Just Get (Electric) Wire in Your Ears

Also, a reinforcer should be alluring enough for Ria to do her homework. Chandni found craft, or a science experiment worked well.

Chandni wanted to get Ria’s ears pierced. They had been done when she was small, but an earring had fallen out due to her hyperactivity and got lost. It had happened while the maid was giving her a bath, so it had gone down the drain.

Chandni decided to pause till Ria was older. Then, she told Ria she would get a Barbie after the jeweller put wire in her ears. Later, Chandni found out that Ria had thought she would be getting electric wire in her ears! She was so keen to get her first Barbie doll that she was willing to put up with that! Autistic children tend to be literal like that.

Chandni began reading Temple Grandin’s books and watched her interview, after she liked the movie on her. She found Ria also thought in a manner similar to what Temple outlined in her books – like thinking visually. Ria was also strong in math, and could detect patterns easily.

Once, while playing I spy at home, Chandni had asked the children to spot a square shape. She thought they would say cushion, but Ria pointed out the square design on the cushions. At that time, she was in the bedroom, not the hall, where the cushions were. So she had noticed the design earlier and filed it away in her mind.

When Ria was six, she wanted a dollhouse. When Chandni went to a toy store to buy a gift for a child they were going to meet, Ria immediately pointed out a Barbie Dreamhouse in the top corner of the shop, in storage.

Ria had a new class teacher now, and Chandni’s first parent teacher meeting with her was next week. She hoped this teacher would be as understanding as the earlier one. As Temple said in her book, labelling children as autistic is doing them a disservice.

Neurodiversity is the term in vogue now, and that captures the essence of autism better. Temple mentioned that learning social niceties was like learning a foreign language for her, and Chandni remembered how the therapist had made Ria practise returning a greeting, and Dr.Kadam had told her to work on having a to and fro conversation with Ria.

Ria had been fond of playing with magnetic tiles, and still played with playdough occasionally, making a cast for a doll who accidentally broke her leg, for instance. She took to Lego well, creating figures and placing them in innovative settings.

Ria would say she wants to be an artist when she grows up, and Chandni could see how she would look forward to her art classes on the weekend. She learned to slow down a bit, so that she could colour within the lines better.

Ria liked using bright colours, and Chandni would enjoy her bold strokes and composition of pictures. She was also fond of painting.

To be continued...

This post is a part of Blogchatter A2Z.