Message in a Poster

Image courtesy of the Rugh family workshop

This week we’re featuring artwork by the Rugh Family, Jaime and Jeffrey, a pair of artists who live in New Jersey. The Rughs’ artwork is bright, bold and graphic — and it supports advocacy for and education about people on the spectrum. Leave a comment, and one reader will win a piece of silkscreened artwork by this talented couple. Today’s poster has a quote that the Rughs came across in “The Truth About Autism,” an article from the February issue of Wired Magazine.

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It’s impossible to predict with any certainty how anyone diagnosed with autism is going to turn out. Chris Fitzmaurice was 12 years old before he learned to sound out the letters of the alphabet. Until then, his communication and eye contact were so poor the outlook for his future was limited.

But Fitzmaurice’s inner determination helped teach him language, carried him through college and now to graduate school, where he hopes to do “something big for everyone else.”

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Here are back-to-school tips from Lorna Selig of Children’s Link Society in Calgary:  Ask about expectations. Is there homework? How does the teacher grade? How can you help?

Speak honestly about your child. Talk about strengths, skills, and what has worked for teachers in the past.

We emailed the lead teacher at Alex’s new school this morning. We’re hoping to be able to visit tomorrow or Tuesday so Alex can get a glimpse of his new school before Wednesday.

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Something I’d like to try with Alex this next year: a communication device of some kind. I’m pretty sure Alex could learn to type actual words, but maybe something like this keyboard could help him communicate better. It does seem like his limited communication  is the cornerstone of his disability. Open that up, and the world might change for him and for us.