6th World Autism Awareness Day 2013

We are less than 3 days away from the day, 2 April for 2013 World Autism Awareness Day in local time, this year will be its 6th year since this annual awareness movement first started in 2008.  Recalling my first WAAD back in 2009 when I was a young parents of a child in the spectrum, while my little STAR had just commenced his EIP in Jan that year and was only in the beginning of Term 2 of his new learning journey at a age of three and a half years of age, non verbal with concrete skill level.  .

 

I posted a picture of him in the WAAD website to show our support for him and also dedicated a poem in his name to share with his teachers who were doing great work with us collectively to progress him inch by inch, slowly and surely.

We are always hopeful that with right support and good collaborative habits with the SPED Team, we can further maximize his learning potential, anything new for anybody, it will always be difficult before it become easy.  Steps by steps we did, try try try, explain and explain again, practise and more practise and still do until today, keeping our faith as we path forward with him.

4 years on, we have been enriched by the joy he brings to us and the family.  Critical success factors is being able to do it right, right from the beginning with a positive attitude, right frame of mind and open heart. Having  good support from my immediate family and extended members of the other family help reduce our effort not forgetting great teachers, therapists that we have been blessed along the journey.

Autism has become our way of life, everything from its manifestation has become so normal to me. Though every year April is Autism Awareness month, but for our family, it is every moment of life we live on a day by day basis.  We are poorer finanacially but also richer at heart in term of values of living life in another perspective:- more compassionate, kind, understanding, patience, loving, courageous in facing difficulties or challenges and being thankful and forgiving etc...

Experience is not what happens to a man, it is what a man does with what happens to him. By supporting this statement, he has also brought out the best of us in every of our journey with him.  He has come this far not by chance but with his own determination and strength to persevere with the help & great support of the SPED Team both in EIP & also in his current primary education.

Life is never perfect, there will always be challenges, obstacles and less than perfect conditions.... 

The only way around it is to "Get started now!!!" With each step you take, you will grow stronger, more skilled, more self-confident and YES..... more successful! Being a special need parent, I am drafted to be every person that I can model after the SPED Team, whether teacher, therapist or pschologist or socialogist, each parent being the case manager of child with special needs.  The energy I expended is far more than 10 times each moment I journey with him to over challenges as they unfold in his growing up and learning journey, but I am also very thankful for all the friendships that I get connected via social media where I can share and also find encouragement, inspiration and strength, to deposit my positive energy back to my heart before the next release.  Without him, I will not have cross path with so many great teachers and parents, special educators, therapists proferssionals to whom I cherish and value.  

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We are ready to light it up blue for him and others in this special community, to cheer them on, to give them all the best support and encouragement that they need.

I am looking forward to 5th April road show in Ion Orchard to commemorate this awareness event and also to attend an Autism seminar the next day at my son special school.

Winner's Statement:-

Autism is about the journey not the destination, it is a way of living in moments of small achievements and not just at the destination. It is lived in small steps along the way, it is not how much one live but how much love we put into living.

2013 Term 1 Random Bliss

Term 1 is almost over and we are into the 3rd month of 2013, how time flies.

Just sharing some recap of the Chinese New Year Celebration

Our family had our reunion in the early Feb just one week prior to the Lunar New Year, the family had a great time getting together at my place, so were the kids engaging a joint attention in eating, raw fish toss and play time.

We drive North to in-law place in the south western coast of Tanjong Sepat, always full of joy and excitment for all as we only merely travel to this home town once or twice a year.

He loves the big place, close proximity to nature(tress, sun, sea & lovely sky line). It was another great moment of joy in celebration and getting together with the siblings, cousins across the cause way. Walking around the Lorongs, car ride, bicycle and motor ride are some of the past times activities outside home.

Term 1 had been great for him, always thankful for every inch stone he progresses but still lots of hard work in progress. He has improved on his penman ship, he is more awareness of friends around him, his ability to recall more details in things he did in school has also expanded, kudos to his Sped Team.

Sharing one of his work he did at home: Making an egg and sausage sandwich.

Aside from academic, his physical strength in arm and leg has also developed further, he is now taller as his pyjamas starts to shrink in length vs his height.

Another of his learning highlights is the Show and Tell - My Favourite Food, had recorded a video log of his practise at home http://youtu.be/BVZk6y-qs6Q

Also get him to write a journal on the same title to practise his transfer skill

This picture was taken as I was surprised to see him wearing the shirt with Gangnam Style & Psy during one of the evening rountine when I pick him & my wife for dinner after return from his Therapy, I was thinking what is Gangnam Style to him, could it embodies "Perseverence, Strength & Courage" just like the horse galloping in a never end track?

Sharing his growing up, some of the front pose taken of him. He is fascinated with elevator now, every where we go, he will alway take a special interest in taking the elevator, exploring the inside out, is a kind of state of flow for him I guess, I feel happy intruding into his world as he finds his joy of the moment to relax.

Some posed taken from the back, on the left photo he was going for his literacy with sped therapist waiting for the lift, while right he just return from social speech group therapy from the car park deck.

We brought him to Marina Bay Sand for the first time since it was openned last week end, we took a walk and was amazed with the spacious and refleshing new environment as usual the hotel elevator is one he never want to miss, he had his wish granted. 

During the last literacy therapy, as usual he was asked to provide a title for his journal sharing and he readily gave "Sad" to share his emotion of Sadness. As he shared, the therapist was quite amazed with the content how he feel sad and relate to us, I checked with his form teacher during the IEP meeting to authenticate the story and we were all feel with joy that it was real.  What happen was that the PE teacher decided to raise the bar and change the last few minutes to open ended play time for them and as the children was happily putting the dominos, the time was up, 3 of them including him went melting away and crying that they did not get to finish their game plan. It was a great happening and we are all happy that such little negatives actually enable them to correct some hidden curriculum which can be corrected and converted to great skill of emotional management. Kudos to teachers.  Hidden curriculum are also self discovery when we learn along with our kids, as we know that what neuro typical kids learn naturally, he has to be taught to the very &  every details of execution. To the normal child maybe Practise make perfect can be apply but to them, it is Practise makes Improvement. One of the hidden curriculum he has at home is when he wakes up and go out of this room to take breakfast, he will walk & greet both Ah Gong & Ah Ma, seems nothing wrong right if you hear from the room? But the hidden curriculum is that he will just walk without looking at the person and greet them without any engagement.  So we have to teaching him: first look if Ah Gong or Ah Ma is there, then go towards each of them and look into their eyes, next say good morning Ah Gong/Ah Ma.  Lastly, when Ah Gong./Ah Ma response then continue your walk to dining room for your breakfast.

The last PCN I attended had truely enriched me and greatlty inspired by the work of sharing from the students, to see how they had become more confident in their presentation skill, creating awareness on great value of Integrity living life. It was especially heart warming to see one of last year graduate, Syafiq sharing his journey and thanking those who have helped him along in his initial years of endeavours. Also happy to know that the 3rd satelite secondary school comes from Pierce Secondary School, this is also the school my niece is study this year going into her secondary 1 academic year. Any worth while effort contributing to the good cause of the future in this special community has a special connection in our heart.

For another 3 weeks or so, we can look forward to another celebration for WAAD, there will be several activities in April to take part &  spread the awareness for Autism. Last year celebration had brought back great memories:-

Will be ready to light it up Blue at home once again, wear Blue for him.

Look forward to the one week holidays to revise term 1 work with him and continue to work hard and ready for Term 2 to come.

Winner's Statement:-