tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28040139.post5227378005327544192..comments2023-07-25T09:25:34.293+01:00Comments on The Voyage: Neither therapy nor treatment requiredSharon McDaidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13550156204691696968noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28040139.post-10992678229041998652008-01-23T02:32:00.000+00:002008-01-23T02:32:00.000+00:00I frequently think that most of what my sons have ...I frequently think that most of what my sons have learned in the past two years has come from Signing Time DVD's and the Wiggles, etc. Not to mention lots of family love and fun, of course. <BR/><BR/>The therapy hours, I'm not so sure what that's given them.mjsuperfanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04430437202459251288noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28040139.post-90973757802813488062008-01-15T02:42:00.000+00:002008-01-15T02:42:00.000+00:00My goodness, I can't believe that someone would le...My goodness, I can't believe that someone would leave such a rude comment, especially on such an old blog post.<BR/><BR/>It is really good to hear about your parenting approach and how it is so obviously working for all of you.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28040139.post-2798910184936627152008-01-14T14:35:00.000+00:002008-01-14T14:35:00.000+00:00Hi Brett and thanks for commenting. I suppose we s...Hi Brett and thanks for commenting. I suppose we shouldn't ave to worry about explaining it to people who just don't get it. I'm thinking of other parents who worry unduly about allowing their children to use computers/dvds/computer games as learning tools as they see these things damned in so many places.<BR/><BR/>Thanks Ed. Duncan has the creativity all inside him. It's just my role to allow him to express it, and to make sure I don't quash it.<BR/><BR/>Hi Steve, it would be nice if more parents make that step faster, to realise they don't need to (and can't) 'fix' their autistic children.<BR/><BR/>Alyric, I have read some of this work and I can see how it ties in with allowing the child to learn implicitly. This is what I'm trying to do. You're right, it's not about 'doing nothing' but thinking about what the child is interested in and making resources available. The playing and living with the child comes easily!Sharon McDaidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13550156204691696968noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28040139.post-23451372424656421212008-01-10T22:23:00.000+00:002008-01-10T22:23:00.000+00:00Hi there SharonYou know that commenter is probably...Hi there Sharon<BR/><BR/>You know that commenter is probably unaware of the Science - yep real peer reviewed Science that seems to be becoming convergent, that is, it's coming to the conclusion that it's not the intervention that has anything to do with the outcome but the natural talents and other innate qualities of the child - fancy that:) It seems so counter intuitive but it's not really. Not when you put this together with the other misconception the commenter has that you're not doing anything. True - you aren't following a 'proper' intervention sanctioned and paid for by da govmint, but that doesn't say you are doing nothing - far from it. Seems to me that you took Duncan's learning style into account and the results have been as good as a 'proper' intervention and probably just as much work come to think of it. I don't like being accused of doing 'nothing' - not considering the thousands of hours I spent making up for the deficiencies in the education system. The sixty four thousand dollar question is what happens if you really do nothing - in my book a denial of education? Probably not all that much if the child has unlimited access to materials and is autistic. It would be unethical to try this on a kid that wasn't autistic. Mostly, I'm for intervention - and mostly because a sizeable slice of parents really take the 'you need a village to raise a child' attitude to heart and they need all the support (extra parents) they can get.<BR/><BR/><BR/>I've thought and thought - should I or should I not rake the Academy of Paediatricians over the coals for uncritical support for one therapy combined with misrepresentation of data and basically perpetuating a very unsatisfactory status quo in the teeth of the National Research Council conclusion that it is a very unsatisfactory status quo. It seems like being overly picky but, heck they should know better being so into 'evidence based and all.Alyrichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13293946886969452901noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28040139.post-41920692842482635282008-01-10T21:01:00.000+00:002008-01-10T21:01:00.000+00:00I absolutely agree, Sharon, and appreciate your co...I absolutely agree, Sharon, and appreciate your courage in allowing and responding to the comment.<BR/>Yesterday, I talked to the father of Peyton Goddard - a young auitistic woman with many challenges and even more successes - and he stated that among his greatest regrets is that they spent so long trying to "fix" their daughter.Jhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10831843534657098189noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28040139.post-39582914371281785262008-01-10T18:33:00.000+00:002008-01-10T18:33:00.000+00:00Just caring (like you do) leads to all kinds of cr...Just caring (like you do) leads to all kinds of creativty and imagination that will lead to how a person learns and what they want to learn. This always leads to what they need to learn just as the lack of caring and the "hollier than thou" rigid conformity to popular veiws of what people should and shouldn't do leads to the opposite.