Employment Pathway Plan

On the date this plan was signed my ASD son discussed with Nova Employment the activities he agreed to undertake and the appointments he needs to attend to assisting him to find a job and prepare him for work. He is aware that if he cant attend his appointments or activities, he must contact his employment service provider in advance. These activities and appointments have been included in his Employment Pathway Plan, which is negotiated under the Social Security Act 1991.

Goals:  These are his employment goals. The activities and appointments in this plan will help him to reach these goals.
Short Term: He is looking for his part time job. One to two of work per week to start. If he is unsure as to what job he would like to try. He and Nova are going to work on ideas for jobs for him in workshops and in appointments.

Long Term: He would like to be starting a job before Christmas.

Appointments:This section lists the appointments and interviews that he will attend. He will contact his employment service provider in advance when he knows he is unable to attend.
He agrees to attend fortnightly Disability Employment Service appoints with Nova Employment.

Appointments: This section lists the appointments and interviews that he will attend and he will contact his employment service provider in advance when he knows he is unable to attend.
He agrees to attend fortnightly Disability Employment Service appointments with Nova Employment.

Job Search Activities: This section lists the job search activities he will undertake to assist him in finding employment.
He agrees to attend and fully participate in job search skills activities with Nova Employment from 09/06/2015. He will attend on Monday between 10:00 AM and 11:30 AM.
He is invited to participate in job search activity workshops that will assist him in learning about looking for work.
He agrees to research potential employers and prepare job applications with the help of Nova Employment from 09/06/2015 to 09/09/2015.

Employment service provider assistance:This section lists the ways in which his employment service provider will assist him to meet his goals.
On The Job Assistance - Nova Employment will assist him with supporting him on the job once employment is found.
Provider Service Assistance- Nova Employment will assist him with interview training with mock interviews and training.
Provider Service Assistance - Nova Employment will review and amend his resume by the end of July.
Provider Service Assistance - Nova Employment will train him with how to write a cover letter specific for different jobs.

Denial Over Diagnoses

It's pretty evident that my ASD son is questioning his diagnosis. He said his doctor has it wrong! There is nothing wrong with me, I am normal, everyone else has the problem. Here we go again!!!He has ranted about this for weeks.

I am wondering all of a sudden why has it become so important to him? He has never had a problem with it before. We are pretty open with his diagnosis. Is it because he is finding it hard to fit in?

I asked does he think he was diagnosed wrong? he said the doctor never spoke to him. How can she make that diagnosis, if she never spoke to me.

I remember clearly the doctor spoke to him on several occasions and he ignored her, or he was rude to her. Gee he can see things very differently to me!!! And if I  try to correct him I am instantly lying.

Is it normal to question to the point it's upset him. It's only words on a bit of paper. It won't really stop him from living. Some things will become difficult for him, that can happen to everyone anyway.

I will probably will have to ride the roller coaster ride for a while longer!!!! 

Part Time Job

Well there has been some breakthrough this week... It looks like my ASD son who is 17 years old, may have a part time job, in a few weeks.
My son got a phone call from his job provider and his job coach asked him would he like to have a part time job working on a farm doing odd jobs..
He was surprised to have this opportunity. He naturally jumped at the idea of work and something to do..
The odd jobs would be feeding some animals, some mowing and general work around the farm. My son has never really done odd jobs outside the house!!! It will interesting how he does!!! It will be a good first part time job.
It will test him with the weather, he has trouble with the heat and being out in the heat could be a problem to him, hopefully he will be able to overcome this obstacle.
And then there is the cold if it is too cold he melts down and has trouble functioning.
But for now he will hopefully two days a week 4 hours each day.
This is a good starting point to build a profile to see what he is capable of doing.
The long term goal for him is to do a trade of some sort, plumbing, electrical, carpentry, what ever he is capable of achieving. For now we will take our time to make sure his first part time is a success and he gains confidence working for a boss in a job situation.

Here We Are 2015

Well here we are it is January 2015!!! After so many successful achievements for our ASD son. What will he be working towards this year? He will need to arrange driving lesson with a driving school, so he can learn the current road rules, and have enough confidence to move forward to his red P plates. The task will be picking the right driving school and getting the right driving instructor, someone that  will have a lot of patience and understanding. I'm sure he will get the right driving school to help!!!

The next step is to explore different types of work!!! He has been looking into different types of jobs last, but he only found it so confusing and is unable to choose anything that he maybe interested in!! I guess this is going to be a real challenge, the job list is quite a large list, the larger the list the harder it is to make a choice!!! So the challenge is to make the list smaller and hopefully this will be manageable for him to make some sort of a choice.

