It's our world too

[niminypiminy]

Closing lines of today's Young, Autistic and Stagestruck (if I heard correctly) : 'we're not normal ... hey, we are normal, it's our world too'. I want this on a t-shirt!

I loved that, too. Made me

Love it. I will be ordering my 'It's my World Too' t-shirt for DS.

I would also like one that says 'Hello to You Out There in Normal Land' (Ian Dury and the Blockheads)

Really enjoying the programme. One of the drama therapists in it is my friend. I am famous by osmosis.

Just saw the last 15 minutes. Turned it on when Mollie was hiding in the loo. Saw Claire get her out..... I want a Claire in my life!

Having just spent ten minutes hiding in the loo, can I have a Claire too when you've finished with one please

it is interesting and DD loves it. But none of those kids are like DS. I also think it shows less about autism and more about other people iyswim, including the female drama director who just doesn't seem to get it imo.

Actually when the directors talked about a large part of what they were learning was how to manage their own frustration with the kids, and not to let their frustration drive them, I thought 'well, welcome to my world'.

There are none of the kids that are exactly like ds1 -- there are some bits of some of them that are like some bits of him. But that's the point, isn't it, they are (like everyone else on the spectrum) individuals who have autism in an extraordinary variety of ways. I feel it is more like family resemblances not types where you can say, oh yes, my one is that type iyswim.

And I want a Claire too, I think she's lovely. I'm very fond of Ben as well.

I think the kids are all lovely. But imo the woman drama director has no sensitivity.

I do remember that in a previous episode it was mentioned that where the teachers had worked with children, they were nice biddable middle-class ones in expensive drama clubs so even a typical class in most schools would have been a shock to them!

What a great group though, loved the little boy with the cap (Oliver?) helping Joseph

That was great, Olive(?) helping Joseph and Claire as already mentioned. The parents are also great. I felt so much for Mollie's mum, trying so much to be positive or at least neutral, but its so hard.

It irritates me a bit how the professionals (apart from the drama therapist) talk to the kids - there's little attempt to slow down or simplify language. I find this when people talk to DS2 - but maybe people feel it's patronising to talk like this?

It did make me smile when the director (Montse?) was trying to get Josef to say his line and he kept coming out with other lines instead - I can well imagine DS2 doing this.
And, as I've mentioned on another thread, I found it highly ironic that I missed the beginning of yesterday's episode which dealt with Josef pooing on the chair because I was upstairs dealing with something very similar...

Davros - Ds1 loves it too. And thought it was ridiculous that they made such a fuss about 'a bit of poo'

I was pleased about the poo too . And equally thinking "well, I wouldn't have a clue what I was being asked to do by some of the directors - the instructions were too much arm-waving and action and vagueness".
I also learned that there isn't a right way to shut a door which I didn't know before.

They could send the lady director on a More than Words course plus some courses with the drama therapist then do a series 2 to see if she did better.

Hooray for a bit of poo!
Admittedly I didn't see the first episode, but I wonder if the title is a bit misleading. Are these kids "stagestuck"? Or are they simply attending a project they have been offered and their parents have agreed to? Attending something and coping with it doesn't make it the most appropriate activity iyswim. Maybe that's part of the challenge? I agree about the language too, such a simple thing to learn and incorporate without going too far and treating them all like dimwits, but they also probably need more time to process things, especially after a whole day there.
DH would rather be shot from a canon than watch any ASD programmes. I am somewhat agnostic about them, I don't set out to see them but don't mind if I do and sometimes get something out of it. But DD just loves it and I think its important for her to watch this sort of thing if she wants to. The fact that it is a drama project probably has more meaning to her too, its something she recognises.

Absolutely NorthernSky - I'm sure this is why DS1 enljoys it too.

I talked today to someone who works at the Lyric. She said that the fuss the television company made was more trouble than anything the children could have done. And that the director often works with 'hard to reach' young people (ie not in education, employment or training at 18)so this probably accounts for her not taking any nonsense style.

I actually think it's fascinating seeing the directors trying to cope -- after all we've had years of one-to-one intensive training (from our children ) in dealing with children with autism, and there's nothing like doing it to learn that normal strategies don't work.

I think that 'less alone' feeling is a major benefit of the series too for parents as well as sibs. I feel really sad though that my mum can't bear to watch it I think she can't bear to really accept that ds1 has an asd and that he's in any way like these children .