Driving To WDW w/ Autistic Child

[pilgrimr]

We are heading out in a couple of weeks. My DS(6) is autistic and for the most part he is okay for road trips. We have a portable DVD player for him. However, are there any suggestions about other things we can do to help him pass the time? It is a 19 hour drive and we are driving during the night, but we still have a good portion during the day.

 

[Tinkerbell_n_neverland]

I drive every other weekend to my BF's house 3 hours away with my DS who is 5 and has ASD. We sometime do the portable DVD player as well, but we often bring a travel art desk with us that my son uses for hours on end. I bring him stickers, glue sticks and sissors and he stays busy with that. If he makes a mess no big deal, we clean it up when we get there. Other times I put on "his" cds which are a music mix he picks and we burn to disc. I also have XM radio and we channel scan till we finds songs he likes (with the satalite theres no interuptions in service as we head south). That usually keeps him happy. Hope you have fun!

 

[kaffinito]

The portable art desk is a really good idea! You might also want to bring a PSP or other portable gaming system with you. Leap Frog has one that's portable and educational too. With my kids we use both of those things, and it works out fine.

We have a 2 day drive from Michigan, with one overnight stay, and the repetitive viewing can get annoying so bring earbuds or head phones for the DVD player! Insanity is spending 9 hours with Lord of the Rings 2 playing the whole time - imagine what Sponge Bob would do to your central nervous system!

 

[koolaidmoms]

We do the drive every year 22 hours with DS who has Asperger's. For both children we do videos, they each have a portable CD player and a selection of CD's, a bag of small toys (we keep a larger bag in the trunck and rotate them every few hours), the no-mess Crayola pens, fingerpaints,etc... are great!! no one covered in ink. A metal cookie sheet with animal magnets or letters (we store ours in baggies), invisible ink books or Leapsters (with headphones) will keep my kids busy for hours.

Have fun!!!

 

[bookwormde]

One thing I have found that helps is to have a map (not the one I am trying to use) of the drive so both my NT and Aspergers children can see where we are in a very visual way, if saves hundreds of questions as to where we are and how long till we get there, I just have them look at the map and figure it out.

bookwormde

 

[blondietink]

We started driving to WDW when my DS with Autism was eight. There were no portable DVD players back then. He loves road signs and restaurant signs and exit signs and hotel signs and tunnels, etc. He has memorized our 24 hour drive and we have gone 4 different ways. He looks up on the internet what is new along the way before we leave. He remembers hotels we stayed at 8 years ago. We have bought him "Along I-95" and another book that lists all the exits along all the interstate highways. He loves looking at maps. Oh yes, and the Bee Gees play over and over again on his personal CD player. For some reason he "has" to listen to the Bee Gees on any road trip we take. He has a dry erase board that he constantly draws on during road trips, too.

 

[DisneyDreams4P&B]

Cracker Barrel has auto bingo, where you have to look for things to check off your Bingo card. I don't know the severity of your sons ASD, but our high functioning son loved it. It was great to keep him engaged and made time go by quickly. If you are worried about it being too complicated, make a simpler version with the word CAR or CARS at the top and you can use simple pictures like a green car, a red car, a highway sign, a tree, etc. depending on your childs abilties.

If you print the cards out on simple white paper, you can print a ton out and take them with you - and use crayons to mark off the boxes. You can also use Disney Pictures and make sort of a roving Disney Bingo, having them look for something is a great distraction to stress and Sensory Overload. Just don't forget the prizes!!

 

[ireland_nicole]

We use the leapster and the art desk too (one suggestion, use the twist up colored pencils- that way, no marker on the seats, and no melted crayons - trust me, that stuff neeeeevvvvveeeerrr comes out of the car!) We use a small "shaker" Mp3 player instead of CD's. That way it's more portable, and everything they want is in one place; plus, it d.oes double duty at the parks when they start to get overstimmed.

 

[pilgrimr]

I wanted to thank you all for help and ideas. It has given us great ideas that we are going do for our trip.

 

[LittleBugsMama]

I could imagine a road trip from Long Island to Orlando! DS2 with ASD would love it. And I wouldn't need a single toy. When we drove four hours to PA this summer, he did what he always does when we are in the car: He stares out the window and "stims" on the scenery going by. On the way home from PA, he never once took his eyes off the trees/signs/clouds/bridges and when I pulled into the driveway at last, exhausted from the drive, he looked at me and said his one word: "more." So a roadtrip for him would be as much fun as the actual vacation itself. Slightly off topic, I know. Just wanted to share!

 

[DisDreaminMom]

My son loves road trips too. He just loves looking out the window and seeing the road signs. it's funny because when he was a baby in a car seat, he cried once for 13 straight hours on a road trip (good times!) and was always miserable. But ever since he got into a big boy seat and could see out the window, he's been the first one to get and go for a road trip.

A small dry erase marker is your friend. An ipod is good, too, but he gets annoyed with headphones on his ears, so we all end up listening to the same music. Portable DVD player is also much used. Let him pick out the movies-you might get the wrong ones and then you're out of luck. Have fun. Bookwormde, I love the one about the maps. DS is totally into maps and I'll need to call AAA and get a trip map for DS to look at. ('Cause I know how to get to WDW inmy sleep!)

 

[Nik's Mom]

We do small road trips all of the time with our 2 autistic sons (age 6 and 9). For a one day trip, the dvd player is just perfect. This is our first long distance trip in March though (from Kansas to WDW). We've never done more than a one day trip. I'm kind of excited about it though. We really want the kids to see a different part of the country.