Temple Gradin: An Inspiration To The World

Temple Grandin is the face of autism and an inspiration to those diagnosed with it. She was an advocate for autistic populations and was also a great writer. In 2010, HBO released an Emmy Award winning film on Grandin's life and how she dealt with autism. As a high-functioning autistic person, Gradin was able to make sense and articulate her unusual life experiences with rare depth. She described her sensitivity to loud noises and and her difficulty socializing with others. She was a visual thinker who considered verbal communication to be a secondary skill. She has taken strong positions on autism and education of autistic children creating many different early interventions a teacher or parent can do to help the child.

Blog 8 - Research and Working EQ

1. My working EQ is how can you help a child with autism communicate better with others?
2. What is a possible answer to your working EQ? 

EQ: How can you help a child with autism communicate better with others?

• Social activities could be formed or group activities so the child can be more engaged with his/her peers.
• Reading social stories about daily routines of everyday life can help a child become more familiar with to what is normal and what is not.

     3. The most important source that has helped me come up with an answer to my working EQ is the               article Social Skills Activities for Kids with Autism by Kate Miller-Wilson.
     4. My mentor is Ariana Nasseri and I am helping her take care of Sergio. What I am doing is making activities and stories that could help Sergio become more involved and social with other children.

Blog 7: Independent Component 1 Approval

1. What I plan to do for my 30 hours of Independent Component are social or interactive activities that will help Sergio (autistic child) be more involved and be more social with the other kids. It could be from red light green light to duck duck goose. Or I could read different social stories to Sergio every day.

2. To show evidence of the 30 hours I could take a picture of the activity or story I did that day. I will write what I did on my log as well.

3.  What I will be doing for my Independent Component will help me explore my topic on autism in more depth because I will get to see progress off Sergio and how the communication with the other kids will grow.

Mentorship Experience

My mentor Ariana takes care of a 4 year old child named Sergio that is diagnosed with autism. He is a bright child, he can count to 100 while other kids in the day care do not know how to spell their names yet. He just has trouble focusing, expressing his feelings, and speaking. My mentor uses the MANDing method to help him through. He has progressed a lot since the last time, he used to bite other kids but now he uses manners and keeps his hands to himself and knows how to share. He is a very cute and smart kid, who needs a lot of attention from teachers and parents. Sergio has a very long day, he goes to school around 9:40 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. I go see them from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. on weekdays. Everyday it is usually the same routine, the kids play games, then the teacher reads a book to them, then they go outside to play. I have learned a lot of methods on how to help an autistic child with my mentor but I feel I don't really get that much experience or learn any new strategies. It has been extremely hard to get a hold of a place with just autistic children so I have settled for the day care. Ariana says I can read social stories or teach Sergio a few methods if I would like to do that for my independent component but I still am unsure. I look forward to helping Sergio in his progress and accomplishing his goals.

Blog 6- Second Interview Preparation

1. My mentor is Ariana Nasseri who is a Behavior Interventionist that currently works at Amar Children's Center.

2.

• What do you enjoy the most about your job?
• Do you have any past experience with working with autistic children and if how challenging was it?
• In college, what did you major in and did it help lead you to the career you have pursued?
• Where have you worked/volunteered at with helping out autistic children?
• Is it your plan to get promoted to a higher position or stay in your current position?

Blog 5- Mentorship Reflection

1.  I found my mentorship through the Internet when I was looking for schools and centers that could possibly have kids with autism and I could help them. I actually found it in my city and quickly called and got the opportunity. I went in to the Amar Children's Center that same day I was accepted. I also found it through one of my friends that had done her volunteer hours there in the summer. Although it is a great place to do my hours, I also want to look for more places that could help me more with my essential question.
2. The most important article I have read so far is called Autism Symptoms & Early Signs. It is 6 pages long with detailed information on how autism could be understood and a list of symptoms a child with autism has. It helps you easily tell if your child has autism or has developed healthy. It also tells you what to do if your child does has autism and what treatment can undergo. 

Possible Mentor But Where To Volunteer?

I have received emails from Katie Enney who is a PsyD and she said can contact me with the program director of the school with autistic children in Monrovia and he could possibly be my mentor since he is the one that runs the place and she just administrates. It is only 20 minutes away from where I live so it is a good opportunity. I hope it works out. It has been extremely hard for me to find a place to volunteer at since I am still under age they won't accept me. And many places that have given me an opportunity happen to be an hour or two away. I am still trying to find somewhere and every day I am emailing people and places to be able to volunteer in any way. I have gotten phone calls when they offer me for jobs assuming I have experience in working with children with autism, when I tell them no I am just looking for a place to volunteer at they are disillusioned. I will continue to try to find somewhere I could volunteer at and possibly find multiple mentors.