Many parents of children on the autism spectrum are unable to find a successful place for them in the school system. Often, teachers and staff have little or no training in autism and treat our children’s symptoms as disciplinary problems rather than manifestations of sensory overload and anxiety. We may grow tired of being afraid when the phone rings, signaling yet another crisis at school. Perhaps we are plagued by that uneasy feeling that our child is falling through the cracks and not receiving the help they so desperately need. Maybe we feel that home is just a better environment for them than school.
Some parents opt for homeschooling, while others are driven to it. However, when taking on homeschooling a child with autism, it can be a daunting prospect.
Gratefully, a new website exists to provide guidance for parents homeschooling their child with autism. Autistic Homeschooling contains an abundance of information on topics including philosophies of homeschooling, homeschooling by states and of course, a trove of potential curriculum.
Additionally, Khan Academy has a huge collection of
entertaining and informative videos on a myriad of topics and test preparation for standardized exams, all free of charge. Many universities are marketing online learning. For instance, Brigham Young University (BYU) has middle school through college classes online for credit as well as free courses. See if your school system partners with free online academies for homeschooling if you wish to remain within the system while keeping your child at home.
I have to homeschool my son through his remaining three years of high school with no help. The Seattle school system has a Homeschool Resource Center that is top-notch, but my son is considered too severely impaired to access the program. The catch-22 is that they have no appropriate placement for him in the classroom and no resources for him outside of it.
My strategy is to set credits aside and prepare him to pass the GED. Taking his area of interests and fashioning an independent study encompassing a variety of subjects from different standpoints is the most viable option I have of keeping him on track. I am also recruiting mentors from the academic community to challenge and inspire him.
Every child is different and every path is unique. It’s heartening that more guidance and resources are now being made available to parents as we make these critical decisions about our children’s education and future.