Playground Proofing Children with Asperger's Syndrome

If your child is ready to head on out to school, you know that this is a mixed blessing. On the one hand, your child is ready and willing to embrace new challenges, but on the other hand you dread the potential for problems on the playground. While this is the worry for any parent, those parenting a child with Asperger’s Syndrome have amplified concerns.

Playground proofing children with Asperger’s Syndrome is a requirement to ensure that all will go well during peer interactions and it also serves to help your child understand that outside the protective environment of the home the rules of conduct are a bit different. The odds are good that your child wants to make friends with other children, but more than likely the condition she was diagnosed with will make it harder.

Adding to the mix are children who most likely have never actually been exposed to a child with Asperger’s Syndrome and therefore may be openly curious or antagonistic to your child whom they perceive to be different. It is a sad testament to the times, but truth be told, being different has always been a big no-no for integration into any clique. Although you cannot completely avoid negative interactions, there are some steps you can take for minimizing the negative impact.

First and foremost, unless your child has well established friendships and peer relationships in your community, enroll your child in a school that has a high staff to student ration, even if the school is located across town. Since existing relationships are not a consideration, you are doing your child a favor by sending her into a supportive and well supervised environment.

Role-play potentially bullying behaviors your child may encounter. Children with Asperger’s Syndrome are the favorite kinds of kids to pick on for bullies, simply because they are very literal and children who bully love to play your child and get laughs out of onlookers by making a fool out of your child. This sounds heartless, but then bullying is not the kind of behavior that displays a lot of heart in the first place. Help your child to know what it might face by role playing at home how to act should she find herself the focal point of attention by another child who is making peers laugh.

Moreover, alerting your child to the necessity to tell you and also a playground supervisor what is happening, especially when they are threatened or told not to tell anyone, is a crucial portion of playground proofing your child. Do not assume that your child will automatically tell. At the same time, do not believe that your child will be under constant supervision of a playground teacher or supervisor. There is a good chance that your youngster may spend some time only partially supervised, and it is up to you to ensure that she knows what kind of conduct warrants alerting grownups.

With the right kind of preparation, Asperger’s Syndrome does not have set up your child for being bullied, taken advantage of, or remaining the odd kid out. Instead, she does have the ability to make friends and enjoy peer interactions, just like other kids her age.