"School was awesome Dad"

Today marked the beginning of the 2011 school year for 489000 State School Students. Now on current ratios amongst those students would be approximately 4500 students with Autism. So let's spare a thought for the parents of all those autism children today as they hope that 2011 will be as stress free as possible for their kids.

Amongst those numbers are 60000 Prep school students starting their very first exciting adventure into the big wide world without Mum and Dad for the first time. Let's especially spare a thought for the approximate 450 of those children who(again on today's ratios) are autistic. I am sparing a moment for those amongst that 450 children who have not yet been diagnosed with autism and who are probably already finding school a very daunting and scary place. My thoughts go out to these kids because this day 6 years ago K walked through the school gates for the very first time. he was one of those 450 autistic children and, more importantly, he was one of those that at that stage were yet to be diagnosed.

6 years on and his mother and I are far more wise about autism but at that time we had no idea what it meant let alone that our beautiful boy had it.

This morning K walked boldly through those same gates again. this time he was going into Year 6. WOW! My little man isn't so little anymore. In fact he is big enough to look his mum squarely in the eye though as most autism parents would understand that doesn't happen very often.

He told me on the weekend that he was excited. I like school Dad. That is a great relief at least because, as followers of this page would know, K had a few issues at school towards the end of last school year.

Anyway, off he went with his little sister, who after her own early life battles of being 9 weeks premature and having a non functioning valve in her heart(see "An Accidental Diagnosis" earlier in this blog) walked boldly through those same gates into Year 3. Daddy's little princess turns 8 next Thursday.

Meanwhile Dad spent the day on tender hooks waiting and hoping that the phone wouldn't ring on Day 1 saying we had a problem. the phone never rang...PHEW!!

At 3.15(yes, barely enough time for them to get home) I rang to see how the first day of their new adventure had been. Caitlyn comes on first and tells me all about her new teacher and her new friend and how cool the "Barbie" pencils Dad had bought her were.

Then on comes K and me with the obvious question:

"How was school K?"

The response....

"SCHOOL WAS AWESOME DAD!!"

Now K's "AWESOME" is the equivalent of me not getting a parking ticket but to to him it means he had a stress free day and that is all I and a lot of autism parents are asking for when it comes to school...

That was day 1. It was a great day. Only 39 weeks and 4 more days to go....but who is counting?

To all parents of autism students going off to school in the next week or so, and especially for those doing it for the first time. I hope you all have a great year and I echo that for their parents. My hat is off to each and every one of you!!

LET'S TALK ABOUT AUTISM!!