The excitement, wildness and splendor that is the CLE Summer Exploration Program took place once again this year from June 25th to July 14th. There is nothing quite like this program, even year to year it’s so very different and unique with each fabulous group of 30 or so neurodiverse young adults.
By Scott Allen, Psy.D., Director of Psychological Services, CLE Austin As a kid [...]
The summer months bring fresh opportunities for engaging with the community, exploring the outdoors, and expanding social experiences. Unfortunately, the summer heat can also serve as a detour for getting outside. Rather than letting the heat be a barrier, use the heat as a tool to promote engaging in extraordinary activities.
In this article I would like to give a window to the nature of my relationships as a neurodiverse young adult. I think my relationships are one of my biggest accomplishments at CLE.
Sometimes even mentioning the word “Socialize” can cause stress and discomfort for students. Other students become energized and excited upon hearing the same word. Here at CLE Fort Lauderdale, we include many social engagement opportunities for our students in hopes of helping them navigate all different types of relationships within various situations.
Group outings can be intimidating, especially when you’re new to CLE and don’t know many people yet. We do try to involve students in planning the outings and finding things that will be interesting and fun. This helps to make the hard work of understanding group dynamics and communicating collaboratively more enjoyable.
The general public has significantly less understanding of how disabilities impact people. No matter how many times you mention it, or talk about it, they may never get it. They may be able to understand a little bit or have a surface-level knowledge or understanding about disabilities, but they never really know how it affects people every day.
Have you been part of a conversation that feels as if you and the other participant are having two separate conversations? Most of us can answer yes to that question. If the conversation is covering a difficult subject, this creates a whole other can of worms to think about. So how can we talk about difficult subjects with more ease?
What happens if you leave an anonymous box in the common room of your local CLE center for a month and ask students to share topics they do not feel comfortable bringing up in person? If you’re like me, you might expect a few funny musings or adolescent jokes or possibly just a little bit of lint and maybe some random crumbs. You might be surprised at just how revealing your students can be.
Conflict, unfortunately, is an inescapable facet of life. Thankfully, how one approaches and deals with conflict is wholly up to the individual. And while we cannot always be there for our students when they come up against the challenges of everyday life, we can arm them with one of the greatest tools education has to offer.
