day before a timed math test, Noah went up to his teacher and told him that, according to his IEP, he shouldn't be timed.
If you are a special needs parent, I'm sure you are clapping and cheering. You get it. But if you are reading this and thinking, umm...so, let me explain. I don't know all the reasons why, but it is super common for kids on the spectrum to not infer meaning or "read into things" at all. In other words, everything is taken at face value and rarely analyzed. That has included homework assignments. For years, I would look at Noah's assignment book, see some obscure description (like "finish map") and ask Noah for an explanation. This is how it would go:
NOAH "I don't know"
ME: "Well...I don't know either. Why didn't you ask your teacher for clarification?"
NOAH: "I guess I didn't think of it."
ME: "Did you understand it in school?"
NOAH: "Not really?"
ME: "So...if you weren't sure about what you needed to do, why didn't you ask?"
NOAH: "I didn't look at it that way."
It took me a long time to really understand that...he doesn't know when he doesn't know something because his brain doesn't naturally consider the next step. He truly didn't think of it.
But...this past week...HE THOUGHT OF IT!!!!
If you are a special needs parent, I'm sure you are clapping and cheering. You get it. But if you are reading this and thinking, umm...so, let me explain. I don't know all the reasons why, but it is super common for kids on the spectrum to not infer meaning or "read into things" at all. In other words, everything is taken at face value and rarely analyzed. That has included homework assignments. For years, I would look at Noah's assignment book, see some obscure description (like "finish map") and ask Noah for an explanation. This is how it would go:
NOAH "I don't know"
ME: "Well...I don't know either. Why didn't you ask your teacher for clarification?"
NOAH: "I guess I didn't think of it."
ME: "Did you understand it in school?"
NOAH: "Not really?"
ME: "So...if you weren't sure about what you needed to do, why didn't you ask?"
NOAH: "I didn't look at it that way."
It took me a long time to really understand that...he doesn't know when he doesn't know something because his brain doesn't naturally consider the next step. He truly didn't think of it.
But...this past week...HE THOUGHT OF IT!!!!