dear Angie
i am really keen to see how you will handle this child and i am sure there wil be something for me to learn from you as well.
. i am not trying to share any relevant suggestions but I would like to share my little experience with a kid.
i had a 14 year old kid who had multiple situations and he had fits and that has caused many other issues in his processing and that caused many other behavioral issues. he was under medication as well. i have never handled such a kid but i took it as a challenge. i read about the diagnosis and i knew what i was expecting and i carefully i updated my records about his behavior as he came to see me on a weekly basis. i was very clear with his parents expectations and i knew it was within my limits.
my biggest task was Rapport and thats was the number one challenge i had. i knew his likes. he loved singing. i kept my sound set up already and i knew he likes Imagine by John Lennon. i watched the way he was singing and then i also sang.
he said to his mother that he wanted to see me alone form the thrid week. i was over the moon. i did detailed analyses with his parents and i knew his strengths. i work on his strengths rather than his weaknesess. i went to his concerts and took pictures and i shared the detailed power in him. i even gave him a standing ovation when others were seated casue he did a god job on stage.
he was addicted to a certain game and one day he jumped 37 times when he lost the game and that 37 was in that game where they were doing some shooting .. he agreed to let go the gaming. i simply changed those drivers by switching with animal hunting casue he hated that. and after one week, when i asked about the gaming, he said i am not interested in that any more and now i am more in to studies.
Today he rides the bicycles on a daily basis, he sings , he started learning the classical guitae, he agreed to get an assistant teachers support to improve in subjects. he is honest with him than before, and he is a changed guy in three months.
so my suggestions for you is. read and know your expectations/ find out the strengths he got/ empower his strengths to build trust/ believe in your self/ ask the parents their expectations/ see if those within your limits, accpet them and work on them and you can see the progress/
there are some thing that we need to find and the creation will guide you and these kids are there for us to find taht and i am sure you will do and please share with me as well
when you find the answers please share with me as well.