I just learned about this rock group made up of individuals with developmental disabilities. Finally a rock band to be inspired by. They sound great.
See the ABC news story about the group here.
Scientific American published an interesting interview with Daniel Tammet who is an Autistic Savant. Daniel has authored two books and holds the European record for reciting the first 22,514 decimal points of the mathematical constant PI.
I found this quote most interesting:
“In most people, the brain’s major functions are performed separately and not allowed to interfere with one another. Scientists have found that in some brain disorders however, including autism and epilepsy, cross-communication can occur between normally distinct brain regions. My theory is that rare forms of creative imagination are the result of an extraordinary convergence of normally disconnected thoughts, memories, feelings and ideas. Indeed, such “hyper-connectivity” within the brain may well lie at the heart of all forms of exceptional creativity”.
You can find the complete article here.
This is a slideshow that I put together from some of my favorite pictures of Aaron. I think it captures his personality pretty well.
I was flipping through channels this morning and ran across a new documentary on HBO called “Autism the Musical”. The film is about a women who has started a theater and musical performance program for kids with autism. While the documentary is about the school, most of the focus is on the lives and challenges that the kids face. It explores issues with schools, bullies, stress and the general lack of acceptance that these kids experience. The point of the school is not just performance but to give these kids a place where they can be loved, accepted, and appreciated. This is a wonderful film.
Here is a preview on YouTube:
Here is a link to the full schedule on HBO.
The DVD is also available here.
This is a very interesting documentary about Temple Grandin, the world famous animal behavior expert. Temple has been able to use her unique way of looking at the world to accomplish incredible success. This documentary does a great job of explaining Temple’s gifts, but also gives a good history about how people look at Autism. The video is in four parts. See the extended link for the additional segments.
By the way HHTRC is talking to Temple about a possible speaking engagement at a future event. It’s too early to tell if this will happen, but I am hoping we can work it out.
quote from article.
“After each classmate was allowed to say what they didn’t like about Barton’s 5-year-old son, Alex, his Morningside Elementary teacher Wendy Portillo said they were going to take a vote..”
By a 14 to 2 margin, the students voted Alex — who is in the process of being diagnosed with autism — out of the class.”
OK – this makes no sense. What was this teacher thinking. Since when do students get to decide how other students will be handled. I think they should vote the teacher out of the classroom.
The State Attorney’s office said the incident did not meet the standard for emotional child abuse – so no criminal charges will be filed. I hope the parents get a good attorney.
This is a truly inspiring story. I cannot believe I did not hear about it in 2007 when it came out. It follows three teenage boys struggling with different forms of Autism. What is amazing to me is how they are so very different, but also similar in the challenges and symptoms they are dealing with. While Aaron is most similar to Eiljah, the third boy, I can see in Aaron many of the characteristics of each boy. Talk about Reality Television! Well worth the time.
You can also find this on iTunes.
CNN is focusing on Autism coverage for World Autism Awareness Day – April 2nd. This article and video makes some interesting, but well covered points. I especially like the idea of providing your doctor with home videos to support the diagnosis process. I would add that keeping good records of behavior patterns can be a great advocacy tool.
This an inspiring story that ABC News ran in February. The video is excellent. link here.
“It is hard to be autistic because no one understands me. People look at me and assume I am dumb because I can’t talk or I act differently than them. I think people get scared with things that look or seem different than them.”– Carly Fleischmann
“If we had done what so many people told us to do years ago, we wouldn’t have the child we have today. We would have written her off. We would have assumed the worst. We would have never seen how she could write these things”– Carly’s Father
This is a great Q&A with Daniel Hawthorne, a successful business owner and author who is “on the spectrum”. It provides some great insight about what is possible.
Quote:
If you could tell parents one thing, what would it be?There are two things I would want to tell parents. One is to be attentive to helping their children work from their strengths, using their own unique talents to meet life’s challenges, rather than trying to constantly try to compensate for their weaknesses. Everyone has his own unique strengths and weaknesses, and autistic individuals are no different. If they can learn how to best use their unique strengths, then they will live happier lives for it.
