basic advice to parents of autism kids about how learning is to be initiated and in what direction

When we need to do correct, we need to stop doing wrong.

When going ahead is our goal. Let’s not go behind.

Whatever child used to do in past and has regresses, lets keep that as a goal to get back in 6 months and move ahead.

Our kid has learning deficit. It’s not delay. Delays get catch up, deficits need double speed to overcome to an extent.

In autism the social and cognitive development is slowed down to say 0.0005 x zoom.

All developmental soft milestones which appear normally at an age and maturity wil seem to appear slowly, slower, later and develop over months than just 2 weeks in normal kids.

Development Of social and cognitive milestones is important for learning.

Our kid has learning deficit. Kid couldn’t learn like normal kids bcos child is not receptive for learning.

Whatever child has learnt, had learnt in extremely slow speed with heavily repeated conditioning.

Our aim is to help the kid learn on his own from environment.

So, when learning is our motive, and we have serious learning deficit, we need to be very serious about this goal and work towards it.

So when learning is our motive, at least for 2 months let’s give 200% percent to it and strictly stay away from entertainment. 

If maximum time of the day is not spent on learning it means that maximum time of the day is just time passed or spent on entertainment. And if so, means we are not serious about learning.

What child has to learn is being human to become a member of the family.

Being a member of family. One who can become a member of family then only one can become member of society.

To become a member of family, the kid has to learn to connect with family members.

Only when u connect with someone we communicate with them.

Without connection and communication  there is no onversation.

What one has to learn is to

 1. Be with humans 

2. Look at humans 

3. Listen to humans 

4. Follow humans 

5. Feel humans 

6. Develop a relationship with humans 

7. Listen to humans

 8. Copy the feelings, looks, communication and conversations 9. Copy the language and intellect and behaviour . 

To develop awareness of human word  it’s important that child should develop awareness of environment. Initially (basic non living and ) most importantly basic living environment.

Awareness of environment is developed only when child gives attention to the environment.

To notice any thing or any one or feel any thing or any one , one needs to notice the environment 

To notice the environment,  one needs to develop posture of attention.

Posture of attention is like being receptive. 

Without receptiveness, there is no learning 

So let’s make the kid receptive. Only when we can make the kid receptive, we can expect a response. Initially without understanding  and later with minimal understanding, which will grow as per inputs.

Posture of attention means steadyness of body and mind. It’s like fixing the dish antenna to receive signals. Only when body receives signals, in time and adequate, the signals are noted and processed.

Autism kids are not receptive as per age. Mainly bcos their mind or body is not in a state of receptiveness.

For example, 

1. One may need to call by name or action many times to get attention

2. One may fail to get child’s attention to the learning objects or people

It means eyes are there to notice and ears are there to listen, the kid is not blind or deaf, but cannot see or hear promptly to a signal.

One most common reason why someone cannot pay attention despite repeated attempts being..

1. The child is not steady by body or child’s body hands or feet or eyes are in continuous state of movement. When one is in movement, attention takes backfoot 

2. The child is not steady by mind or child’s thought behaviors action feeling or sensing the environment are not steady. Unless the body is steady, mind cannot  be steady

3. Only when body  and mind is steady , eyes can focus.

4. To learn something , eyes and ears attention needs to be given to the person who is teaching throught eyes and sound /language.

5. Unless u look at a person or human, u cannot connect with them.

6. Listening by ears , need a sustained focus with eyes.

7. Humans are best connected by eye to eye connection.. longer and sustained

8. Only when u develop a good eye to eye connection , u can initiate listening.

9. Ears are there to listen.

10. To become aware of environment, we need to appreciate, understand and learn signals given to eyes and eats

11. 99% of our knowledge and learning comes through listening or verbal learning.

12. Verbal or listened learning has language, vocabulary, imagination, past tense and future tense 

13. Visual learning lacks all this and surely touch based learning doesn’t  help u understand language communication and no 12 above.

14. To conclude, one has initiate sustained sitting, sustained looking and sustained listening in preferablybverbal form to develop awareness of surroundings.

15. Learning by eyes and ears through verbal form is 1000 times superior to nonverbal learning through skin and toys.

Dr Santosh Kondekar www.autismdoctor.in

Continued..