Cafe Autism

Friday is Halloween (in case you didn't already know from the proliferation of scary commercials on tv and the candy in stores). The holiday that most kids love presents special challenges for a lot of kids with autism. For everyone to have a happy halloween, families have to accommodate the needs of the child with autism.

Autism Society of America has a nice Halloween guide for kids with autism spectrum disorders on their website.

I have to admit we won't really be doing anything for Halloween at our house except answering the door for trick-or-treaters (assuming I get to the store in time to buy candy!). Bridget doesn't "get" the concept of trick-or-treating, won't eat candy, and is not very into dressing up. My husband and I aren't huge Halloween fans either, so we don't miss it.

The last two years she celebrated Halloween with her class at school with costumes and parties. In Pre-k she was mixed in with more typically developing kids who were speech delayed. The "typical" kids loved Halloween and were thrilled to dress up and have a party. The couple of autistic kids just kind of went along with it.

One problem with dressing Bridget up is that she won't tolerate the cheap polyester fabric that most Halloween costumes are made of. Last year, I solved that problem by getting her a ballerina leotard and slippers in the real kids clothing section at Target. She loved being a ballerina and pretending to dance during the festivities at school. For a little while. But then she was done.

I was surprised to hear from the teacher that this year, with Bridget in a class with all autistic students, that they wouldn't try to celebrate Halloween. But when she explained why it made total sense. She told me that her first year teaching an autism class they had tried to do a party for the kids by ordering pizza for lunch. When they were done with the pizza, the kids wanted to go to the cafeteria for lunch – because that is what they always do. It was their routine. Autistic kids thrive on routine. Why take that away from them for a holiday that is based on playing pretend that they won't get excited about?

So call our family Halloween grinches if you want, but we'll be just having a normal day on Friday. Happy Halloween to everyone else though!