Hey guys. I figured that I would share my experiences through this educational process. One of the reasons I am doing this is to vent and put my past on paper. The more important reason is to let the parents who have autistic children know what to expect when your child starts school.
I was diagnosed with Autism when I was two and a half years old. As a result, I would start pre-school a year early at the age of three years old. The reason for starting pre-school so early was because I was autistic, I needed to get help as soon as I can in the hopes I could get good treatment and be able to function at a higher level when I grew up. My first elementary school was Bosti which was located in a different neighborhood where I lived, all within Long Island.
My pre-school class had all boys in it and there were only six of us. My classmates had different disabilities but at the time, I didn't notice it. We had a teacher and a couple of assistants to help the teacher.
People with Autism have physical limitations which is why I had to work with a Physical Therapist to develop basic physical skills. At the same time, I had to work with an Occupational Therapist to train me with social skills which people with Autism also lack.
When I turned four, I repeated preschool which also took place in Bosti. Same classroom, same teachers, and the majority of my classmates were the same. I was even in school during that summer.
Socially, when I was in pre-school, I had a bit of a hard time. I was fine when I was being dropped off by the school bus, which because I was in Special Ed it would be the small yellow bus. If I was late and my mom drive me and drop me off in class, I would throw a tantrum and bury my face into the rug. Everyone would call me, "Mr. Rug."
I just didn't like it when my mom dropped me off because of the atmosphere. I mean, when mom drives me in the car, it usually means we go to the store, grandma's house, etc. School bus is for school. If they got mixed up, I get angry. I guess this falls under the category that "people with Autism love their routines and hate for the routines to be disturbed."
I remember getting in trouble one time. I knocked my friend down at the playground and sat on him and the teacher assistants thought I was attacking him. I was really imitating Winnie the Pooh when Tigger bounced on Pooh. Although I was able to talk at the time, I didn't have the ability to explain it in words so I got i trouble and I had to deal with it. I sat in timeout.
I hated sharing toys with my classmates. I wanted to be alone in playing with them, not with other people.
In Kindergarten, I was placed in a new elementary school. Idle Hour located in another neighborhood. A lot of my classmates were there as well. My behavior didn't really change. Oddly enough, although my teachers and assistants were different, I had the same Occupational Therapist as I did in Bosti. One cool thing about Idle Hour...the gym was blue. Seriously, it was blue. Blue floor, blue lighting, the whole gym was BLUE!
My bus driver was really interesting. His name was Mitch. Some days he wore regular clothes and a cap type hat. Other days he would wear a suit and obviously not a hat. That was fine with me but I always preferred he wear a hat. It was those days where he wore regular clothes without a hat that bugged me. If he wore regular clothes without a hat, I would ask him "Hey, where's your hat?"
Myself in College, I always wear a hat unless I am wearing a suit or nice collared shirts. It doesn't feel right to wear regular clothes without a hat for some reason. I guess to me, hats complete the look.
The 1st grade, I was in Special Ed again, still riding the tiny bus, and still not a single girl to be found in my class. I was placed in a different school, Sycamore. I always saw the building on my way to Bosti back in preschool. When I was dropped off here I was like, "Oh, I am going to be here this year? Cool!"
The 1st Grade was different. There were desks all around the room. There was no room to play with toys-wait, WHERE ARE THE TOYS? I saw something like this on Boy Meets World...wait.......nooo.....
Yes, I realized that playtime is over. We are doing work in here. A student assistant taught us reading on one table while our Main Teacher taught us Math in another. One group of students would be on one end, the other group in the other. I actually enjoyed Math a lot more. Addition was a lot of fun to do and I was really good at it.
The fact that we did a lot of work, turned me around. I started behaving better because I faced the pressure of doing work instead of playing all the time. I also saw a Speech therapist during that time which helped with my verbal and speaking ability.
I was also in Sycamore for my Second Grade but with a different twist. This year, there were two girls in my class. This was the first time I had girls in my class before. It was a change in scenery. The girls were in the Third grade. It was a combined Second and Third Grade class.
