Advice please :autistic child is not allowed to colour in lessons

[Dispairrepair]

Any advice please, my dd is autistic, highly intelligent but can't cope with exams and has started college.
She can't self regulate and talks a lot. One of her coping mechanisms is colouring in and I've been assured in the past by tas and teachers that she is OK with this and can still concentrate but, becomes distracted anyway and will need occasional reminding to keep on task.

She says her new teachers repeatedly ask her to stop colouring?

Is this expected now she is in college or should we expect them to accommodate this need? She finds sitting in one place hard and she fidgets.

@MrsHamlet there has been a huge transition for her before she went to college. Lots of people have been involved which is why I'm struggling to give them the benefit of the doubt that they don't know a thing about her.

@Dispairrepair With the specific teachers who are now causing the issue?
in which case it's even more important you get in touch sooner than later

I'm autistic. On teams calls I play very easy games on my phone, in real life I doodle or write loads of notes to keep me focused. I don't see an issue for this child's future.

She said someone else doodles and never gets told to stop?
She has proper colouring pens and pads but she said this other girl does it on her work book paper with a normal pen.

Good email, I like that tone.

@zurala thank you 😊

Would your daughter be ok with using a normal pen instead of colouring pens? I'm wondering if the noise is too much for the teacher

If the colouring in isn’t in DD’s EHCP and you aren’t sure the colouring in was even mentioned the teachers/tutors may not be aware even if the SENCO is. Even more of a reason why you should make contact now rather than waiting a few weeks.

I did wonder if there was noise and I certainly can't hear it.
I wonder if I can get her to switch to blend in more, be discreet.

But whilst she's settling in I don't think it would be fair and if she's listening and working I'm struggling to understand what the issue is.

Thank you for the responses.
I will see how she reports back tomorow and if there has been no movement I will email on Monday.

I'm very genuinely curious as to what u was thinking before writing this? I have autistic daughter who could very possibly not be able to work or be live independently.

Lots of people have been involved which is why I'm struggling to give them the benefit of the doubt that they don't know a thing about her.

But colleges are huge and have big intakes. It's likely the information hasn't filtered down yet. I'd prefer a nice email now rather than waiting a week or so for the paperwork to be transferred/uploaded.

‘what is she going to do when she starts work?’

probably very much what I do as an autistic adult - knit, sew, doodle and stim my way through work zoom meetings. No one cares because a) I’m great at my job and b) my workplace is forward thinking enough to accept that we don’t all need to fit into the same box

I'm thinking if I were the teacher and someone was scribbling with certain pens I'd find it too much sensory input along with the other class room noises. Using biro style pens might fit in more with the soundscape.

Information often doesn't filter down through secondary schools and colleges. And you can't assume they will know your dd is colouring because it helps her - it's much more likely that they think she's distracted and they need to remind her to concentrate.

You need to tell them as they won't work it out by themselves. Get in touch asap and politely explain the situation. I'd tell her head of year, I've found they're best at getting information to all the relevant teachers.

I can understand how it could be very distracting. There are only 10 students in the class and one of them is colouring in using a range of different coloured felt tip pens. That’s quite different to doodling with a biro.

I have ADHD and would find all that activity of getting out pads, pens, colouring in, extremely distracting to my own learning.
The teacher once went ballistic at someone humming a tune... I can sort of understand both sides.
I'd definitely ask to keep the colouring as a coping mechanism but with a "if it's not causing any issues" clause.

Dramallams posts a valid question. Whilst school and college might be accommodating in letting her colour in, employers in the workforce won’t be.

I work.in a school. If simeinevwas colouring in, I would ask then.to stop if I had not been informed. I would not leave a few weeks. I would contact the SENCO. An e msil.can be sent to all her teachers.

I'm guessing this is "normal" 6th form. Speak to the senco about reasonable adjustments (colouring in or doodling would come under this) but there will be a limit to how much "keeping on task" help they can give in a classroom unless she has funding for a support worker. They also cannot tolerate disturbing other students nor stop teaching the class to ask her to concentrate.

My dd is autistic (at university) and there is help but it doesn't adjust teaching style for instance.

My dd was mainstream educated though, 30+ to a class with senco support and has limited accessibility support at university.

Yes I think a few biros and a small sheet of colouring tucked inside a pad would be less disruptive and more appropriate for college than a set of felt tips and a colouring book. But if that doesn’t cut it then send the email above.
I’m another one who doodles incessantly during work meetings and always did at school.

Morrisons had nice sets of coloured bic biros for 50p when I went in yesterday

But if they don't know that colouring is a coping mechanism they will keep asking. Please tell them now.

I have had students in my class who drew as a coping mechanism and this helped them to listen - the SENDCO was very clear that the students should not be drawing when they needed to be completing tasks. In class, there were certainly times when I was reminding these students of when it was appropriate to draw (when listening, sometimes when talking) and when they needed to be writing.

I suppose a pertinent question is whether the colouring means that your daughter is not completing the classwork or keeping up with her note-taking.

I really think you need to send a polite email asap OP. You've said your concern is they'll react poorly to her, that they'll see you as challenging their authority / telling them off but they're reacting poorly to her now and you could potentially solve that - and you can do it in a tone that doesn't make you 'that parent' at all!

Surely all you need to do is email the senco or the particular teacher and say you wanted to make sure they're aware that she uses it to self regulate and concentrate, she's not trying to be disrespectful or disrupt the class, and ask if it's OK for her to continue as she is or if there's something about it that's causing a particular problem that you can resolve - maybe squeaky felt tips, or she starts unpacking it all from the bag mid lesson rather than at the start when there's the general hubbub while everyone gets things from their bags, or something like that is the problem.