How to take care of an autistic child ??? Tips?

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c0bain94
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25 Jul 2012, 5:49 pm

I tried getting a job as a summer day camp counselor but instead they, for some reason, gave me a different job, taking care of a 7 year old girl with autism within a group of about 12 kids with a counselor. Basically I fallow the group around to take care of the girl with autism (I explain things to her, play with her, take her to places like to get her lunch box o to go to the bathroom, I’m supposed to try making her play with the other kids also...and so on).
The problem is I’m just a normal 17 year old girl who just graduated high school…I’m not a professional at taking care of kids with mental disabilities. I had this job for half of this summer so far and I have another half to go. There were some times that were okay but many where I just couldn’t connect with the child at all and felt like she didn’t like me and like I just can’t do this job. She doesn’t understand most of what I say and she is always in her own world, talking about random stuff that I don’t understand (she doesn’t speak very loud and she doesn’t pronounce words well so I have a very hard time understanding her sometimes).
For a moment it’s going okay and we are playing together and she is laughing…than 20 minutes later, for no reason, she is in a bad mood and she doesn’t want me to be with her anymore (which I can’t go because it’s my job to stay with her). She will be all bossy-pants with other kids (yelling at them to stop running or stop talking or whatever) and they will get mad at her easily. She does that to me to. I just don’t feel a connection with her at all (sometimes she is so hard to deal with I just want to cry and leave).
I don’t feel like I’m right for this job at all. I don’t have that much patience with people who don’t listen to me (bad I know..), I have very bad ADHD (I’m almost as lost and spaced out as her so it’s hard concentrating), my sister and a couple more people told me it looks like I have autism (I function pretty well and all so I doubt it but I have been suspecting Asperger’s syndrome… You can see how ridiculous it is that I’m taking care of a girl with autism)
I know that people at the camp (counselors and the boss) think I’m not good at my job and it makes it worst. I can’t quit because they don’t have anyone to replace me plus it’s hard to get a new person, who doesn’t know the autistic girl at all, halfway through the summer… The counselors would think I’m an idiot and the boss and parents of the autistic kid would be pissed…
What could I do to be better??
Any tips on how to take care of this girl??



Bombaloo
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25 Jul 2012, 7:30 pm

You are in a tough position that you should not have been placed in. No offese, I mean I bet you are great with the NT kids but I know several professional teachers who have no idea how to connect with autistic kids so don't feel bad about yourself. It sounds like you are already on the right track! Play with her, get into her world, figure out what she is talking about and if you can't, it doesn't really matter that much most of the time just pretend you are listening when you can't quite make out what she is saying. Don't push her too mcuh to play with the other kids. If she is yelling at them it is probably because she is utterly confused and overwhelmed by their behavior. Likewise, when she yells at you, don't take it personally (tough advice I know, it has taken me a long while to put that one into practice). But seriously if she says mean things to you, she doesn't really mean them. ASD kids have trouble expressing their emotions in appropriate ways and things like "I'm really nervous about doing this activity" come out as "You're a loser, leave me alone!" I just downloaded a good, short basic guide about teaching kids with autism from this website. http://www.autismsparks.com/
It's got some good stuff in it and might give you some ideas. It's kinda directed at parents but I think the things he discusses could be useful in your situation. Good luck and hang in there. It takes ASD kids a while to warm up to people so she has probably just started to feel comfortable with you, don't give up on her!



CockneyRebel
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25 Jul 2012, 8:17 pm

Ask her what things she likes and what things she doesn't like. If she says that you're a loser and to leave her alone, ask her if she's nervous or anxious about doing whatever it is that you're trying to get her to do. You could also tell her that it hurts your feelings when she says that and teach her about empathy. You could also ask her how she thinks the other kids feel when she bosses them around and gets angry at them. Talk to her about feelings and tell her that those kids won't want to be her friends when she keeps on giving them orders.


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