I recently got an email from a mom who enjoys my newsletter but who sometimes feels left out because her child has special needs. While I do tend to offer guidelines about ages and stages of development I hope that every parent can adjust those guidelines to their particular child.
Children learn and develop differently and it’s not a competition, instead, each child is learning and growing at his own rate. Part of our job as parents, caregivers, and educators is to identify where a specific child is capable and comfortable, where he is challenged, and what’s next. You can do this with anyone, not just children, and it certainly applies to children who have special needs and different ways of learning.
In the Montessori schools I’ve worked at in the past we often had children who were diagnosed with ADD, ADHD, and learning disabilities. Luckily, the Montessori classroom is specifically designed to meet the needs of a wide range of abilities and interests. And, as a parent, you have a unique knowledge of who your child is and where her next challenge lies. Just by helping your child identify the next steps and challenges in her development, you’re teaching her skills for how to work with her unique brain and body to grow and learn. Every child has a desire to learn, grow, and contribute.
But if you’re a parent of a child who is on the autism spectrum you may feel confused about how to help your child and overwhelmed by conflicting information. Continue reading “Embracing special needs”