Just the way he was acting caused me to guess and I was right on the dot. K had autism and was already upset because Healthy Approach was out of something he wanted. His mother tried to reason with him, but nothing helped. He just sat on the floor and screamed. Causing a sight, his mother looked embarrassed and kept apologizing. I asked the mother if there was anything I could do and knowing that she was on the brink of tears, I sat on the floor with the screaming K. The store was out of the food that he wanted, but I had a safe chocolate bar in my basket. Before I got on the floor, I asked the mother if I could see if this would advert his attention, she said it was worth a shot. So, I asked K if he wanted my chocolate bar, he said no at first, but then as I opened it, he said yes.
K was still upset with the fact that Healthy Approach was out of his food, but the candy bar in a sense saved the day. After he was given the candy bar, I asked him what was wrong and he told me. I asked him if he liked the candy bar and he said yes. After settling down, he got up and headed for the door. His mother looked at me in shock that her son responded to me, thanked me, and left with her son.
It was my turn next to check out and the woman who checked me out asked how I knew and I told her that "I just knew that K had autism." I have never met this family before and probably will never see them again. I am just glad I was there to help with the situation.
Today was a sign that I am meant to be a Special Ed teacher. No circumstance in perfect as life is not perfect, but being able to help a child is my goal and today it was reached. In the future, I plan to help kiddos and I understand that some may react differently than others, but the way I come off as an individual does/will pacify the situation at hand.
Enjoy the kids who make life special
