Finding friends..

I have a 17 year old high funtctioning autistic son that is homeschooled due to a stroke he had when he was 13 years old. It has been very hard for him to meet anybody that has a lot in common with him. My heart breaks because he is not around typical teenagers hardly and when he is he has a very hard time fitting in. He has the biggest heart and is wonderful to be around but being that is is a bit imamature, sometimes he get's lost. We have tried a social skills group but it didn't work out very well..  What can I do to get him involved to make some kind of connection with some other kids?????

[Kim1989]

i have no idea but my heart does go out for you and your family. a lot of people are very closed minded. there are people out their that care about people for who they are. kids are harsh but n time, as kids get older they will realize how they treat people. there has to be a group around you somewhere with kids who have things in common with your son. maybe there is a group focusing on young adults who are autistic. you and your son will be in my thoughts!

[Agiesmom]

Are there no home schooling groups in your area?  Any co-ops?  What about enrolling him in a community class that interests him (dancing, painting, poetry)?  Or a band, if he plays music or sports team if he plays any sports.  What about high school classes at the community college?  There is a "School of Rock" at a local music store here and you can meet up with other kids in the community and learn to play in a band.  Can you "dual enroll" him in a class at the public school?  Here you can enroll your home educated child into classes at the public school (like Chemistry or foreign language).  You can also have your child involved in the public school marching band, art class, or sports teams if you want.  You should check into that where you live.

Our home school community is HUGE and not only is there a home school band and home school orchestra, there is a large teen group and they have a year book and year book committee, student council, class photos, class rings, school jackets, dances, sports teams, and several activities per week are planned (bowling, ice skating, goofy golfing, movies, skiing, white water rafting, swimming, sledding, etc.) and also group trips are planned...and there are always at least 50 kids at every event.  If you don't have something like this, do you think there would be enough interest to start a teen home school group in your area?

I have a friend with a 13-year-old daughter with Asperger's Syndrome and she home schooled her daughter for years and ended up enrolling her into public school because she went back to college.  Well, her daughter is still very lonely--she's just lonely while surrounded by other kids.  She keeps to herself mostly and is teased and bullied quite a bit, but the teachers are supportive and she's coping.  And this is a charter Montessori school, which is a better option, imo, for kids like this because they have classes that encompass three grades, so it's not obvious if children are behind in subjects or behind a grade level or young emotionally or behaviorally.  All this said, my friend plans to home school again when she is able to do so.

Anyway...look into classes and groups.  Start a home school group yourself if there aren't any in your area.

All the best to you and your son!

[crabby70]

I would look to see if there are any day camps for autistic children, play groups....where would he go to school?  If there are other autistic children in the class maybe you could arrange a play date...where I live there are support meetings you could see if there are any and maybe arrange for a play date with there children...My daughter is being mainstreamed to a LLD class...she is in a  wheelchair and communicates with a device...the children are  great there...I think its a matter of finding the right class and teacher...best of luck