The brighter side of autism

twoinanddone
Fri, 05 Feb 2016 04:29:57 +0000

Money definitely helps. There is a pro golfer who just built a school specially designed for autistic children in Florida, which is great for those 100 children but there are probably thousands who need the school just in that district. I think it also matters how many other children there are in the family and if there are two parents working with the child.

My friend’s daughter has autism, has a high IQ, but the mother is an expert in the field and devotes hours and hours to this child every week. The grandparent could pay for a private school for a few years. College plans had to be adjusted because she still needs to be at home (they tried residential college, but it just didn’t work). I don’t think this girl, who is quite smart, could be as advanced as she is without the parental assistance, and it is much more than I could ever have given my child as a single, and financially strapped, parent.

My daughter’s college has an autism center that has psychology students working with children. The range of needs is of course very wide. Famous sports figures support the center, and there is a program where the sports teams at the school share their sports with students at the center, which is how my daughter is involved. Again, money and time is necessary.