Communicating Partners
Dr. James D. MacDonald's Website
Helping Parents Help Children. Programs for Parents, Therapists & Educators
What kind of conversation partner do you want?
Consider the kind of conversation partner you want in your relationships. Below are features many people seek. These are also crucial goals for your child if he is to develop lasting relationships. Use the list as a guide, first, for what you can do with your child, and second as a way to identify your child's strengths and needs in becoming a conversational partner.
Consider this list a rough guide to see what kind of conversation partners you and your child are. You will be able to identify the strengths and we encourage you to first work on them. Build your conversations with your child by building more and more of the good conversations you have. Do not focus on fixing the major problems you have. Some of them may not be fixable now and some will diminish when you make an effort to have more and more positive conversations.
Note: I'd appreciate any reactions since this will be a part of the book I am writing on autism and related communication conditions.