Three years ago, Tad took his very first tour of his new middle school.  He was quite nervous, as you can probably tell by his expression.

Well, three years later (plus braces and FIVE INCHES OF HEIGHT), he is finishing middle school.  Though not in the way we would prefer, he is definitely moving on to high school next year!

From boy to teenager – these last three years have flown by for me!

Trying to explain Thumper’s skill set to someone unfamiliar with autism is hard, but here’s an example…

After weeks of work, Thumper can copy a block design that I hold up and show him.  First, he learned to copy designs by placing the blocks directly on top of the card.  Then next to the card.  Now, I can hold the card up, he can select the correct blocks, and he can correctly copy the card’s design.

Paying attention to detail and copying is such a huge part of how we learn, but it’s a skill that usually kids pick up and apply to their own lives without intensive therapy.

Welcome to Thumper’s world, which – thanks to his work on attention-building skills – is becoming a little bit bigger all the time.

One of the sad facts of lockdown has been Tad burning out on the things he usually loves to do.  It has been very hard to motivate him to draw, or paint, or anything.

But he did manage to make this cartoon for English class.

The next assignment will be to build on this plot, and draw a conclusion.

After months of working with Rerun on his assignments, I have learned how he verbally stalls to give cover for himself (thanks, ADHD) – he is constantly rephrasing the last thing you just asked him.  All.  The.  Time.

Today, working with his paraeducator on a writing assignment…

Her: “Rerun, you have to say this in your own words. So how is nuclear energy created?”

Rerun: (five second pause) “You’re asking how nuclear energy is created.”

Me: “Rerun, it’s in your notes.”

Rerun: “It’s in my notes?”

He is essentially Emmet from The Lego Movie: “I think I got it, but just in case, tell me the whole thing again – I wasn’t listening.“