Advice Please

[Mrs Hobbes]

Hi there I usually post on the UK boards but I've popped over here to see if any of you could help me.

My friends daughter has Aspergers Syndrome. They are going to Disneyland soon and I wanted to make an autograph book as a gift for the daughter to take with her. From the little I understand about Aspergers I believe that everything has to be just right and I think that not being able to complete her autograph may stress her out if she can't find the characters etc. So I want to make it with just the easy to find characters. Can anyone suggest a list of characters that I should put in the book. I've never been to California so don't have much to go on.

Alterntively I could just make a colouring book for her for the plane - what do you think would be best.

Thanks

 

[mechurchlady]

While certain characters are at set places at certain time there are complications for an autistic child. Autism varies from person to person and one child will refuse to go near something and another will love that same thing. One child will love spinning while another hates spinning rides.

There are random meetings with characters and there are set scheduled meet and greets. There is the lines and crowds which the child may not tolerate well. Yoou might get into a HAVE to see Pluto argument.

I suggest a nicely decorated book with blank pages. A fat pen also for the characters to use. Stick with the basics like Mickey, Minnie, Pluto and Goofy. Buzz and the princesses are also available daily. Check www.disneyland.com and see what the daily schedules are as they show who are usually the main ones who appear daily.

 

[Luv Bunnies]

It's hard to know exactly how any particular child with Asperger's will react to a given situation. They are all very different. One may get stressed at not finding all the characters in the book and another couldn't care less. First, I would make sure she even likes characters and wants to meet them. My 12 year old son w/Asperger's still isn't at all interested in meeting characters. He said their big, furry suits freak him out and he doesn't like stangers touching him. My 9 year old son (typically developing) didn't want to go near any characters until he was 7 or 8. Now he likes them but still doesn't want to spend time waiting in line to see them. If they're available in the park or at a meal, he'll want to meet them and take a picture. If there's a long line, he'd rather do something else.

Having said that, I would just stick with a very simple book. Don't put any particular characters on the pages. Make a separate laminated page with the character's names and pictures. After she gets back, she or her mom can decorate the pages for the characters she actually met. This will eliminate any pressure and also give her something fun to do after the trip.

 

[SueM in MN]

I would suggest talking with your friend and getting his/her advice about what to do. There may be some very specific things the child would like or not like. The parent could also let you know if there are specific characters the child particularly likes.
Also, if the family is planning any character meals, there are specific characters for each restaurant, so those would be characters the child for sure would have an opportunity to meet. If they are planning any character meals, a book they could add pictures to might be nice, so in that case, you would not need any pictures, just a page for the character to sign.

 

[of2dbeach]

my son is 15 and autistic the best advise is to not really plan at all. her whole schedule as she knows it is going to be messed up anyways and depending on the time of year it will probably br crouded , noisy etc in the parks.My son's favorits things to do were ride Winnie the pooh and the train that goes around the park in Magic Kingdom , Fl .. you can buy autograph books in the parks and as others said finding certain charachters are sometimes hard to do. maybe ask her what she is excited to do or see. you can aslo go to u tube so she can see the rides etc in the parks. Keeping things simple and easy with breaks in between is always helpful when dealing with Autistic children. Also get her some sort of identification in case she wanders off. here is a good site you might want to read. It tells about helpful hints in the parks . It also might give you some insite on As children and what she may or may not like. Each child is so very diffrent it really depends on her but I am sure you will have a great trip. most Autistic kids do very well in the parks and some have reported the child talked for the first time being there have a great trip !
http://www.allearsnet.com/pl/dis_aut4.htm
instead of making her an autograph book why not make her a fanny pack with her favorite snacks a pair of sunglasses and maybe a camera. Sometimes it is better to be part of the action then to be IN the action ..