Working with an autistic child...a surprising model

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DS was doing some comedy routines and whacked himself on the head by accident - which made me remember Don Music on Sesame Street (who was eliminated because kids were being sent to the ER with piano-related head injuries.)

However, as I watched this to explain...I realized this is kind of an ideal exemplar and model for working with an autistic child (well, except for when Kermit kind of takes the idea over at the end...but I'm sure you understand...)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q1Ugqh471IE

momsparky, you made my day. You cannot know how much that made me laugh - the irony. You know, I wish I could say that it will 'get better' but oh no! In fact, I am so much like that still today. I am in the sciences (finishing my PhD in less than 2 months right now) and I personally know so many researcher who metaphorically bang their head hard just like that. One in lab whom I especially like is Eastern European - once one of her protocol's vanished due to a computer mishap and she stood up, cursing loudly in her native language. Yes, Don Music is a model of working with an autistic child. It's also a model of working with a high-strung scientist. Coincidence? Probably not.

Oh, once one of my stress toys filled with fluid and glitter exploded all over my keyboard (!) and I *almost* started crying.....one professor/co-worker (whom I very much like) said, "that's it - I'm taking away ALL your toys." We are Don Music.

On a serious note: ASD individuals can be really high-strung. I guess you made the point that maybe we should have a sense of humour. You're my Kermit the Frog for today.

@LabPet, you are quite welcome (always glad to be a supporter of the scientific community!)

DS will also bang his head when frustrated, so it really struck me (even though we were discussing humor and not frustration.)

I sometimes wonder why any ASD individual (range of spectrum) take things so very seriously.....but we do. From my experience, I think Aspies do well with having a (very) neurotypical counterpart who can offset and diffuse situations, like by finding the humour or offering practicality.

I think the crux of meltdowns can be that I'm hit with a sudden flooding surge, all at once, of emotion that I simply cannot contain or control - like Don banging his head on the keyboard. I guess NTs are better are regulating it &/or seeing the context. Kermit's so neurotypical.

I was really noticing how Kermit in this case models the best social workers and teachers we've dealt with (most of whom have been neurotypical.)

It's funny, because the puppetry world is filled with AS people (think about it - it's effectively acting but with a bag over your head) and I strongly doubt Jim Henson was fully neurotypical...but it does come out strongly in Kermit, doesn't it? Even in the Muppet Show, he was usually the one who could calmly point out the impracticality of the other muppets, or direct them to a positive solution...

I hadn't really considered that - you're right. Interestingly, I have read (with good source) that Jim Henson was purportedly 'on the spectrum'. (I really shy away from ever applying an AS diagnosis to anybody, but I think there's merit to it in this case). Kermit is a positive NT model and I can think of a few muppets with AS attributes. You know, maybe those muppets would be a good role-playing models for AS kids as they are fun and also with real-life messages. (Even revamping the Twinkle Twinkle song)!

There's one Kermit's Newsflash episode reporting a story about the £6 (dollar) man in a lab and Kermit negotiates with the scientist. Go figure!

Just for fun....here's Kermit interviewing the very eccentric professor whose £6 robot wrecks the lab:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XrAFle0W228[/youtube]