Re: Autistic Child??? Help!

Babysitting Children

Autistic Child??? Help!

justme! 08-25-2007, 4:44 PM
Hi! In my town, there are about six children with autism. They go to my school, an autistic class, though. I always hear the parents complaining that, though they love their child, having a child with autism means not going out for dinner themselves without the child.

So, I thought I might try babysitting for an autistic child. If anyone has done this before, please give me some tips. Beforehand, I'd help during the summer autistic program by volunteering to make sure I know what I'm doing. But any tips?

Re: Autistic Child??? Help!

Chosen7Stone 08-28-2007, 12:05 AM
How old are you? Have you had previous experience with autistic children?

To be frank, if you're young and inexperienced, there's a slim chance they're going to let you babysit. Caring for a special needs child isn't novel or something to be taken lightly...whatever emergencies can happen with the average child, the risks are multiplied when you're with a special needs child.

It's good that you'll volunteer at the summer program. In addition, start researching. Don't use the Internet, for goodness' sake. I can't tell you how many inaccurate websites are in existence. If you must use the Internet, however, I solely recommend these websites:

http://www.webmd.com/parenting/guide/mental-health-autism
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autism
http://www.autism-society.org

Pick up some books at your library. That's honestly your best bet.

Keep in mind that autism is a hot topic right now. For some people, the "puzzle" ribbon is offensive to them -- I recently saw a bumper sticker that read, "I'm not a puzzle that needs solving -- I'm just me!" Some autistic individuals who are more "in touch" with the world feel like people are picking them apart, and they're comfortable with how their minds work, and don't like the poking and prodding.

Also, send me a PM with your E-mail address and I'll send you a PowerPoint presentation I did while I was in college on a study that was done with autistic children.

*Love in Christ from Mary*
1 Peter 2:4-5

Vote my agency, Seminole Sitters, the "Best Overall Business" in Tallahassee for the 2007 Tally Awards at EverythingTallahassee.com!!!

Re: Autistic Child??? Help!

Mommy2Lots 08-28-2007, 10:08 PM

Excellent advice Mary!

Autistic children, as with any special needs child, might require tons of extra care and responsibilities that the average person cannot take on.

Also, that was excellent to mention the part about the autistic children that are not "out of touch". It's very important for people to remember that just because someone has a certain mental or physical "condition", it doesn't always mean that they can't do something just as good as, or better than, someone who doesn't have that label.

I thought all of your advice was right on. I haven't worked with an autistic child, but I have studied quite a bit about them.

Parenting/Sitting Articles - If you view these, kindly return back to Babysitting Forums. ;-)

Re: Autistic Child??? Help!

Panditha82 09-07-2007, 10:17 PM

I first want to say its great that you want to extend your experinces, this is becasue having experince with children with special needs especially autism is vastly needed and many parents are in a constatnt struggle to find sitters,nannies,and yes even teachers who understand autism or other special needs especially ADHD, or are willing to learn about it.

As for tips, first off as Mary stated, how old are you and what are your experinces so far,

if you dont have expdrince working with chldren with autsim one thing that parents look for the most is, people who TRULY care about chidlren in other words, will help them be a part of their lives, this is because with children with special needs they look to their parents and those adults around them especially teachers and caregivers as role models, so that they can be like children without special needs effective strong and healthy citizens of this world. Basically put someone who will understand where they are coming from.

one thing is for sure that children with high functoning autism are much like other kids, usually they are limited by speech, but the main characteristic youll find when you research is that children thorugh out the spectrum will exibit times when they are concentrating ALOT on something. and thus if disturbed can throw a fit.

reason i highly reccomend going with marys advice on learning more about it on the links provided is because well:

if your a first timer and you give a child with autism a hug and they hit you or yell at you many would think they are doing what a non-special needs child is doing when its not that at all.

that and if they say no it doesnt automatically mean what it typcially means, it might mean their own way of saying i want something, or this is fun etc. etc.

also if they say GET OUT, it mgiht mean just that or I am hurt.

if you have said you are energetic before for other babysitting jobs, and you are. then youd love working with kids who are autistic especially high functioning-mild-severe autistic. they are VERY VERY fun :) but the above statments still apply.

even though i myself am special needs, have ample experince with children of many types im constantlylearning, and with children with autism a refresher course is always reccomended even if you have the experince. i know i did, always do :) even their parents do this always. they are constantly revamping their parenting skills.

one thing is for certain, if you have little experince or none as Mary stated its a very slim chance that youd get hired, or if they did that you would stay for long, because either youd quit, or theyd let you go, this is because, children who have autism just dont have autism. there are several types, most common are high functioning, moderate, and aspergers(very high functioning) and parents with children who are not very high functioning in other words dont have severe autism, will look for those care-givers who aer VERY experinced with both special and non-special needs children.

i also VERY VERY highly agree with this statement that Mary said:
"For some people, the "puzzle" ribbon is offensive to them -- I recently saw a bumper sticker that read, "I'm not a puzzle that needs solving -- I'm just me!" Some autistic individuals who are more "in touch" with the world feel like people are picking them apart, and they're comfortable with how their minds work, and don't like the poking and prodding."

with the kids I am a nanny for, I try to make sure people do not judge them by what they have, because IMHO all of us have needs, some more than others, they are diffrent in behaviors but their translations mean "hey this is my way of saying hi, i love you, etc." the parents i work for feel the same way and they have told me this.

as a person with special needs myself (ADHD, another disorder that is highly misunderstood and looked at only at what those that have it cant do instead of what they can do like with Autism) my advice to you that the children and the parents of the children with Autism, will say is. I AM just like you.

