Geoffrey's
disability really caught up with him at the end of first grade and by the
accounts of the professionals who worked with him was on his way to being very
oppositional. The school saw him as bright and willful, perfectly able to
explain and control his aggressive behavior. So he as sent to the principal
many times.
Finally in second grade D. Namerow
diagnosed him with Asperger's syndrome and subsequently recommended a
therapeutic summer program. That is when I stumbled onto Donna Swanson and
Focus.
Initially, I was very nervous
because it is hard to tell at first what they do at Focus. It just looked
like a bunch of kids hanging around and playing. What it took me awhile to
realize is that neither my son nor any of the other children would be
"hanging around playing" with other children at all if Focus
weren't there to orchestrate it.
From the start, Donna and her
program had such a low key and welcoming air, it immediately reduced
Geoff's anxiety. It was the first place we had taken him since preschool
that he willingly attended.
A day at Focus is all about
building social skills by doing them all day. It begins with cooperation
and goal setting in the morning group; there are various collaborative
activities of interest to the children during the day; there are trips to
fun places where the children can learn public behavior and consideration
for others; there is discussion of and modeling helping others less
fortunate an das well as how to be a friend. Everybody has chores and part
of doing them is having a good attitude. At the end of the day, each child
has to reflect on the day: the high points and low points, how well they
tackled their personal goal and give an appreciative comment to another
participant.
~ Carol
