Fun Facts about School

1. Each year in the US, over 78.8 million kids, teens, and adults enroll in school.
2. High school was not officially a part of school until the 1930s. Before that, most Americans only completed eight years of school.
3. Dave Thomas (Wendy's) went back to high school in 1993 to get his GED, because he was worried that his success as a high school dropout might convince other teenagers to quit school.
4. Around 480,000 yellow school buses carry 25 million children to and from school every day in the US.

Source: American Speech and Hearing Association (ASHA), August 2018

Dogs are Socially Gifted

Dogs can teach us how to socially connect. I didn’t realize the extent of their gifts until we started living with our dog Mac, who we got as a puppy. Before we realized it, my husband and I were figured out, bamboozled, manipulated into providing walks, treats, tummy rubs. Before we knew what had happened he had pushed his way out of his crate and was sleeping upstairs in our room every night. He brought the family together with his desire to connect and be connected. Even though the scientific jury is still out about whether dogs have theory of mind (the ability to recognize beliefs, desires, and intentions of others), the anecdotal evidence of dog owners is that they seem to read minds. How do they do this? They are exquisitely attuned to social cues, gestures, and body language. They can follow a pointing gesture, which is a cognitive skill related to language development. They also have social skills that bind them to others. One of the skills that holds the social world together for the dog is the greeting ritual. Our dog is an enthusiastic greeter. Mac’s greetings are whole body affairs involving grabbing a shoe or a toy in his mouth, wagging his tail and his head, wiggling his torso, going in circles, and making a racket. When you are greeted by Mac you feel like a king or a queen. This skill alone is instructive. When I get into the car and forget to greet the dog, and my husband will say “Did you forget someone?” I will turn and see Mac in the back seat, nose on the headrest, waiting to be acknowledged and brought into relationship. Teachable moment indeed.

Catching the Ball

I learned this group activity at a social thinking workshop sponsored by my school district. It is simple and profound.  It requires a group of children arranged in a circle, and a medium-sized soft ball that can be thrown and caught easily. The people in the circle look at the person holding the ball. The person holding the ball makes eye contact with someone in the circle, and says “I see (person’s name) is looking at me!” and tosses the ball to them. When the ball is caught, the communication loop is complete. A social interaction has occurred between the person who threw the ball and the person who caught the ball. Here are some of the skills that are taught: asking for someone’s attention, giving your attention, waiting until you have someone’s attention, turn taking. It teaches how the eyes initiate and power a social connection.  For little ones on the autism spectrum, this activity is a powerful way to experience the give and take of conversation and social reciprocity. Parents, you can do this as a family activity, or with a play group.

Photo: Creatista/Veer