Also while all this is going on learning to drive and looking at job choices, we still have to continue with social skills building and making sure he mingles with the public an a daily basis, so he doesn't lose those social skills that he learn't last year.

I'm so proud of him now, on how he can walk into a shop and buy something by himself, without any help from me. I can sit in the back ground and watch!!! I am particularly proud how he wants to go out and socialise with others and how interacts at parties, no more sitting in the corner and trying to hide, he will intermingle with people and have conversation with them and he will joke and laugh with everyone!!!



    

Reflecting Over This Year 2014

It has come to the time where I reflect over my ASD son's achievements. He is now 17 years of age and becoming a man rather rapidly, it won't be long about 6 months and he will 18 years of age and classified as an adult. He reminds on a daily basis that he will 18 soon and we cannot tell him what to do!! Does this mean he will listening to me. My advice to him I will always be his mum and I always will tell what to do, no matter what age he is, so get used to it.

His first achievement this year he did a 6 month course at Tafe in Business Administration certificate 2. He got through this really well and he got to know people within his community.
The second achievement was he can catch a train a short distance by himself and navigate the community that he lives in. His preferred method of transport is catching a taxi home after getting off the train.

There was no third achievement, the pre apprenticeship he applied for, he did not get in and this took a toll on my son and myself. It was time to have a break!!! He became a bit deflated as he did have a good start to the year and the second of the year was nothing but doors being closed on him and polite way of saying he just wasn't the person for the position, so it was time to focus on something else. In that time I noticed his psychologists visits were becoming less effective and he was refusing to listen and basically he didn't want to go any more.

It was really time to look at what was happening. I was exhausted with fighting with to listen to me, it was then I decided to have a break. He didn't other organisations to help him on his way to adulthood and looking at work. It's scary to think my boy would soon have to navigate work and learn how to or know what type of of he should be entering.

We took three months to go and have some fun. This year we went to see Myth Busters in Australia, something my son came and asked me to take him too, it was a great show and a great day, even with the disruption of public transport on the day!!! The next outing was a trip to Sydney to see Circus Quirkus which was another fun day out. We also explored eating out in pubs!! One of his goals is to be able to buy an alcoholic drink of his choice when he is 18!!! Not long now he will be able to fulfil that in 6 months!!! We also did a lot of shopping experiences, because my fear as parent is that my boy would try and lock himself away and I didn't want that. One thing I have learnt no matter how bad things get I needed to keep my ASD son moving and doing things all the time, it is okay to have a little time out!!! He is navigating shopping centres a lot better than he used to.

It took three months to convince him he need help in finding out what type of work to do, so he needed to go to a job agency, not just any agency it had to a place like Nova Employment who are the experts in dealing with people like my son. He wouldn't listen and kept saying he could this by himself and finally after three months of me taking him places and going shopping he was getting tired of this and he decided just maybe he did need some help and he went and signed up with them. Now he is officially a job seeker and looking at different industries and how they work!!!I'm expecting him to slot into work straight away, it will one of those things where it will probably be a hit and miss and a lot of working. The biggest thing will be convincing my boy to try something new even if he doesn't like the idea of some thing. There will be no hurry, just a lot of patience, which I lack some times!!!

The last achievement this year is getting a Learners License!!! He finally passed that knowledge test!!! He finally realized the questions on the test only have one answer and everyone has to answer the test the same way. Which meant he had to study or remember every question. We worked out if he downloaded all the questions and answers and went through them, there was a good chance he would be able to remember most of them. Then he sat the practice test and did it over and over until he got every question right with no mistakes at least ten times. He passed the test with only making one mistake!!!

It has been a remarkable year!!! I hope he continues to grow in every way!!! He is someone with a difference and he is making a difference in a big way, he is learning to grow and develop to be the best person that he can be!!!

Carpentry Course

My ASD son decided to sign up for a Carpentry course at Tafe... I really thought he might extend his Business Administration course to a cert 3. But he didn't, I was somewhat disappointed that he has decided for whatever reason to try and do a trade. I really shouldn't be surprised by his decisions, he has three brothers all doing different trades, maybe he is proving a point to his brothers, because of late he is butting heads with them!!!

The hard work has begun, with a phone call to disability support at the Tafe and a meeting prior to the information session to work out what type of support he would need. He has really jumped into the deep end and I am not sure how he would cope with all the extra work and being out doors for long periods of time.He had trouble getting through school and we had to dump the homework, because it cause so much anxiety and extreme meltdowns and not to mention the stress the family had to endure over homework.

