1. Take A Class
Learning a new skill can be a lot of fun for anyone, but especially for an autistic child/teen/adult. Implementing a new life or daily living skill is so very important so this could take the form of an trained individual coming into your home, school setting, and/or worksite to teach that new skill for life long independence.
2. Get More Organized
Most individuals on the spectrum struggle with organization, so this is a goal that our son is continually working on because of how different each class and teacher are. Initially most of his teachers, in his general education classes would just lecture or speak about the assignments to the classes, with an addition of videos to expand on the details. But there of course is always a due date for any assignment, which is where my son may get lost. He is working on his organizational skills by writing the due dates to his assignments for different days. You could use any planner, maybe one that has a favorite character, movie or even game. Just make sure it has dates, days, and a place to write down an assignment. This way it gives the autistic student the independence of manually crossing out completed assignment and gives them a visual of what assignment(s) remain.
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3. Create a Self-Care Routine
This is one of the most important ideas for New Year’s resolutions on the list and the weight of responsibilities for an autistic individual can be very overwhelming and debilitating at times, depending on where they fall on the spectrum, therapy goals and overall mental well being. Making self-care a priority or taking time out for one’s self is life saving. Creating a routine where an autistic individual or anyone for that matter feels the most relaxed and then scheduling a time to do it each and every day.
4. Work on Personal Development
Transitions and Change are hard for people on the spectrum, but sometimes atypical individuals have a hard time doing this as well. The beginning of the year is a great time to see where they have grown and to also see where they are going with their journey of personal development.
What are the skills you want your autistic teen to learn? What social skills traits do they need more work on? Once you know the areas that you would like to see them grow more in, come up with a plan for them to get there.
5. Do More Journaling
Journaling has a number of benefits for the psyche, stress, imagination, and more.
For starters it’s a great way to create a personal record that you and your autistic son or daughter can take a look at how far they have come in the journey of autism. Journaling can help them organize their thoughts, meet goals and support overall mental health.
I hope these tips give you a place to start or add to your New Year’s Resolutions for autistic learners and families as well.
Enjoy and Happy Holidays!
By MomAdvocate
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Mandu Usoro is a lifestyle blogger, freelance writer, experienced homeschooler and US Army Veteran with a BS Degree in Social Work and AA Degrees in Psychology as well as Health Care Administration. She enjoys spending time with her family, advocating for her special needs son and writing for fun and inspiration. You can get in touch with her on Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn and at https://www.homeschoolspecneedstidbits.com/contact-us
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