Learning+From+Those+We+Label

What we learned from people on the autism spectrum... This assignment, along with the //Learning From Those We// Label assignment has changed my perspective on autism spectrum disorder and exceptionalities in general. Throughout this semester, I have learned about an extraordinary individual with autism, Temple Grandin. It is through reading about Grandin's successes and extensive struggles that I have developed an interest in ASD. Her stories sparked something within me and has lead me to reconsider what it means to be an inclusive educator. Her experiences, persistence to overcome obstacles, and dedication to raise autism awareness worldwide has ininspired me in ways that are difficult to put into words.
 * Erin:**

As I stated in my //Learning From Those We Label// paper, I was first introduced to Temple Grandin through the HBO film, //Temple Grandin.// The following youtube video is the trailer to this powerful movie.

media type="youtube" key="cpkN0JdXRpM" height="315" width="560" I think that this trailer in itself opens a verbal thinker's eyes to the world of autism and "thinking in pictures". It shows the very different way that the world is perceived and understood by someone with autism. These individuals are capable of seeing and understanding the world in a way that I could never have imagined Through reading some of Temple's books and articles, watching this movie, and viewing several youtube interviews of Temple (including her TED Talk below), my perspective on inclusive education and teaching those with exceptionalities has completely shifted. One line from the movie that I continuously come back to is that Temple is "different, not less". She has been able to overcome many obstacles in her life and became much more than simply labelled autistic. Learning about Grandin has taught me a lot about the cognitive, physiological, and behavioural aspects of autism, but more importantly, her journey has taught me about the type of teacher I want to be. I want to teach towards the students that think in pictures, not only the verbal thinkers. This means I will need to consciously include various visuals in my classroom. This will enhance the learning of students with an ASD, but will also benefits other students within the class. I need to also provide a lot of hands on experiences for my students and understand that students with autism have extreme difficulty with abstract concepts like math and french. I also want to be a teacher that helps students with autism transform their fixations into constructive projects. Temple had a teacher that she referred to as "her saving grace" who helped her develop her fixation with cattle into something that lead her to lead the cattle industry. During Temple's Master's thesis work with cattle she stated, "I don't want my thoughts to die with me. I want to have done something. I know there are a lot of things I can't understand but I still want my life to have meaning." I see it as my role to assist all children in finding meaning within their lives, regardless of the barriers they face.

Here is another short interview with Temple where she discusses how social rules need to be taught to children with autism and she suggested that Mark Zuckerberg, the creator of facebook, has autistic characteristics. This video also discusses her early fixation on animals and how this fixation was broadened to several areas in the field of animal handling and science. media type="youtube" key="nwnlWX4iyj4" height="315" width="560"

In her TED Talk, Temple helps others understand autism and different ways of thinking. She explains how the autistic mind often thinks in pictures and tends to detail. She explains how the normal brain ignores details but the autistic brain tunes into these tiny details. She explains that she thinks in pictures, like google images flashing up into her memory. Throughout the video, she explains the various types of thinkers: visual thinkers (like Temple), pattern thinkers (good at music or math), and verbal minds. media type="youtube" key="fn_9f5x0f1Q" height="315" width="560"

Through this assingment I came to know Carly, a young girl on the high end of the spectrum disorder. This is her story...
 * Allie:**

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For years Carly was living in a world that she wanted to interact with, but she was lacking the communitacion skills to do it. I have learned so much from Carly about living with autism and I see many connections to autism in the classroom. I think the most important thing I took away from her story was that we should never stop trying to find creative ways to increase student success and improve communication. What works for one student may not work for another, so instead of placing judgement on them, keep trying different strategies untill you find those that work best. In an interview Carly said, "Its hard to be autistic because no one understands me. People look at me and assume I'm dumb because I can't talk or I act differently than them. I think people get scared with things that look or seem different than them." She has raised a great point, people are scared of things that are not considered the norm. I want my teaching practice to challenge this idea, embrace indvidualism and inclusion. I believe that education the students peers about autism is a cruicial step in creating such a community. As Carly points out in here answeres to questions, be patiece and believe in students with autism.

Before this assignment I knew very little about Autism Spectrum Disorder. After doing some research I came across this extraordinary, talented individual, Russell Lehmann. Russell is a 16 year old boy from Nevada who was diagnosed with high-functioning autism at the age of 12. Russell had several challenges growing up including OCD and severe social anxiety. By the third grade he stopped attending school because he had several panic attacks and no one understood why. In 2003 he spent 5 long weeks in the hospital to help treat his OCD and anxiety. However, they could not figure out why he had these symptoms. It wasn’t until he was 12 that they finally diagnosed him with autism. He now takes online classes from home and plays football on the variety football team. Russell is a very talented writer and poet and has written many articles about his hard life and the challenges that he has overcome which have been featured in magazines. Russell has difficultly communicating and expressing himself verbally, however, writing poems has allowed him to express himself in ways he never could before.
 * Ashley:**

To learn more about Russell Lehmann go to his own website at: []

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