The next step was information session followed by maths and literacy test and in interview with a resume and white card in hand. He managed  the whole process really well. he had the beginning of his interview by himself, My son really doesn't believe you should sell yourself, his attitude if you go to the trouble to show up they should at least give you a go. As he turned up early for the information session, he was actually the first person there!!!

Next process had to wait for a phone call in two weeks time. I thought he may not get a phone call at all, because there were a lot of boys applying for the same course. But he did get the phone call to be told he has made the short list, he is getting closer to finding out whether he has a position in the Carpentry Course. He would have to wait until Tafe went back from holiday break!!

Last process came on the first Tuesday of Tafe returning from holidays he didn't get picked initially, he is on standby. What this mean? If someone drops out he is the first person on the list that get called up for a position in Carpentry!!! I am so proud of him for getting this far!!!    

Achievements Over The Last 6 Months

So much as been happening over the last 6 months!!! It's been full steam ahead!!! I am now able to look back over the last 6 months. One main thing that has happened Our ASD son has changed!!!  You read it right, he has changed. The changes have been remarkable, he has stopped pacing along the tree line in the back yard, no more worn path, just green grass. He enrolled into adult education TAFE where he is almost finished his course Business Administration Certificate 2. He has only 2 weeks left where he is getting extra support to help tidy up his work on Thursday class only. I am so proud that he has gone almost to the end with no help only from his class teacher and he did finish off any unfinished work at home and handed in on the next lesson!!! This such a big achievement, I never thought he would have come this far!!! He also sat a 6 hour course just recently for a white card, so if he chooses to do a trade he will be able to go on to building sites to work in the future. He has passed this course with flying colours.

I have suddenly realised our ASD is following two of his brothers into the trade industry. I't makes me wonder is he trying to prove something!! He has so far followed their exact path except his trade of choice is different.He is still catching the train two days a week and he is looking after his own finances and paying his way in society. He pays his board every two weeks and he still rings me just before he goes to the bank. He runs everything past me on what he is planning, I always say is it a need or want. Needs have to met first while wants can wait awhile longer. This seems to work for him!!!

Just recently we went to another Tafe Campus further away from our house still on the main line so he will be able to manage navigate the transport system. He has decided to put in an expression of interest in Carpentry!!! He has a few things going for him, he has his white card and he is still a student of Tafe and he has almost completed 6 months at his local Campus in his area with no days off. The next hurdle now is to write up a simple Resume. He has an information session coming up in Carpentry, where he will be able to spend more time looking around the new Campus, hopefully he will be accepted if not he can always use his plan B.

We dropped into his old school to see his teachers and they were surprised and happy that he has come so far!!! They even said he has changed!!! Even family members have said they have noticed he is different for good reasons!!! 

A Much Calmer Boy!!!

It has been three months since my ASD son joined college life. There has been a real difference in him. Nothing like the boy who went to school and was constantly stressed and refusing to obey the school rules and being sent home all the time, it was a real headache for me, and I was beginning to think was this child capable of doing anything. Instead I have a boy when he gets stressed takes the time to say to his teachers he can't cope and needs to take some time out or leave the campus and come home, no yelling or screaming to get his point across just a real calmness about him!!!

It is coming to the end of term and I am expecting him to start to unsettle as the holidays are fast approaching, but no he is looking forward to having a break!!! My son is also engaging more and more in social activities and he is enjoying shopping!!! Yes! He is enjoying shopping no more meltdowns, he just simply tells me he is not coping!!! Much better than the last shopping experience when he had us held up in Kmart for 3 hours!!! He made his real big purchase and bought by himself a laptop computer and I must admit I was impressed because he haggled for  a better price and he saved a $100.00. A year ago he would never be able to do this and buy something for himself.

He is still enjoying travelling on the train to college by himself and every two weeks he goes to the bank and does his own banking and look after his own finances. He still rings me just before he enters the bank. He is doing this on his own!!!I am so proud of him, he has come a long way, no more laying on the ground and screaming out everyone hates me. And we have grass along the tree line where he would pace up and down to calm himself, so he wouldn't melt down, it is nice to see grass and not a worn path!!!

To wrap things up we have a calmer boy and  for the first time in his life he is happy!!! There is life beyond school and we are in a happy place and being a mum of a teenager on the spectrum, I do not miss school life at all.

