Work Time

We finally started 'Work Time' last December and Rayyan is doing pretty well at it.  'Work Time' is where Rayyan does work on his own, not on a one-on-one basis.  It teaches him to be independent.

For a start, we have to make sure the tasks given are easy, something that he already knows so that he doesn't give up halfway or feel too frustrated.  We also follow the structure at his EIPIC centre, AAS so that he is familiar with the routine.

 The prompters/cue cards

The tasks placed on the racks



Before and After

Hubby taught Rayyan the concept of 'before' and 'after' and he is grasping the concept pretty well :))

Gym Ball

Rayyan has a gym ball at home and he likes to sit on it.  I feel that with the gym ball, he can focus better as he is always kept on his toes.  Also, when he sits on the gym ball, he doesn't jump around.

But of course, I do not let him sit on it all the time.  He still has to learn to sit on his chair quietly.

Here is Rayyan reciting numbers.  He can recite numbers to 100 but still needs to work on pronunciation.  He will still pronounce 'Fourteen' for 'Forty', 'Fifteen' for 'Fifty', etc...

And here, I am working on his reading and pronunciation.  He has definitely shown a lot of improvement in his pronunciation.  Go, go Rayyan!!

Laughter

Last Friday, we went to Airport T3 and Rayyan requested to do wheelbarrows at the big empty space.  Then he wanted to do bear walk and Hubby took the opportunity to get him to do cross leg exercises and we ended up playing catch there!! lol 

The airport used as an exercising ground :)

When we play catch, we are usually the catchers (Rayyan has difficulty taking on the role as the catcher) and whenever we play, Rayyan will usually run a bit and then allow us to catch him! Haha... But yesterday, we ran together..  When I became the catcher, Hubby would lead Rayyan and they would run together.  Then Hubby would guide Rayyan and get him to catch me.

We had loads of fun.  In fact, Rayyan's melodious laughter is still ringing in my head till now.  Rayyan was having such a good time and I was truly happy.  My boy has come a long way.  I am so glad that yesterday, he was laughing along with us and not laughing on his own, for no rhyme or reason.  Well, he still does that sometimes, giggling at something in his head but yesterday, he was totally with us.  And nothing can take away the joy I felt.

Sometimes it just takes an empty space and hearts full of love to make us truly happy :) 

Spectrum

Hubby and I were just discussing about the kids with autism that we know and we were lamenting over how some of them are faring better than our boy, that it is so much easier for them to do certain things and pick up certain skills and so difficult for Rayyan to do so.  Maybe this is not fair to our boy, that we shouldn't compare him to others but with his IQ assessment around the corner and we are still unsure which  school he will move on to next year, well, we couldn't help ourselves.  We are just extremely worried..

We keep telling ourselves that autism is a spectrum.... those in the spectrum can be anywhere within the spectrum, whether at the higher or the lower end.  Fortunately for those at the higher end, they pick up skills pretty easily... talking, writing, following instructions, etc, they don't require as much coaching and guidance as the ones at the lower end.

We know of mothers who have never sent their children for any therapies or classes (their children only attend EIPIC and a mainstream kindergarten) and yet, the kids are doing so wonderfully well.  At the same time, we know of parents who sent their children to many different therapies and classes, who provided so much support at home but these parents are so frustrated because the children are progressing at a snail's pace.

So at the end of the day, what does it come down to?   ACCEPTANCE.  This is a reminder to myself and Hubby that we cannot expect our boy to be someone else, that we have to accept his limitations, that we have to accept him for who he is.  I am not saying that we should withdraw him from all his classes or just let him do whatever he wants at home.  As parents, we must try our best to guide him, support him, teach him and simply do our best to help him.  In fact, in our case, we have to work harder than other parents.  

We should aim for PROGRESS rather than perfection.  We should always focus on his STRENGTHS and not his weaknesses.  We shouldn't strive for Rayyan to be just like those high-functioning children we know, instead we should strive for Rayyan to reach his FULL POTENTIAL.

Ten, twenty years down the road, we want to be able to tell ourselves that we have done our best...  The rest is up to God...

Party in School

Overdue pics of Rayyan's party in school about two months ago...hehe..  Anyway, even though we had a party for him at home, we wanted to do another one in school because we know that many children have their parties in school too and we want him to have the same experience.  And we were really glad we did it :D

It was great to see him surrounded by his classmates.  When I came, many of them came up to me and told me how much they like him.  They are aware that he's 'different' but they still accept him, love him and the best part is, they PROTECT him.  It was so heartwarming to see how loving and non-judgemental these children are.

I am so thankful that he has classmates such as this boy by the name of Alden who is always looking out for him.  When I came, Alden told me how much Rayyan likes to hug him and indeed, Rayyan keeps hugging him!  Hubby told me that even during naptime, Rayyan is always with Alden.  I am glad that Rayyan has found a good friend in school.

There is also this girl by the name of Sharlene who helps Rayyan a lot, making sure Rayyan does the tasks given and that he follows instructions.  She is such a responsible and helpful girl and I can still remember the conversation she had with me when we were there...

Sharlene : Rayyan's mummy, I love Rayyan you know.

Me : Is it?

Sharlene : Ya, I love him but I don't know if he loves me or not...

Hahahaha... Isn't she cute???!  

I pray that Rayyan will always be loved by his classmates, teachers and those around him.  I pray that as he grows, people around him will understand and accept him, autism and all.  I pray that he in turn, will be a good friend to those around him. Amin...

The theme for his party in school... Angry Bird!

Teachers and Daddy getting the kiddos together

Rayyan's lovely classmates

And yes, that is Alden hugging him like a big brother!

All couldn't wait to sing the birthday song..

Happy Birthday to you!!!!!

Time to blow the candles...

But oh wait, they want to sing the Chinese version too! haha

Finally, he can blow the candles!  And I just burst with pride everytime I see this photo :)

Alden couldn't help giggling when Rayyan accidentally touched the cake!

Good friends :D

And this is the girl who loves Rayyan, Sharlene.. ;)

Surrounded by the roses...  

One hugging him, one holding his hand... Rayyan is a ladies' man! lol

The cute, little gentlemen

And how can we forget the teachers?!! Hehe  

Thank you teachers for taking good care of him :)

Rayyan distributing his party packs

He is such a big boy now... *emo mode*

And Rayyan darling, we hope you had a good time.  I promise that as long as I can, I will make every birthday of yours fun and memorable... Love you so, so much!!