Ian always planned on moving out when he was 20. To Sausalito. To a houseboat. Or maybe a mobile home. Ian is always thinking about plans for the next step. The summer of 2014, after Ian left high school he started reminding us it was time for him to move out. Janet and I were both “yeah, yeah, yeah…

Happy people are essential to my well being because life is greatly difficult when you dearly have a body like mine, that does not respond to your wishes. Belief in my ability to frankly realize my dreams is important. By Jeremy Sicile-Kira My need for support is the most important aspect of my life…

We’re thrilled to announce a new partnership that will bring The Art of Autism‘s resources in front of The Mighty‘s wide-reaching readership. The Art of Autism will now have a growing home page on The Mighty and appear on many stories on the site. The Mighty is a story-based health…

By Rebecca Burgess, translated in Spanish by Jennifer Del Valle. English version here. Source: The Art of Autism

Congratulations to Michael Miller and his son Jonathan ABC Persons of the Week. See the story here. ‘TOYS ACROSS AMERICA’: There have been thousands of surprise packages landing on doorstops across America– you may think it’s the holiday season, but these gifts are coming from a special father-son t…

This cartoon is courtesy of Erin Human of Human Illustrations. Source: The Art of Autism

Earlier posts: Ian goes to college – The plan for his education (November 17, 2014) Ian goes to college part 2 – His first day (August 26, 2014) Ian goes to college part 3 – Drama Class Results (February 6, 2015) We went in to this whole “Ian will take classes at the local junior college” with no id…

“Vibrant waves of sequenced patterns emerged in my head whenever I looked at musical notes and scores. Like pieces of a mysterious puzzle solved, it was natural for me to see music and its many facets as pictures in my head. It never occurred to me that others couldn’t see what I saw.” By Stephen S…

By Katherine Lockhead That day was overwhelming for me. I woke up that morning, feeling excited and ready for the event that every student looks forward to from Grade 1. I called salons to get my hair and makeup done. It came as a shock to me that most of these places did not have any slots availabl…

“There is this myth that children with autism don’t have empathy. I’ve found the exact opposite to be true: children with autism are instead the most highly sensitive individuals I have ever had the privilege to know,” Elaine Hall When traditional therapies didn’t help my son Neal, who …

By Keri Bowers and Debra Muzikar As part of the Art of Autism California Road Trip in May, The Art of Autism honored people who are unsung heroes in California. As we traveled up and down the state we had the opportunity to stop at people’s homes and their businesses. This is the second of a t…

Autism self-advocacy is an art form aimed at accentuating the beauty found in our humanity. Autism awareness and acceptance should be about expanding people’s exposure to the life of autistic people. That can’t be done with statistics; it can only be done with stories and story telling is an art. B…

By Parasuram Ramamoorthi, Ph.D. To understand role play means you know the difference between natural behavior and acting behavior. In the case of young adults with ASD, we teach acting behavior through role playing, and through this we teach what is socially acceptable natural behavior. Western the…

A tribute to Remo Belli who made the “heart drum.” By James Billington, Hidden Wings The drum is tuned to approximate the frequency of the heart. As you drum closer to the center of these wide circular table drums you come closer to the common frequency of the heartbeat. The note is c#. …