Do sports and autism mix? Jack tried out regular team sports this summer and we observed many things about the drawbacks and benefits of playing on a team.
Things We Love: BOP IT
>>I’ve wanted to start a new segment called “Things We Love” to share items that have resonated with Jack or help us with him. Being new to blogging, you better believe I am NOT endorsed by any product; this is just stuff we’ve found on our own. The links provided are affiliate links to Amazon.<<
Bop It is an awesome car trip toy–for anyone!
Any time we find something that holds Jack’s attention that is NOT a screen, it is valuable. I picked up a Bop It game at a garage sale many years ago. It’s one of those games that tells you an action to do and you have to remember what that means and then react quickly.
My kids love it. It’s a great car toy that they pass around the backseat when we’re on a trip. Being a garage sale find, when we got it there was already an impressive high score on it of maybe 80-something. We all would try to beat the stranger’s best score. And then Jack tried it.
Instant Bop It Master.
It’s as if Jack has another sense just for Bop It. He rides in the car with his eyes looking out the window and his hands working vigorously on following its directions. Check out his skills:
His high score so far? 218. I get maybe 22.
My Eye Contact “Revelation”
I’ve watched this video several times and it’s gotten me pondering about the way he plays. A lot of the time, he doesn’t look at the game. When I play, all I do is look. I’ve been thinking about a possible connection between this and the common issues that those on the autism spectrum have with looking at people. Eye contact. A lot of them avoid eye contact, and it makes it seem like they aren’t listening. But some say that not looking may help them to pay extra close attention. I don’t know that this Bop It game just revealed any secret in their universe, but it sure is an interesting illustration of it.
Just for fun, I did a quick google search on “autism bop it” and saw that this combination came up on several websites! The official Autism Speaks site even lists Bop It as a recommended toy for children with autism. Anyone needing a gift idea?
As I mentioned in our vacation post, Jack also loves the game Simon. He excels at this similar, fast-paced game. I’m curious about other kids on the spectrum. Are they whizzes at quick reaction games too?? Do they make eye contact with their activities? Don’t know? Try one out—maybe, like Jack, a game like Bop It is your kid’s next amazing talent!
UPDATE: For more discussion on the topic of eye contact, see my more recent post with tips and thoughts on how we help Jack to look at us.
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That game is so annoying! But glad that he loves it and is so good at it!
Oh yes it is! You endure what you have to 🙂 Yet it’s pretty fun when I sit down with it, too.
Such an interesting insight, Amy. He really is paying perfect attention to the game, without looking. Is “make eye contact” a skill that Jack and/or autistic kids in general “supposed” to work toward? Is your thought that maybe it shouldn’t be, necessarily?
Very interesting question. We have always worked on eye contact (with therapists, at school, and at home) with Jack and he has picked up on it quite well. I LOVE looking into his eyes. It seems to me that yes it is a skill that is widely worked on between autistic people and therapists or teachers. I’ve thought it was quite important to drill Jack on. However, my thoughts might be changing as I learn more about how spectrum brains might work. And everyone is different–Jack is catching on to it, but it doesn’t mean others are lesser because they don’t make eye contact.
That is amazing talent! He’s not even looking! Wow he has great listening skills. Great insight on the eye contact. Some people do listen better when they aren’t looking. Thank you for these great posts and your hard work.
Thanks for reading Janell!
218?!? What a record!! That is amazing! And that is so interesting that he so rarely looks at the actual bop-it. Really gets me thinking. I’m so sorry it took so long to find that Simon game. I hope it still works and that he hasn’t lost interest in it.
No problem! We were fine without it–it was probably good to have a break from it because now it’s like we have a new toy. It works fine, we were playing it this morning while waiting for carpool.