Ok, so this is more of a request for advice on how to communicate more literally to my 12 year old with Asperger's traits (but not diagnosed as of yet - psychologist wants to do further testing, exploring first). How do you train yourself to communicate in a way that lessens frustrations for both me and my kiddo?
Secondly, is it possible to teach a child who is so literal to learn to extrapolate out to more generalized conclusions.
Here's an example from last night:
Me, calling upstairs to the 12-year-old: Can you please check your brother's room and all around upstairs to see if he has any plates or cups or anything that needs to go in the dishwasher. Bring them down if there are.
Him: Nope. He doesn't have anything upstairs.
Me: There HAS to be dishes up there. There are only two bowls in the entire kitchen.
Him: Oh. Well, I have a bunch of bowls up here from when I had popcorn with my friends.
Me: Well, then, bring them down.
Him: Oh. Ok. I can do that.
It never occurred to him that if there were dishes, bring them down. He latched onto the "if your brother has dishes" and never went beyond that. While it can be humorous, it is also really frustrating for his teachers, for me, etc., and yet I know it is just the way he thinks. If anyone has advice or suggestions, I'm all ears. Ok, eyes.
