I have a question?

allgirls · **I have a question?**

Let me start with I do not have a SN child.
My neice's dd has been diagnosed with Pervaisive Developmental Disorder Not otherwise Specified(PDD NOS)-,ADHD combined, Disruptive Behavior Disorder.

My question is, my dd #2 has an Austic child in her class who she plays with often and lately has told me that Andy said she is his best friend. My dd is very patient and caring with Andy but with her cousin she think she is kind of weird.

Is it b/c she is with Andy 5 days a week or could it be that for years my Neice(the mom) has denied that her dd had problems and so no explanation were given as to why her cousin did certain things? The most "weird" thing I can think of is that she usually doesn't play with the kids her own age(6) but plays with 3 yr old. She also will just get up and leave. She has speech problems as well. I know this is all normal for her, but without explanation I think my kids are confused. I have always tried to explain to my kids but can't say anything in front of the mom b/c she will have a tantrum and leave and say we all hate her (hate the mom that is).
are there any books u would recommend I can read to my kids( ages 8, 6 and 3).?
I hope all that made sense? TIA
allgirls

desertmom · 06-02-2007, 10:11 PM

As far as books, I don't have any off the top of my head, but I search on Amazon, saying things like "PDD for kids" "why kids are different"...things like that.

As far as her just getting up and leaving, kids usually easily pick up on how to act around others by watching how to act. Kids with autism, Aspergers, PDD, have social problems - they don't know how to act around people and don't know that they are acting different. It's like not being able to see in a part of a dark room. They don't really watch things like that - they watch objects more than people. That's why the parents have to teach them by role playing - just verbalizing it to them is not enough.

I may have a few books, and I will look, but what bothered me was that a lot of them just talk down to the kids. They may be good for preschoolers, but for a child like my son, they were too patronizing. I would say to use some key words - explaining autism to kids, things like that, and read the reviews.

We've recently put some posts up on here about autism - explaining it. You would have to translate it a bit, but it could give you insight on where these kids are coming from. If I get a chance I will look here later and post links in this thread (the links will be to other posts on here). The Out of Sync books are great, but they are not for kids.

Anyone out there find any really valuable?

desertmom · **A website**

Here's a link to a website I found helpful (PDD is part of my son's diagnosis - Aspergers is a condition that has many things attached, different by each child).

Pervasive Developmental Disorder - Not Otherwise Specified

One more thing: Let the kids know that it's a communication condition - not a disease or sickness. It's a way of being. The brain still works...they view things differently, but they are still intelligent. It's just that they can't always get the idea out of their head, put it into words, as easily as typical kids do. My son is a talker - he talks a lot, and often to himself (Aspergers will keep talking even when you're not listening), but may not answer the question I'm asking.