Welcome!


photo credit: https://work.chron.com/

Our Agenda for Today!

To general education teachers present. Welcome! Today I will be highlighting my life with Asperger's syndrome and how my experiences relate to inclusive teaching. By the end of this session, you will leave with an understanding of what Asperger's syndrome is. Its early symptoms, the traits of Emotional Intelligence and Brain Plasticity- and how to best tailor your class in order to assist students in an inclusive classroom environment.

  • I. Introduction for general educators.
  • II. Aspergers in my Early Childhood & how I understood.
  • III. Aspergers in my Adolescence & how I overcame.
  • IV. Conclusion, what do we know? How can we best prepare our students?
    • Resources
    • Activity
Meet John Elder


photo credit: https://www.tatteredcover.com/

Meet John Elder Robinson

Since his childhood, John Elder was aware that he was different from other kids. For an unknown reason, at first, he had a terrible time communitcation, developing friendships and act in "normal" ways. Such as, being able to use approporiate words to express emotion. John Elder's life was further difficult because his father was an alcoholic and his mother was mentally ill. John became a misfit and dropped out of high school- often causing harm for the return in laughter. He didn't have the people skills to transition from being creative in technology to succeed in jobs. It wasn't until he was 40 years old that John Elder was dianosed with Asperger’s syndrome. Once diagnosed, things finally made sense.

Keyterms

Look me in the Eye

Keyterms

Ever since I was young, I was socially disconnected from other people earning the name of "social deviant." I would turn inward and not know how to respond to social cues, however, I didn't want to be alone. As I grew older I learned emotional intelligence to memorize how people used emotion in order to respond. My life was difficult but also challenging as I grew from building exploding guitars for the music band KISS, to holding a corporate position for a toy company, to owning his own car dealership, to marrying and having a son.




Emotional Intelligence

"Emotional intelligence" mentioned in the book showed that John Elder couldn't sense what your body language said to John. He could not instinctively tell what people were saying, so he would memorize the odds instead of guessing people's emotions.

Brain Plasticity

John Elder explains that he did not receive proper stimulation and ended up turning inward- casting people aside because he did not understand how to engage them. Scientists attribute this phenomenon to "Brain Plasticity" which is an ability of the brain to reorganize neural pathways based on new experiences. John Elder had a deficiency of brain plasticity.

History

"Asperger’s syndrome (also known as Asperger’s Disorder) was first described in the 1940s by Viennese pediatrician Hans Asperger, who observed autism-like behaviors and difficulties with social and communication skills in boys who had normal intelligence and language development."

Characteristics

Asperger's syndrome is characterized by its less severe symptoms and the absence of language delays. Children with this disorder are likely collectors of rocks and bottle caps. Some experience social disconnect and difficulties.



Resources

Look me in the Eye

Resources

YouTube

John Elder Robison: "Look Me in the Eye" | Talks at Google

Autism-society.org

Asperger’s Syndrome
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