Let's Talk About Books, Baby...(Autism Ones)

 So when Chandni saw a newspaper article about the subject, she kept it for Ria to see when she returned from school.

“I can’t sit still, just like they say here,” said Ria, pointing at the hands-on learning style in the article.

“You do enjoy making models in STEM class at school, don’t you,” Chandni agreed, looking at the learning style for restless children. “That’s why you should keep playing with Lego, like you do,” she continued.

Ria had enjoyed a Lego workshop at school, doing all thirteen activities. She had made a building, a park, a giraffe, a car, a seesaw, and more.

Chandni began reading Temple Grandin’s books after watching the Netflix movie about her. Temple talked about how she thinks in pictures, and Chandni asked Ria if she did too. Ria agreed.

Temple also spoke about how people should be specific in talking with autistic children, mentioning constraints if possible. Chandni started doing that, and Ria followed instructions better.

Temple talked in her books about how Einstein began to speak at age three, and that Elon Musk admitted he had Asperger’s. Chandni felt more hopeful now about Ria, that her autism was not a disability, but a different way of processing stimuli.

Temple discussed how language and verbal thinkers are foregrounded in society, and that autistic children often have trouble modulating their voice while talking, and Chandni found herself nodding as she read that. She would always rebuke Ria for talking too loudly, and ask her to use an ‘indoor voice.’

Temple also confided that she dreamed vividly, and Chandni recalled Ria telling her that she would have a dream about Candyland often, with fairies and unicorns – her favourite creatures.

When the children got a book about children who had dared to think differently from the library, Ria wanted Chandni to read aloud a story from there, about a child who was born with no arms.

Chandni had read a book on autism that Dr. Kadam had recommended called The Complete Guide to Asperger’s Syndrome, by Tony Attwood. In that, he suggested that parents could have a conversation with an autistic child about autism, when she turned eight.

Chandni resolved to check online whether that still held good, given medical advancements. She also searched for the incidence of autism in India, as Temple had quoted recent statistics showing autism was on the rise.

Chandni learned that about 3% of children in India are autistic, perhaps because diagnoses have increased, given the rise in awareness about autism among doctors, educators, and parents.

A 2024 study by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) said, '1 in 65 Indian children between the age group of two and nine are affected by ASD.'

Chandni showers with Ria on weekends, and Ria enjoys the sensory stimulation of the water, putting her palm out and calling the stops that strike it 'water fireworks.'

Chandni had bought a couple of clockwork bath toys, and it was much easier to wake Ria up in the morning for school, as she wanted to wind them up and race them.

To be continued...

This post is a part of Blogchatter A2Z.