“You have to stay inside during recess so we can discuss your math grade, and if you can’t catch up we will have to take you out of art class, I also need to call your parents so we can discuss what to do next.” I was in Junior High but I had already heard this saying before then. My academic problems began very early on. In school I had poor fine motor skills and did not retain much of what was talked about in class. I stuck out like a sore thumb in class when I stumbled over sentences during popcorn reading, and report card day was not much better.
For students with Autism and other Disabilities, often things such as recess and access to the arts are taken away from us or restricted because poor academic performance or other things can mean that we have to spend so much time catching up that anything extra is considered a luxury. Extracurriculars at school often require that the student be keeping up in the classroom in order to be eligible to participate. Other activities outside of school that require cost may not always be in the budget of the parent due to any extra money going to Therapy, other Specialist appointments as well. These things also restrict a student with Autism being able to have extra time to learn to socialize with others, a crucial thing that the arts has to offer students with Autism.
Some parents may want to put their child into an activity, but worry that they will have trouble being able to keep up in another group setting. With all of these factors keeping kids on The Spectrum from the arts, how can we close the gap and find a way to be able to help them succeed in school and be able to participate in extracurricular activities? We have to start by educating people about how access to the Arts for a student on The Autism Spectrum is just as crucial as the other core classes that they take in school. The arts can help them develop fine motor skills as well as learning how to work in groups and develop social skills.
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