Another Social Skills Breakthrough

When we go out, our objective is to help Amor be able to navigate and ask people for help.

Her current motivation is Avengers and she has been asking for another avengers book.

We happen to pass by a bookstore but it wasn’t our agenda and we didn’t have time to search every shelf to find her book. So I told her that we only had a minute to ask and go straight to the book. For today, we couldn’t spend time to look around. That means she really had to ask the staff for help. Usually Amor would push back and ask me to talk to other people.

With the choice to leave or asking for help, Amor mustered her courage to ask. Timidly she walked towards the staff but requested that I be right behind her.

Amor asked for a marvel book. the polite gentleman didn’t understand what she said so he looked at me to clarify. I told him that Amor was practicing how to ask. He understood and looked back at her as she tried to explain more. Soon enough she was able to explained and he directed us to the book she wanted!

Big celebrations for her first time to ask. She was so proud of her accomplishment and readily agreed to do the cashier transaction herself.

On the taxi Amor proudly declared, “I am 11 years old now and I can buy books by myself!”

What I like about this Breakthrough moment is that I know I will only have to refer to it, to encourage her to confidently do it again and again!

In the photo: in taxi, Amor excited about her new book.

Son-Rising the other kids in the playground

Amor can be easily misunderstood. She has a favourite swing in the playground. If someone is on it when she arrives, she always asks for it…in a not so polite way 😅. Sometimes she kinda looks like a toddler shouting “mine!”

Through the years and Son-Rise assisted playground visits, she has been getting better at it. Today she asked more politely for the kid to GET OUT of HER swing….”More politely” is a relative term compared to how she used to do it 😉. He just had a question mark on his face but moved to the swing on the other end.

In Son-Rise® fashion, I went over to the boy to show gratitude and highlight how helpful he was. I told him, “Amor needs more practice in asking and sharing. But when kids like you readily share, she learns a lot faster! Thank you for showing her how to share!”

I just know from the smile on his face that my verbal gratitude will encourage him to keep showing more kindness to other kids.

I’ve been celebrating kids who show generosity to Amor in the playground. Some kids are receptive…some are…well, still need to mature 😜. But it has greatly helped Amor to ask politely, share her swing, wait her turn and/or accept “no” for an answer.

Son-Rising at it’s best at the playground! Building the village that raises my child.

In the photo: Amor on her favourite swing.

Finding her comfort in a sensory-filled environment.

Amor has super power hearing. While we can easily block off background sounds like the horns blowing, doors opening and closing, people coming in and out the bus, people speaking, aircon blowing, etc., Amor cannot filter those sounds. She exhibits this challenge through her irritability.

However, Amor finds amazing ways to help cope with overwhelming background sounds. She always picks to sit near the pole in the bus so she can tap it frequently. The tapping sound and sensation helps her focus on just that and block all the other sounds that bother her.

She’s doing the best she can and coping very well! She’s turning one of her biggest challenges into her super powers!

In the photo: Mom and Amor date, next to her favourite bus pole 😉