Giggle Friends

I am the assistant teacher for a special needs class called Giggle Friends. It is a class for motor skill development through play and gymnastics. We have six kids in our class right now and all are autistic. They are all under the age of five. Their autism ranges on the spectrum. This is the first time I have worked with autistic children and it affected me deeply.
The parents come into the gym with their child to help. We have much free play time on the equipment along with some structured activities. We ring bells, sing songs, play with the parachute, balls, bubbles and introduce basic gymnastics skills. We also have a "Now-Then" picture board to help the kids follow the structure of the class.
Some of the kids are non-verbal, have sensory issues, and are over stimulated easily. Melt downs are frequent. One non-verbal child yells the whole time and we don't know why. He is inconsolable. One child has to have her hand held the entire time because she continually runs herself into the glass wall. One child screams if anyone, sometimes even mom, touches her. Its a strange atmosphere. But, in the midst of the chaos, there are sudden smiles too. Swinging on the rings with Dad brings laughter, hanging on the bar causes squeals of delight and music creates freedom to dance.
I see parent's faces etched with exhaustion and incredible love for their children. I admire and applaud them. I see that they are happy to have a safe place for their kids to be accepted and free from judgement. I see comrade with other parents who understand everything and there is no need to explain. I feel that I am a part of giving these families a place to be free from the pressures they face day after day.
After class was over I had to take a break alone and cry. I was overwhelmed with emotion. I didn't feel sorry for these parents and children. I felt such admiration for the parent's courage, stamina, patience and love. I felt anger that there are not more programs and opportunities for their children. I felt compassion and empathy. I also felt fear for my friend's children and even my future child because we don't really know what causes autism. So many thoughts and emotions only tears could express. I couldn't make sense of all of them, but I did realize that I want to be a part of making a difference for these families, even if its only an hour gymnastics class once a week.
If we all gave, in our own way, what kind of impact could we make?