Transition Story

I've talked before about social stories and how they can be a useful tool in helping kids with autism spectrum disorders cope with new situations. This is the story I crafted for Little Guy as we prepared for his transition to the preschool. I kept it very simple and direct, using familiar routines he could build on and relate his new experiences to. I've left a few of the pictures out due to privacy issues.

*Little Guy's Preschool Transition Story*

On Fridays, I like to go to play group. Sometimes, I play with trucks or slide down the slide. I see my friends at play group, and my teachers Miss C., Miss L., and Mr. T are there too. We eat yummy snacks at play group. It is very fun.

When I turn three, I will not go to play group any more. Instead, I will go to a special preschool:


When we walk in, there are chairs for people to sit on:

This is my new classroom:The teacher sits on the red chair, and the children sit on the green chairs for circle time.

This is my new teacher (pic deleted). Her name is Miss L.

After circle time, we sit and do work in a cubby:
Sometimes, we play in the hallway:

And even spend some time outside on the playground:

There is even a place where I can go potty:

I will make some new friends at my new school. I will also get to eat yummy snacks in my new classroom.

When it is time to go to school, Mommy cannot go with me. I will ride a big, yellow bus to my school. After a little while, it will be time to go home, where Mommy will be waiting for me.

I can't wait to go to my new school; it sounds like so much fun!

With Flying Colors

I recently returned from a three day trip to a nearby state. My husband and I drove Sis to a regional swim meet and decided to leave the younger boys behind with my mother. I was extremely worried about Little Guy and how he would handle my absence, especially after the behavior we'd seen during the summer when I was gone quite a bit during a theater production.


Little Guy actually did GREAT while I was away; the only problem my mother faced while caring for him was feeding issues. She told me that the only things Little Guy would eat at her house were: Gogurt, apple juice, oatmeal cookies, and chips. I thought that we'd probably see some delayed reactions at home from Little Guy since we returned, but he's been surprisingly easygoing. The only behavior I've seen is some increased anxiety when I had to leave home today for an appointment, but I think this reaction is normal for his age.

The transition to preschool has also gone remarkably well. His teacher says that Little Guy is happy, focused, and cooperative for most of the class. This is exciting news, as our goal is to move Little Guy from a completely structured, self-contained environment to a more "normal" classroom where he can practice his social skills.

So, my little one has passed through these situations with flying colors. It is such a relief to see him feeling more confident and calm; it will be so nice when I can go places with Little Guy and not worry about when the meltdown will make its unwelcome appearance!

Hello........Goodbye

As I mentioned in my last post, things unexpectedly worked out for Little Guy to begin preschool last Thursday.Little Guy waiting for the bus

I received two phone updates during the class time from his new teacher with good news in each call; Little Guy had a fantastic bus ride, and was extremely cooperative for his teachers during class. It looks like the hours we spent on transition with him really paid off on his first day of school.

On Friday, Little Guy attended his toddler sensory group for the last time. This was a bittersweet moment for me; while I really appreciate the strides my son has made in his development and am glad he's prepared to move on, I feel saddened to leave this great program. I've come to regard the staff members as good friends, and have really enjoyed the camaraderie I've felt with other parents. It's not that this new program won't be as effective. It will just provide support in a different way, focusing on the educational aspects of helping my child rather than stressing the relationships between Little Guy and our family.

Although I tried to prepare Little Guy for his last day of group, I don't believe he understood the finality of the situation. Even though I told Little Guy he wouldn't be seeing his friends (many are going to different schools upon graduation) and teachers anymore, at the end of class he still called out, "See you later, everyone!" I have to admit I grew a little misty eyed, and noticed some of the staff members were also emotional.

But that's life. People enter new stages and situations change; this is what provides experiences which help one to grow and prevents things from becoming stagnant.

Although it's time to say goodbye, I'll never forget the friendships I've forged and the lessons learned from the wonderful program we're leaving. I plan to carry on their mission by taking what I've learned and passing it on to others.

So that they, too, might feel prepared when it's their turn to move forward.

LIfe Comes At You Fast

Life comes at you fast, according to one insurance commercial.

It's amazing how things can change seemingly within the blink of an eye.

It's been a bit of a whirlwind around our house lately, as an unexpected development came about.

The result? I just sent Little Guy to his first day of preschool at his new program.

About 10 minutes ago. On a bus.

Little Guy doesn't even turn three until next week. So how did this happen so soon?

We've spent the last two weeks preparing for this transition, and fully expected it to happen next week. However, it was discovered during his recent IEP (individualized education plan) that due to a family vacation and Thanksgiving break, Little Guy would be unable to start school until 9 days after his birthday if we waited until after he turns three. This would essentially render useless all of the time we'd just spent preparing him for this big transition. The consensus was that it would be best to start Little Guy soon, and we decided to begin this week.

