An Update for the Basketball Problem

Since so many people responded to my plea for help about the young boy on Tessi's basketball team I felt I should post a bit of an update.

I did send an email to my friends whose girls on the team.  Both reacted not only kinder than I anticipated but exactly in kind with the Aussie "fair go" feeling that I have come to love.  Both moms responded that I shouldn't approach the little boys mum, she should enjoy her happiness as long as possible.  Were there ways they could help?  Since it was obvious this was a case of a child needing some extra help, rather than extra parenting, both ladies jumped on board full force asking how best to help out.

They humble me.

We had our first practice session this morning and it was great.  Instead of this glaring "US" vs "THEM" feeling it was about what it should be - teaching all the kids to do as well as they could on the team.  We decided to teach the kids to stick their hands out in a "low 5" position when he come by trying to bang into them.  This way he gets his sensory fix (the need for contact to get his bearings) and the other kids are a part of helping with that without getting body checked into the ground.  To help with

To help with the frustration caused by changing baskets we are going to have 1 parent stand at the end underneath the basket holding a red card.  If the child gets the ball and starts charging down the court and no red card, they are to turn around and head for the other basket.  That's really for all the kids, not our AS kid.

We talked about rules about subbing on the court.  Every child has to come out at least 2 times to let a team mate play and if they whine, cry or ignore the coach they are off for 2 rotations.

We are going to practice in the uniforms so all the kids can see their team mates and learn to recognize them and then not steal the ball from their own team.

At the end of today's practice the mom of the little boy gushed with all the effort put into making this work for the kids.

It's the best I've felt in a long time about working with kids with extra needs.

This feeling isn't permanent, there will be many tales of woe with this team.  There's nothing easy about any aspect of life on the Spectrum.  However, it least there is hope.  Some days the worst part about living on the Spectrum is that there is no hope.  Well, not today.  Not with the 6 and 7 year old Screen Shots.

I'm so proud to be a part of this group.  Thank you.

A Wii Game Not for the Masses

I just read an article about a Wii game called, "House of the Dead -Overkill" Mainly I skip info about games like this because there isn't a chance in Hell it'll be played on my Wii anyway. But this was on the Sydney Morning Herald and I thought I'd just glance at it. Apparently a parent bought the game, with it's MA+ warning and was shocked that it was really profane and inappropriate for his teenager who normally is ok with this stuff. So I guess it should have come with an extra label, "No, this one is REALLY MA+, we're serious!"

I understand being caught unaware if you're not into gaming and you didn't expect to see blood and gore on a Strawberry Shortcake game but come on. Give me a break. This game comes with a damn corpse on the cover. What did this guy think the game was going to be, Monopoly? Use your head. Don't pull the, "But the rating system didn't warn me, I've played other games with that warning and it was ok" It's a generic label meant to loosely inform, it can not, tell you what you need to know in order to make a correct decision for your family. It's people like you, the whiners about labels that force us ALL to have to go the extra mile to get things. We get labels, warnings, games behind special counters that you have to have permission to buy. If YOU had looked into it first and YOU knew what you were buying then the rest of us wouldn't have to go through so much hassle.

Parents, we are NOT on the same side as our children. You do NOT need to be their friend. They have enough friends and so do you. I consider it a badge of HONOR that my son is pissed at me right now because I will not let him take his "Rise of Nations game online"; he can only play it on the computer and not hook up with his friends until I can determine how safe the online community is for him. In fact he and his mates are all walking around, muttering about "Ted's damn mother" - I smile with pride.

Do some research. There is a miracle invention called the Internet. Really, it's kind of spiffy. Google the name of the game BEFORE you buy it and see what reviews are of it. For Christ's sake, you can look at screen shots of the games online and SEE if your precious angel can see images of bodies climbing in and out of tombs before you buy the game and then return it in a huff.