week 2 reflection

For some reason I understand students with autism. I can usually tell the difference between being stubborn and autism and I'm able to be straightforward with them. I think this comes from both of my parents having a background of working with people who have special needs. This last week I feel like I really made a connection with our FOCUS student, he is autistic. I have talked with the FOCUS staff members and they've told me the steps that they use when trying to help a student de-escalate. My cooperating teacher and I are now using the same technique because consistency is always good. On Wednesday he got in trouble and became very upset when I gave him a write-up. We called the FOCUS staff and they talked about what had happened. The rest of the afternoon he kept telling us that he was happy now. This week he's started engaging my CT and I in conversation, which is huge for a person with autism. They tend to be very inward focused. On two different occasions this week he was working with other students during workstation time. One of those times was even a station that he told me he didn't like and fought against going to it earlier in the week. The peers at his table are usually great with him. They try to offer to help him, but most of the time he just wants one of the teachers to help. A couple of times this week he's accepted the help of the other students at his desk. It is just amazing to see him integrating into the classroom. He still has his difficulties, of course, and he still needs extra attention to stay focused, but I have seen him make progress in the two weeks that I've been in the classroom. I've also seen progress with a couple of other students who have more behavior issues than most. It also makes me feel good to see a student smile at me at the end of the day, even when I've had to discipline them. I am still making a conscious effort to make sure these students don't just get negative attention from me. I'm having a great time working with the students and it is so exciting to see the progress they are making.