so proud! | Autism PDD

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that is awesome

Keep us updated, and GO DONNY!!!!

Wow that program sounds WONDERFUL, too!

 Way to go Donny. I'm so happy for you both. That is so cool!  That sounds like an amazing program.  I hope he has a great summer!Don had his first day of Summer Fun program today. This is an inclusive
program, run in partnership between our local YMCA and Community
Living Association. It's daycamp (summer day care, but lots of fun!), with
the kids (NT and special needs) grouped into three groups by age, with
20-30 kids in each group. There will be 1-4 special needs kids in each
group any given week, depending on needs. Each group has two YMCA
staff, and two Community Living staff (the latter to provide direct support
to the special needs kids).

It's a very long day, from 9-4. It's especially long for Donny, considering
he hasn't been in school full time since last school year, and had only
worked back up to being in school (just IN SCHOOL, never mind in
classroom) for an hour and a half at a time the last couple weeks of
this year, after missing six months of the school year.

Anyway, Donny did FABULOUSLY on his first day. He joined in to the
group games in the morning and again in the afternoon, participating for
the whole time. He did have a brief unfocussed time where he seemed
bored and uninterested and self-isolated, but the staff were able to re-
engage him and get him back with the group. He used his PECS lots, and
had some good interactions with other kids. No problems at the
swimming pool (last time he was at this pool was last year with the same
program, and there was a HUGE incident, he wound up being restrained,
etc.).

I'm really, really proud of Don, and excited about this summer for him.

I've trained the staff directly on Donny (spoke to them for an hour and
provided a bunch of written materials), they've got all his visual stuff that
I brought and set up, and there's a staff that knows him on site for the
first week to train the new staff. They usually rotate staff every day
through the groups, but they're going to pick one staff and have that be
Don's staff for the summer, to make it easier for him.

He's going for a total of 6 weeks this summer (and it's only /week -
yippee!), so hopefully come fall he'll be ready for full time school! That is so awesome! Sounds like fun. i wish i could find a situation like that for Quinn. That's fantastic!  What a wonderful program. 
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