Let me introduce you to Charlotte. She is 10 and has a diagnosis of ADD and autism. She also has learning problems. Her mum is on her own and at the end of her wits. Charlotte doesn’t seem to have friends or care about that. She is failing school. She is also difficult to parent as she isn’t organised, doesn’t follow instructions and often does seem very strange things. I assess Charlotte and find out which cognitive functions are strong, and which are weak. We begin working on her Symbol Relations function every morning.
Some mornings all is well in the household. One morning mum reaches her limit and yells at Charlotte about why there is honey on the dog. Charlotte cries. She doesn’t understand why mum is so cross or what it is that she has done wrong.
That day all I can do is read Charlotte a story.
However, we continue working, and at the end of the year Charlotte has brought her Symbol Relations function up to average. She no longer needs her aide in the classroom, despite her diagnoses. She can now understand what is going on around her, what she is being taught and how to play with other girls her own age. And there is no honey on the dog!
