lesson in blogging...

I wrote my blog post yesterday in a hurry to get back to my book. I didn't put too much thought into it and didn't really give it a good re-reading. I mean, my readers are my dad, my inlaws, and some of my co-workers, right?


One would have thought I learned my lesson when I insulted SEASTARS and was corrected by someone in our county who worked with the program.


Apparently I didn't...


John Elder Robinson, the author of the book, Look Me in the Eyes commented below, asking why I wouldn't want to teach a child like him. To quote my children, "It hurt my heart". I certainly didn't mean that in the least, but on re-reading I realize that is what it sounded like. That is the last message I ever wanted to send!

My husband also pointed out that my comments about contributing to society insulted anyone not a 'teacher, priest, or lawyer'. I didn't mean that either. I only meant there are certain typical careers we think of when planning for success. Sometimes in our push to create perfect citizens in our classrooms we forget what success really looks like. It's something to think about. Do we expect children to conform and be perfect angels? Will those perfect angels end up not taking risks later in life? This frequently comes up with debating NCLB. Sure we'll have children who can take standardized tests and memorize information, but can they problem solve?

Recently I've been in situations with parents who are just discovering their children have asperger's. Some see it is a death sentence, as though their child will sit in a state hospital the rest of his life. But it's not. Robinson writes in his book, "I have started to see that we Aspergians are better than normal!" (page 240)
I cannot imagine what a parent goes through when first getting a diagnosis, but I found Robinson's book full of hope when considering these kids.

Another great book written by someone with Asperger's is Born on a Blue Day.

As for me, I'll do some more re-reading before I hit the 'publish post' button next time.