Let's Get Caught Up...

Last year was the first time I went into Jason's class with the purpose of educating his classmates during autism awareness month--April. His class is great and the kids are really receptive. I read a simple book and we spoke a bit.

This year I returned and Radar came with me. There are no photos since I had Radar on a leash and that kept my hands busy! Radar's presence there had a major impact. I was pretty sure having him would speak louder than words and I was right!

Patty at the North Star Foundation sent me a CD she produced called Home Before Dark. This shows how an assistance dog can help a child with autism. I played the beginning of the disc for the class. With all those puppies on the large screen, I felt the need to give a "cute factor" warning prior to starting it up!

Jason's classmates asked great questions. Most of them have dogs at home so they completely understood the many benefits dogs can provide. Radar was very well behaved. He LOVES kids and I know he worked really hard to sit or lie quietly at my side when he really thought 20+ kids in one room surely meant recess!!

One of the first things I did was an experiment. I asked Jason to walk up to the front of the class slowly (Radar knows his boy and I didn't want a bouncing fool on my hands--the dog, not the boy!). When Jason arrived to us, I handed him the leash and walked a few steps away. The expressions changed in a positive way on just about every face! When I pointed this out to Jason's class, I saw the look of enlightenment. I explained that was the whole point of this placement--for Radar to become a bridge to his peers. In that instant he held the leash, he was not Jason with Asperger's or autism; he wasn't Jason with the pants pulled up too high; he wasn't Jason who talks insessantly about birds; he was Jason, the kid with a really cool dog. Mission accomplished.

Amy, the school district autism consultant, was present for the start of our presentation. She is delighted to have a parent take a proactive position in the school. She tells me we have 60 children in our tiny little school district who are on the autism spectrum. Those are just the ones who are diagnosed. It makes me wonder how many have yet to be diagnosed. Interestinly, of those 60, only two are girls. She confirmed what I keep hearing: girls present differently than boys and often go undiagnosed or get diagnosed much later than boys.

The one message I've tried to convey in a variety of ways in different classes is this: we are ALL different and so that really makes us all the same. It's about acceptance. If I could drive that message home to all kids in elementary school.... Sadly, many learn to discriminate at home. I do believe it's a learned behavior. Maybe, with Radar's help, we change some of that.

And This...

Perhaps it's because he is a light dog, but I have a hard time getting a good photo of Radar when he faces the camera. He is now sporting his summer clip. He is shaved down pretty short. I will never be mistaken for a show groomer but I must say, my grooming skills are coming along. In this warmer weather, I've been clipping Radar on the grooming table outside. Then he gets to watch the goings on of the neighborhood while I buzz him. He can watch all the neighborhood kids play without a problem but if OUR children come outside when he's on the table, that just about ends the grooming session! He can't sit still. Whatever they are doing, he thinks should involve him!

And Now THIS!