Getting a kid on the spectrum interested in abstract concepts is pretty tough; so when our son brought home one of Kindergarten's little milestones--his name, address and telephone--to be achieved, I realized that this is just the beginning of a history of learning through alternative means. After asking him a few questions about it, I realized that an address was a concept he never gave much thought to. I had to find a way to make it real for him.

So I took pictures. One of him, smiling at a basketball game. One of our numbered mailbox, with our house in the background. Another of our street sign, and a last one of our post office sign, with our town printed beneath. I taped each of these pictures on a poster, then printed out that feature to the right. This way, I was able to relate the written information with a graphic representation of it.

We also started to spend a lot of time talking about houses and streets and towns as we drove around. What road are we on now? Who lives on our road? What road does Miss A. live on? What town do Grammie and Grampie live in? Who lives in our town, but not on our road? The 3-year-old is a big help, as she chimes in with the game and helps make connections for him. She helped me over one hump with the poser, "How can X live in the same town as us but not on the same street?" (Answer: "The same reason you and S. have different rooms but live in the same house.")

The goal hasn't yet been achieved, but after just a few days I can see that he's starting to make the connections. He's a smart kid; he just needs some things pointed out to him more explicitly than others. :)

More posts later as developments and refinements occur. And I still have to figure out the phone number.