What kinda class

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If you could send your aspie kid or yourself to any kind of classroom possible, such as a center based school (just aspies in the school) a self contained class (just aspies in the class but generally will interact with NTs at lunch/recess) mainstreamed or homeschool. What would you choose and why.

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"we never get respect ... never a fair trial
[swearing removed by lau] ... as long as we smile"
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I wanted to do homeschool when I was younger, because I figured I could learn more that way (and faster too).

Definitely not Mainstream ... that was too hard on me .. I think similiar issues would occur in the self-contained classes (NTs would make fun of Aspies in Aspie classes the way they do those who are in special education classes). An aspie only school may be ok but the thing about that is, they still need to learn how to interact with other NTs.

I think most center school programs teach that alot (some might even have NTs come there that have other problems so they can get that interaction.)

_________________
"we never get respect ... never a fair trial
[swearing removed by lau] ... as long as we smile"
Im tired of smiling.

Vote for me in 2020

I would have to say mainstreamed, but that may be because I was pretty much mainstreamed as a kid. I would have liked to be homeschooled, but that would not have worked out with given situations, but it really depends on the kid's personality.

Hmm....I think it would depend on the situation and the school. I was lucky enough to have a pretty good experience in a mainstream school and would probably do it all over again, and I have a feeling that a lot of that had to do with the school's small size-there were about 80 or so in my class. Most people had known each other from a very young age, and I could definately be wrong, but I think that it creates a greater sense of comaraderie among the students and thus reduces bullying which was was rare among my classmates as far back as I can remember. It was also stricter than many schools when it came to bullying. From what I've seen, large mainstream schools are generally not as strict when it comes to bullying and it is harder to get to know people, so I'd probably be wary of sending my child to such a school. I think I'd start them out in a center based school since I know that the first few years of school can be pretty awkward for someone with AS because of all the emphasis on motor skills and social interaction-I was held back in kindergarten for my lack of both of these. In a center based school my child would be surrounded by others with the same difficulties and would not feel different or deficient, and I think this would help to raise the child's confidence level and self-esteem quite a bit. I think that, coupled with lessons on interacting with non-autistics, I hope would help them with their social skills later on, since I know that lack of confidence and feeling that you are different/deficient can have a big impact on that. After that if I sense that my child would be ok in a mainstream setting, I might do that, if the school is small and strict when it comes to bullying. I'm sure it's different for every child, and it's really nice to see that there are more options now

I'd choose mainstream. Might be hard sometimes, but that's life. Only if structural problems pop up I'd think of alternatives.

For me it is uncertain that this will happen to my possible kid, because I don't believe that every aspie has to deal with bullying in school. Of course, eventually some problems will arise and when they do, I'll try to work things out for my kid. But if I don't notice any kind of problem concerning his/her happiness or social skills/life (and as someone who has aspie traits I'd definitely pay attention to this), I see no reason to act upon his/her 'aspieness'.
One of the things that differ Aspies are their adapting capacities, and since one's evolution of that feature can't be foretold, I'll just have to wait for significant moments in his/her life. And in the meantime, my main concern is that he or she is able to life live in the most pleasant way.