<BR/><BR/>You are doing a great job, Sharon. You are right on target.Edhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08354784098768688627noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28040139.post-84309726469800737122008-01-10T16:26:00.000+00:002008-01-10T16:26:00.000+00:00We've long faced similar criticisms (for us it is ...We've long faced similar criticisms (for us it is the video games instead of TV, but basically the same) from various folks. I've never been quite able to explain to those people what it is we do, and why we do it, and how it works.<BR/><BR/>When we try to explain that watching TV, using the closed-captioning, helped our sons learn to read, or when we try to explain how the role-playing involved in so many (age-appropriate) games helps them understand social interactions a bit better, they just don't seem to get it.<BR/><BR/>You've given me some good ideas of how to deal with these folks in the future, thanks.Bretthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05692538865185004176noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28040139.post-75793203658977577602008-01-10T10:10:00.000+00:002008-01-10T10:10:00.000+00:00It's good to hear that you and Ben are happy with ...It's good to hear that you and Ben are happy with things Rose. I doubt that I'm all that wise! You see, that Lynne had me pegged when she described me as lazy; I like things to be as easy as possible and working against what's natural for our individual situation would be so much extra work!<BR/><BR/>I could organise a team of therapists to make sure that every minute of Duncan's day is planned and structured with people working <I>on</I> him. How much nicer to sit at the kitchen table beside him while he Googles and let him show me what he's up to.<BR/><BR/>Leila, Duncan is 7. He started saying single words now and then, when he was 3. So to hear him speaking in sentences is still a great thrill.<BR/><BR/>The video idea sounds good. Would you put it on YouTube or something? <BR/><BR/>Joe, nice anecdote about Lincoln. There are a stack of similar stories about notable people's lack of 'schooling' on various home-education sites.<BR/><BR/>Hello Susan. I totally agree, you do what you have to do, what works for you and your family, so long as it's hurting no-one.Sharon McDaidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13550156204691696968noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28040139.post-44688599529332828442008-01-10T05:32:00.000+00:002008-01-10T05:32:00.000+00:00hey there, I completely understand where your comi...hey there, I completely understand where your coming from with this post. I am the mom to 2 boys with Aspergers under the age of 5 and they are all about the VISUAL. You do what you have to do and to the mom that posted that comment: Shame on you. If you are the parent of a child with Autism, Shame on you even more. PS, I take portable dvd players to the restaurants when my husband and I attempt to act like a normal couple and go out to a restaurant. You have to do what you have to do.Susan Thomashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06204256812040309125noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28040139.post-21026713353114706392008-01-10T05:22:00.000+00:002008-01-10T05:22:00.000+00:00Oh, dear.The commenter would undoubtedly have also...Oh, dear.<BR/><BR/>The commenter would undoubtedly have also cast aspersions at the lack of formal education of Abraham Lincoln (the 16th president of the US), who only received less than a year of formal education, but went on to work as a surveyor, successfully obtain a patent on an invention, and pass the bar exam to become a lawyer before being elected president.<BR/><BR/>Sounds like what you're doing is the epitome of "unschooling", and it sounds like it's working out just fine.<BR/><BR/>JoeClub 166https://www.blogger.com/profile/01816977079856902634noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28040139.post-39727574789068491012008-01-10T04:09:00.000+00:002008-01-10T04:09:00.000+00:00Hi Sharon, I hate those commenters that show up i...Hi Sharon, I hate those commenters that show up in a blog for the first time with that holier-than-thou attitude... I can totally relate to using DVDs and TV as a learning tool. That's how my autistic toddler learnt how to read, count and draw. And he does not spend a lot of time in front of the TV; he plays with toys, colors with crayons and reads.<BR/><BR/>Sometimes I think about making a video of myself teaching him things - it will probably be very effective!<BR/><BR/>How old is your son now? My boy is 4 and relies a lot on scripted language. But his pronunciation has always been good. It's just taking a long time to develop to a point where he's really talking consistently in sentences, and back and forth.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28040139.post-32676218190581458562008-01-10T02:07:00.000+00:002008-01-10T02:07:00.000+00:00Sharon:You sound like you have your son figured ou...Sharon:<BR/><BR/>You sound like you have your son figured out. Therapy is something you do TO your son, living is something you do WITH your son. I wish I'd have been as wise as you earlier...but we are very similar in our parenting styles now.<BR/><BR/>I am much, much happier, and happy with, Ben now!<BR/><BR/>roseAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com