I can't wait for his graduation it is his time to shine!!!!   

Classroom Structure At Tafe

My ASD son is coping very well at Tafe. I am now wondering why is this so. Is it because they have a more laid back approach to teaching and if my son can't cope he can leave and it is not a big deal to get the work done, and he can always pick up where he left off. His classroom structure is made up of all different age groups, so he is interacting on many different levels, my son  would find this quite challenging and interesting. His class is mainly females with one other boy who is in his twenties, so there is very little competition, when my son was in mainstream school it was the boys that he had problems with and he always got on well with the girls as they were more nurturing towards him and they didn't take offence to him if he didn't want to interact at school, because mainly sat at school watching everyone interacting and playing, he was content in doing this. 

The main thing that has concerned me is that he has three teachers and this concerns me a lot, because he has problems with change over of teachers and dealing with their personalities, he showed this at school he couldn't deal with so many teachers and their personalities, he finds it difficult to swap from one person to the next, I hope this doesn't put him into meltdown!!! Although he has two teachers on Thursday in classroom together - maybe having the two teachers together in the one classroom he is not having to swap over, they both teach different aspects of the Business course. On Friday he has one teacher. he likes all of his teachers and today they were allowed to leave early. When the work is finished they are allowed to leave the school. He likes the idea he can leave when the work is finished and he doesn't have to wait for everyone in the class to finish their work, he can just leave.

He handed work in to be marked today, I am hoping he doesn't get a bad result, this too can send him into a meltdown, we will soon find out.He had to write up a memo, apparently he can write anything up and it doesn't have to be the truth, it just has to be an interesting memo, something worth reading!!! He came home happy. He is really liking the challenge of making his own way to campus!!!

Hope everyone's week has been good, just like my son is having a good week and he is looking forward to the weekend!!!

Tafe College

On Thursday 6th January 2014, my ASD son had started learning Business Certificate 2 at our local Tafe college. I went with him on the train and walked him to the college part of the way. He kept insisting he was fine. I think I was the one that wasn't fine, I was worried that he wouldn't follow the rules for adult learning, or he would upset someone and he would have to leave the college.I said goodbye and said I would meet him at the end of the day at the train station and we would go home together. I stood there watching him walk down the road to the college, thinking how much he has changed over these last few months.

He rang me during break times, to let me know he was fine. He said he bought his lunch at the cafeteria it was hot chips. He sat talking to the other students during his break times. My ASD son was placed in a mixed class, some were his own age and some mature people with children. He has three teachers - not sure how this work, but anyway we will keep positive and point out it is adult learning. He loves the library and he could borrow books, movies and TV series, but he has to have his tafe card. At the end of the day I get a phone call from my son saying he is going to be late, because he was organising his Tafe card, he did want me to come to tafe and help sort it out, I said no, this is adult learning and he needed to sort this out by himself. He was 40 minutes late with a big smile on his face and he said I have my Tafe card!!! I said well done!!He had such a good day!!! He was so tired when he got home had to have a nap!!!

Day 2 My ASD son insisted he could manage the train ride and the 15 minute walk to Tafe and didn't want me to come with him. I wasn't keen on this at all. What if something goes wrong? will he react in his usual way and meltdown, I guess I would soon find out!!! He left with his dad, it meant he would have to buy his ticket and wait 10 to 5 minutes for the train and get off 2 stops away and then walk into the college. As he left for school, I promised him I would not ring him today at all. This was a hard thing for me to do. I lasted until 2.30 pm, when he was supposed to finish. He takes my call only to tell me he is still doing school work, they were staying back a bit to get work finished. I quickly hang up. He rang a short time later to tell me he missed the train, and he caught train to the next station so he could buy an ice cream at McDonald's it is beside the train station and he had a twenty five minute wait!!! So he was going to his favourite shop E B Games and yes he bought a computer game. I asked him if he wanted to be picked up from the train station. He said no he would walk home. I no sooner hung up from our phone conversation, he came through the door. I asked how did you get home so quick!!! He said it was too hot to walk home, I caught a taxi!!! He showed me he bought a bargain a $4.00 computer game, he couldn't help himself. He showed me his work. Today he did touch typing, wrote a letter and wrote up an agenda.

He bought his lunch a roast beef sandwich and a cup of tea. He ate the sandwich and tried the tea and realised he doesn't like tea. So he thought next time he might ask for a hot chocolate. He was so impressed you get breakfast at the cafeteria. Maybe he will try a breakfast one day!!! Now he is trying different foods!!I am so impressed!!!