notes from our meeting 2.14.2011

This week, we discussed the first section of our book, Anything But Typical by Nora Raleigh Baskin (through page 64).  Here are some of the thoughts from our discussion today:

How do we know, right from the beginning of the book, that Jason is not a typical twelve-year-old? Name some of the characteristics he exhibits. Are these behaviors things you have seen before?

• He flaps his hands, and yes, I have seen that before
• Jason can't sit still, even if he tries really hard
• It's hard for him to communicate
• He can't look straight into a person's eyes
• When people touch him, he feels weird (we know someone who has similar behaviors; when I touch her she starts yelling at me unless I tell her beforehand that I am going to touch her)
• He is not very flexible; he wants things a certain way and if things don't go his way, he has trouble handling the situation
• He remembers appearances but can't process them really well; he has trouble remembering names or exactly who people are if they don't have a feature that stands out (for example: glasses, long hair, etc)

What are some of the techniques his therapist suggests he use in order to communicate with NT (neurotypical) people? Do you think these are easy or hard for Jason to do?

• He needs to work on making eye contact with people when he is talking to them
• Writing is a good way to communicate

Does it seem that Jason has a hard time understanding what other people are doing or asking of him? Give an example of a communication from Jason's point of view. What things does he notice? What things are hard for him to tolerate? What things doesn't he notice or respond to?

• In the library, he didn't understand that the librarian said that all of the computers are really the same - he was distracted by looking into her face details (wrinkles on her face, etc)
• Whenever people touch him, like the librarian, he feels like his body is going to explode or like he feels trapped.  He is wishing that she would stop touching him, but he struggles to put that idea into words and communicate with her.
• He thinks that his mom is sad all the time, because she feels bad for him
• He has a way of knowing people's feelings; his mom is sad, people are angry, without people telling him
• In art class, his ears were really bothered when the teacher's voice was kind-of scratchy.  He couldn't handle the noise, so he just hid under the table.

*Discussion questions from the Reading Group Guide from Simon & Schuster

Other things we discussed, or want to look for next time:

• We want to learn more about PhoenixBird and we hope that he finds out what she is like.
• On the back it seems like Jason will meet his new friend, so we are wondering how that will go; maybe she is like him?

For our next meeting on February 28th, wewill be reading to chapter 18 (page 103).