Student Portfolio
Kim's Intro Page
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Kim is a unique child. She has many, many skills which may not be apparent when you first meet her.
Kimberly, now a teenager, was diagnosed with autism
at age six. She has pretty fragmented skills, which means, she can learn to do
it IF she wants to, but more importantly, she needs to have all the pieces of
information to make it meaningful for her. For instance… dinosaurs and all
their names… the correct names of all the items she likes in the grocery store…
the sounds of nearly all animals… the names of the bones in your body… she has
an excellent vocabulary... But if it doesn't interest her and it doesn't connect
with some information she already has, well, you might as well forget it. I've
seen her read phrases, but when asked to repeat them, she's unable to.
'Tomorrow' is getting easier for her, but the concept of 'next week' is still
hard for her.
She's come a long, long way from the little girl who literally climbed up your
leg at the sound of a mixer, sweeper, fire alarm or siren, and she no longer
hides under the table when things get hectic. She interacts with other kids and
goes to all her classes by herself.
Kim loves animals. She has a cockatiel, a German Shepherd, three llamas of her own, which she shows and some cats.
She used to love to play with hand puppets, and you would find yourself having a
conversation with her puppet, rather than Kim, if you weren't careful. We've
tried very hard to do away with the puppets and replace them with more
appropriate communication, but it used to be the only way you could communicate
with her and she will still revert to it if she is under a lot of stress.
Kim has a younger sister, Krystal, who is blind. It makes it a bit difficult as far as appropriate peer interaction goes since there are some things Krystal cannot do with Kim.
Right now, Kim's biggest problem is being a teenager and the attitude that seems to go along with it. Mom and Dad can deal with the autism, but this teenage thing can be a bit difficult. Her mental ability may be lower than her chronological age, but her attitude is pure fifteen year old.
Author's note: Kim is 18 now and will be graduating with her class this year - 2004