This quote from Raun Kaufman’s (CEO and recovered child of the Autism Treatment Center of America) book says it all. I remember yelling something to this effect once in an IEP meeting at the school. We were arguing for more social goals and time in the general education classroom with his peers. I remember almost yelling something close to the following, “You can teach him all the facts in the world and he will learn them, but what good is it going to do for him if he can’t speak or relate to another human being!”
It was in this meeting that I realized something so basic in what we were trying to accomplish for our son and academics just wasn’t it. Put another way…..If a parent had to make a choice on what they would really, truly want for their child, would it be that their child is the smartest person in the room or that their life is full of love and relatable experiences with those around them, essentially full of L-I-F-E.
It was after this that my husband and I sought out a program that emphasized this and of course we thankfully found Son-Rise! Son-Rise does not diminish the importance of things like academics, self-help skills, etc. but believes that our children will have a much better basis for learning when they are able to socially relate to those around them and understand the “whys” of learning this information. We couldn’t agree more. We are now 6 months into this program and we are never looking back! Below is a video of one of these beautiful relatable moments that this program is fostering on a daily basis.
http://youtu.be/GQvk9KHka-0