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Autism Helpline Number: 0808 800 4104
Last updated: 07/02/2012 13:54:29
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Last updated: 7th February 2012
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It's not easy having a brother or sister who has autism or Asperger syndrome. This cheerful book, full of puzzles, pictures to draw and colour, games and other activities, helps work through some of the issues and celebrates difference. The illustrations are partly coloured to offer colouring-in opportunities and the black and white sections are photocopiable. Carolyn is the mother of three children, including an adult with Asperger syndrome. She is also an SEN teacher and ran autism family support services for many years in Nottingham. For 4-9 year olds.
This book is a workbook for children between five and eight who have a brother or sister with autism or Asperger syndrome. I filled in the book with my younger sister, Katie. She's 10 and has autism. We enjoyed the book I read out the questions and got her to tell me the answers, sometimes she filled in the pictures too.
I think that this would be a good book to help explain autism to a brother or sister, or even for using in a school. The activities included drawing and word searches, and were fun to do my favourite one was when we had to draw and talk about Katies favourite things. Katie could read some of the book, but I think that little children might need someone to help read it to them, and to explain some of the long words like conversation.
The book was the right length and had good information, but the paper was a bit shiny and we used felt tips because I think pencils wouldn't work so well. It was good to have a book about a different family, because every family is different.
Sarah Tamsin Hunter, aged 11 Author and illustrator of My sister is different, also published by The National Autistic Society
Children who have an autism spectrum sibling often know there is something different about them. They may even know it is called autism. However, trying to explain what this means in a practical way that the child can find relevant can be a struggle. There are many books that help do this but, most often, they are story based.
However, as we know, behaviours of autism are very varied, so children may find it difficult to relate to the behaviours of the child with autism in the story and the behaviours of their brother or sister. Carolyns book is a practical solution to this. It is fundamentally a workbook containing practical puzzles, games and drawing. It looks at the family as a whole, then draws inward looking at both the child with and without autism. It gives a chance to compare behaviours, showing that their behaviour is not wrong, merely different.
This is a book to be worked through over time with a parent. It offers opportunity for further discussion, to help discuss feelings of a situation. It is as useful starting at the beginning as it is finding a page relating to a specific situation. Children often need short spells of input to truly understand things and this book can be used as reference over and over again as the sibling grows and can more fully understand autism.
Aimed at 5-8 year olds, it can be used for a wider age range as a practical workbook or an aide to discussion. I am sure many parents will find it a refreshing and positive approach to help children go some way to understanding their siblings more.
Carrie White, teacher and parent of a child with autism and neuro-typical children