As for the bus, that was initially not in my plans. We live about a mile from the school and I was totally prepared to drive or walk him to and from class. However, in discussing Little Guy's separation issues, the teachers felt that it might be better to initiate the separation at home with something to look forward to (Little Guy LOVES trucks and buses) rather than a drawn-out scene at the school.

I agreed. So I loaded my toddler onto the bus this afternoon, took a few pictures, then kissed his cheek and said goodbye. As I watched the bus drive away, I had to swallow past a big lump in my throat.

I HATE not being there for Little Guy's big first day, sending him into an unknown and threatening (to him) situation without my strength to rely on. But Little Guy needs to begin building his own coping skills because as he grows older, the opportunities for me to physically be there to help him will grow fewer and fewer.

I knew it was coming; it just seemed to happen so quickly. I don't feel ready for this.

It would have been nice if I could have been given a transition plan, too.

Not Yet

As I mentioned last week, Big Guy has determined that he'd really like to spread his wings and move out of the house.

This desire worries me on many levels. Don't get me wrong - our goal is to have Big Guy out on his own and self sufficient at some point. We'd also like this to happen sooner rather than later. So I had a problem: how do I show my son that he's not ready for this step without damaging his already fragile self esteem?

After talking it over with my husband, we decided that a breakdown of finances for Big Guy might be the best route to take. Money is tangible, and something that Big Guy understands well. We sat down with him last night and showed him on paper what it would take for him to be financially self-efficient enough to move into campus housing. Everyone agreed that it's not possible at this point, but we decided it is a distinct possibility for next fall.

This will also give us time to work on the other areas Big Guy will need to improve on, such as practical everyday activities and social skills.

Because when it's time for my young bird to fly the nest, I don't want him to fall.

I want him to SOAR.

Where's the Water?

Part of having Asperger's is the difficulty of understanding abstract thinking. These individuals can be very concrete thinkers and tend to take things quite literally.

Little Guy provided a great example of literal thinking during a recent sensory group.

He and I were playing with a safari set with a teacher standing nearby, observing our interaction. In an attempt to engage Little Guy, I took turns pretending to be the different animals and trying to insert them into his "story". At one point, I grabbed the hippo and said, "Hi, I'm Mr. Hippo and I'm thirsty. Could you show me where the water is?"

Little Guy looked around briefly then turned back to the set, bent over, and deposited a huge glob of spit between two of the plastic rocks. With a huge smile of accomplishment on his face, he said, "There you go, Mr. Hippo."

I heard a snort nearby, and saw the teacher frantically trying to hold in her laughter at Little Guy's unexpected solution.

Next time, I will be very careful about asking my son to find Mr. Hippo some water!

Wednesday's News

This has been a big week for us.

There have been many plans put into place for Little Guy's upcoming transition to preschool. We have already met with a friend in the classroom, spent a little time observing a class, and have a "social story" put together. So far, Little Guy seems to be handling the idea of a new school pretty well. He is also making some GRADUAL steps towards becoming potty trained; we have worked up to wearing underwear a couple of hours a day now with few accidents. I think I'll wait until we have the big change with schools behind us before taking things to the next level.

Big Guy had a good time with his geology class during their trip to Death Valley. However, when he came home, he informed us that he wants to move out. Talk about a bombshell! His father and I aren't enthusiastic about this idea; we don't believe Big Guy is ready for this step yet. Our plan is to sit down with him in the next day or so and write out just exactly what kind of finances it will take to make this work. I'm thinking that Big Guy can't afford it right now....but maybe I'll be the one who's surprised.

Transition Plan

This picture is of Little Guy and Daddy watching Sis compete in one of her three swimming meets last week. We took Little Guy with us all three days; he held out pretty well until Saturday, when he'd finally had enough. I can't say that I blame him - I was pretty tired of at that point, too! We finally resorted to ice cream to keep him happy:

I met with Little Guy's new preschool teacher on Friday, along with Little Guy's current occupational therapist. Together, we put together a transition that I think will work very well.

Some of our plans include:

1. Having me compile a social story for Little Guy. I'm in the process of doing so right now; it should be ready by tomorrow.

2. Letting Little Guy see and explore the classroom when it's empty.

3. Building a relationship with his new teacher.

4. Holding a few of his appointments with current staff members in the new classroom instead of our home or the old program's site.

5. Meeting and playing with a friend in the new classroom.

6. Letting Little Guy observe a class for a while.

7. Having me observe a class WITHOUT Little Guy.

We begin our plan tomorrow by meeting in the classroom with a neighbor whose child recently began attending the preschool. I believe these steps will help Little Guy's transition to the preschool program be a smoother one, and I'm anxious to begin the process.