In the Third grade, I was not only in the same school, but the same teacher and class. Me and this other kid named Edward were Third Graders surrounded by Second graders. Edward was in my class the previous year. He was a GENIOUS. He had the best grades the previous year and this current one. I was jealous. I wanted to be better than he was. We would race to see who got their work done first. We compared test scores to see who got the higher scores. (he always did)
My teacher said my handwriting for my assignment was more sloppier than usual. The assistant chimed in and said "maybe because I was racing with Eddy." "Not true!" I barked. (Yeah it was) Eddy and I were still good friends though.
Eddy and I had to go to another classroom to do our reading subject which was a pure
second grade class which was odd since Eddy and I were third graders. To this day, I'm guessing it was a regular ed class. This would foreshadow next year......
I was now in the 4th grade. My three years of Sycamore were over. My next school.....Bosti! (again)
I got off to a slow start. On the bus, there was this kid named James. He was in Kindergarten. I was in the 4th grade. We were the only two students on that small yellow bus. He sat next to me. He kept pinching me. It was annoying but I didn't know how to confront him. Yeah...a kindergartener bullying a fourth grader. A perfect example of irony. We did get along better later in the year and had a new friend added to the bus ride named Brianna. She was a kindergartner as well and was in crutches. The three of us became good friends as we socialized to and from school as the only passengers on that little yellow bus.
After a month I received news from my parents that I am going to another class within the school. In other words, I am no longer in Special Ed. This class was Regular Ed and my teacher......Mr. Long who was an assistant in my first ever year in Pre-school. When I arrived in class that October, I was overwhelmed. The class size was HUGE. Instead of six people in a class, it was over twenty. Instead of none to two girls, there were about ten of them. Wow...
They were all in the third grade. I was in fourth, at least I thought I was. There was a debate. Finally, weeks later, my mom told me that I am a third-grader. I started the year in the fourth grade but since I made the move to Regular Education they thought it was wise I start the third grade over again in order for it to be easier for me. I accepted the fact that I was in the third grade again. Hey, a Kindergartner bullying a third grader wasn't as bad as a kindergartener bullying a fourth grader, right??
Big difference in this class. Everyone and Mr. Long was a Sports' fan. I loved Sports. Started watching games when I was in the first grade. None of my classmates in my Special ED classes were sports' fans so this was a nice change of pace. Unfortunately, I was a Rangers' fan while everyone including Mr. Long was an Islanders' fan. I was a Knicks' fan while everyone including Mr. Long was a Bulls' fan. I was a Giants' fan while everyone including Mr. Long was a Cowboys' fan. I was a Yankees' fan while the majority including Mr. Long was a Mets' fan.
Autistic Sports Nerd take over...
Autistic Sports Nerd: Hey guys, the Autistic Sports Nerd here! During the 1997-1998 season, the same year I was in the third grade, Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls swept the Knicks. The Islanders dominated the Rangers. When those games ended, the next morning in class would be horrible. Everyone would laugh and roar in my face. Even Mr. Long would rub it in. I even faked being sick the morning after the Bulls defeated the Knicks so I wouldn't have to deal with the torture. My mom didn't fall for it and send me to school anyway.
When I arrived, everyone waited for me at the door as they laughed, roared and made fun of me for my team's short comings. I remember earlier in the year when I overheard my two classmates talking to each other about how bummed they were that the Giants beat the Cowboys the previous Sunday. I then wrote a Journal entry about the game with great detail and read it to the class, so I could rub it in their faces,
On the bright spot, we all loved wrestling and always talked about wrestling. My classmates found it cool that my cousin was Mortis/Chris Kanyon may he rest in peace. We had our great bonding moments after all.
I'm the Autistic Sports Nerd, have a good day guys!!
AJ: Thanks Nerd!
That year, I remember learning a new word. My friend wrote it out on his desk and he asked me what the word was. I said the word out loud, "sex." Everyone gasped. "Did you hear what AJ said?" "Wow", etc. Even Mr. Long was stunned. I was confused. I didn't know what that word meant. Another situation, my classmate was talking and said the word "gay." I had no idea what that word meant either. It would be a couple of years until I found out the true meaning of those words.
After the year was over, Mr. Long and I hugged while the class was empty. We hoped to see each other again. I left Bosti for the last time. I rode on the small yellow bus for the final time. I was going on to the next level. I was going to be in a school in my neighborhood and ride the big bus. The Journey continues in Cherokee Elementary School.
TO BE CONTINUED.....
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