By the time you read this, schools across the country will be in full swing. Teachers may be easing into a groove with their new students. But for parents of children with special needs, those initial jitters never truly subside. For every great, gifted educator out there, there are countless others who are clueless and incompetent when it comes to teaching our children in the unique way they need to be taught.
What's more important to you - your child's IQ or EQ? While a lot of people value intellectual ability because it leads to employment, financial stability and a roof overhead, for some reason I am more concerned with my son's emotional intelligence. After all, no matter smart you are, it means diddly if you are lonely and isolated.
From an early age, we show kids how to write their names and how to brush their teeth. But can we teach them how to relate to others in a meaningful way?
That's the big question for kids with social challenges like my son. At six, he loves board games, and it's not hard to see why. After all, unlike imaginary play which confuses him, games have a set structure and clearly defined rules. Yet even so, there are limitations. When we get ready to play Pop and Hop, he'll announce that he's the red game piece and "Mommy, you're blue."
Finding the right toys for kids with autism can pose a challenge. After all, kids with autism don't always play with toys in the most functional way, and yet some toys help develop crucial skills—whether social, communicative, or motor-based.
Bullying has always been a problem. But for the cyber generation, with so much going on behind screens, bullying is THE problem. The facelessness of social media has become a breeding ground for bullies.
And kids with special needs make easy targets. Those with autism are especially vulnerable—four times as likely to be bullied as those without the disorder—because of the challenges they experience with social communication.
