Search Results for: blog help your child to cope with siblings special needs

How to Make Halloween Easier for Kids With Autism

Halloween is a holiday that might be difficult for children who have an autism spectrum disorder to cope with. Things get decorated in unexpected ways. Social skills can falter when a person is wearing a costume. Here are some tips to make Halloween easier for kids who have autism. Start preparing your child now! If your child is in a Special Education classroom, there is a good possibility that his or her teacher has been slowly getting the students used to the idea that Halloween is coming, and has been discussing some of the changes that will happen. Awesome teachers … Continue reading →

Special Needs Blog Week in Review – April 22 – 28, 2012

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Once a week, the Special Needs Blog Week in Review gives you a quick review of all of the blogs that appeared in the past seven days. This is a great way to catch up on the blogs that you wanted to read, but didn’t have time for. What did you miss this week? The Special Needs Podcast Roundup went up on April 23, 2012. This week, I’d like to point out an episode of NPR’s “Morning Edition” that is titled: “Children With Autism Are Often Targeted By Bullies”. A survey by the Interactive Autism Network found that almost two-thirds … Continue reading →

Help Your Child to Cope with Sibling’s Special Needs

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It is typical for a family that includes more than one child to see some sibling rivalry from time to time. What isn’t so typical is the amount of responsibility that kids who have a sibling that has special needs often feel is placed upon them. Here are a few tips to help your child cope with the special needs of his or her sibling. As the oldest kid, I spent time helping my younger siblings with homework, with tying their shoes, and with other day to day activities. This isn’t unheard of or unusual. The difference was that my … Continue reading →

Negative Reaction Addiction – Could Your Child Have It?

Regardless of your child’s diagnostic “label” (or lack thereof), if your son or daughter is persistently defiant and difficult, he or she might just have an addiction. In this case I’m not talking about a drug addiction, but an addiction to the negative reactions of others. In their book, Transforming the Difficult Child, Howard Glasser, MA, and Jennifer Easley, MA describe difficult children as being “literally addicted to negative reactions.” It sounds a little peculiar, but it makes sense. Some children continue to defy authority, rebel, throw tantrums, and do inappropriate things over and over again. (I’m referring to children … Continue reading →

Dealing with a Child Who Wants to be in Charge

Now that my children are older, we can joke when someone gets a little bossy and say “You’re not the boss of me!” which is really a throw-back to when they were younger and it seemed that someone was always trying to tell someone else what to do. In reality, most children seem to hit a place when they turn five or six where they want to be in charge—they want to be the ones directing their world and getting everyone else to behave according to their bidding. Of course, children don’t really want to run the household, pay the … Continue reading →

Teasing

Teasing and childhood seem to go hand in hand. Whether it is siblings teasing and pestering each other or peers and playmates teasing–this activity can be anywhere from light-hearted fun to very traumatic and life-altering. It can be a challenge for parents to get a handle on teasing and make sure it stays in the fun category. While we may not be able to control what other children do at school or in the neighborhood, we can help our child learn to cope with teasing, as well as NOT be someone who engages in inappropriate or hurtful teasing behaviors. Understanding … Continue reading →

AUTISM: Are You Aware?

April is autism awareness month, so I’m writing this blog to check your awareness level. Whether you parent a child with autism, know someone who does, or if you just happen to be reading this blog for interest’s sake, understanding certain facts about this condition is extremely important. Autism is no longer an obscure, rare thing. It’s all around us, and we need to be tolerant, supportive, and vigilant in searching for answers so that we can eventually shed some light on what is causing this mysterious disorder. Are you aware that autism has now been deemed a national epidemic? … Continue reading →

When Your Child on the Autism Spectrum has RAGE

When I was a young mother with a newly-diagnosed autistic toddler, a woman came to my home to talk to me about her adult son with autism. What is interesting is that I do not remember who put us in touch or even her name. But she came for a visit, I suppose because I was just starting the journey, and she was a street-wise traveler. She shared some very frightening stories about her son. Our visit was not very helpful; it actually terrified me. Horror Stories She told me that once her son reached puberty, his episodes of rage … Continue reading →

How to Listen to Your Child

How to listen? Don’t we all listen to our children whine, groan, complain, argue, giggle, squeal, and pretend all day long? Yes, of course. But there’s a difference between hearing and listening. And often we parents need to be reminded what listening really means. We sometimes wonder why our children don’t confide in us or why we feel disconnected with them. Improving our listening skills can create stronger bonds and build trust between us and our kids. In conjunction with my previous blog, “Brother for Sale.” Helping Kids Cope with their Sibling’s Disability, I’ve tried to present ways that we … Continue reading →

“Brother for Sale.” Helping Kids Cope with their Sibling’s Disability

What would otherwise be normal sibling rivalry is even more complex between a special needs and a typical child. The child without a disability will experience a wide variety of feelings, all of which are perfectly normal and understandable. As parents, there are some ways to help encourage positive relationships between our children, while also recognizing their different emotional needs. Here are some typical emotions that siblings of special needs children may experience: Resentment: Siblings might resent the extra attention, time, and emotional focus that is directed toward the special needs sibling. They may resent it if they are given … Continue reading →