Judge Not yest ye be judged yourself-Jesus Christ

Re: Autistic Child??? Help!

Chosen7Stone 09-08-2007, 7:46 PM
There were two things Panditha said that stood out to me, and to build off them:

If you haven't had experience with autistic children in the past, you might misread some of their actions and words. Some [foolish] childcare providers have written off some autistic children as "bad" because of these "different" behaviors, and as a consequence, done the child a great disservice in believing them to be purposefully naughty or something of that sort. Every autistic child is different, and you'll need to spend a lot of one-on-one time in the parent's presence before you're left alone with him/her, in order to get to know them better.
We truly do need to remain in a constant state of seeking self-improvement and growth -- not only in childcare, but in other realms of our lives, too. Yes, parents do need to "revamp" their practices sometimes, and we do, too. Be humble, be open.

*Love in Christ from Mary*
1 Peter 2:4-5

Vote my agency, Seminole Sitters, the "Best Overall Business" in Tallahassee for the 2007 Tally Awards at EverythingTallahassee.com!!!

Re: Autistic Child??? Help!

Panditha82 09-09-2007, 9:23 PM

Chosen7Stone wrote:
There were two things Panditha said that stood out to me, and to build off them:
If you haven't had experience with autistic children in the past, you might misread some of their actions and words. Some [foolish] childcare providers have written off some autistic children as "bad" because of these "different" behaviors, and as a consequence, done the child a great disservice in believing them to be purposefully naughty or something of that sort. Every autistic child is different, and you'll need to spend a lot of one-on-one time in the parent's presence before you're left alone with him/her, in order to get to know them better.
We truly do need to remain in a constant state of seeking self-improvement and growth -- not only in childcare, but in other realms of our lives, too. Yes, parents do need to "revamp" their practices sometimes, and we do, too. Be humble, be open.

so agree on the be humble and open part!

Judge Not yest ye be judged yourself-Jesus Christ

Re: Autistic Child??? Help!

amber_wild_fire 09-13-2007, 6:45 PM
agree with the above but wanted to put in some tips.
If you are younger and inexperienced they might not hire you. if you are older, and have learnt from experience about the behaviours of most children etc, but do not have autism experience then you might be considered. what it really comes down to is what kind of person you are, being a babysitter you have to be paitence and empethic of course but more so in this case and really zero in on these.
if the parents deside to hire you (everyone learns things somewhere), please do not be afraid to ask questions. research! they will give you the ins and outs, and the routine which you should write down and what to do if something did happen. but here are some tips with the children i have in my life with autism. (cousins, step brother and babysitting clients) keep in mind that there are many different kinds and other things linked in, and every child is different.here is what i have found.

shedule is important. there can be changes but mostly rountine is key, plus if there is some thing planned warning is good "tomorrow we are..."
make sure that you don't focus in on the autism. he isn't the child with autism in your mind he is billy or tommy first then thats a side note. If it isn't nessisary for him don't treat him that differetly than other children only keep his/her key things that set him off in mind. every kid wants to be considered as an average child.
most find it hard to articulate/express their emotions and read yours.
hope that helped

Re: Autistic Child??? Help!

sister_2_1 09-18-2007, 5:13 PM
i babysit a family with 3 autistic children. They are 8, 4, and 3. Differnet kids with autism have different abilities, so get to know the kids BEFORE you watch them. A lot of autistic kids don't do well with change, and if the parents just let you watch them before the kids really get to know you, you will probly have a night of tantrums, and getting an autistic child out of a tantrum is not something easily done. when i say get to know them, i mean visit them often...like 3-4 times a week to see their behaviors in different situations. If you don't do this, you might have a night of hell.

Re: Autistic Child??? Help!

Girrrl 10-13-2007, 6:28 PM
Great advice, Mary and Panditha! Well said.

I've worked with many children with autism over the years, and started by A) reading books about autism and B) spending time getting to know a child with autism by joining him and his mother in their daily routine at home. I was so grateful to her for welcoming me into their home like that, and at first, I mostly hung back and observed, letting her son take the lead in how much interaction he wanted to have with me. Getting to know a child with autism requires patience, trust, an open mind, letting go of one's ego and judgements, etc.