The importance of self-advocacy is because if you have any disability, you have to ask for any accommodations that are appropriate or available for the job that you are applying for. For example, some jobs may require you to be in meetings that you may not have the social skills to speak on your behalf on the subject at hand. An accommodation may be that you have verbal or hand queues to help you get involved in the conversation. An accommodation should be reasonable though. You shouldn't ask to be not be involved in the meeting at all and just be doing your work instead of being in an important social setting.
I am glad to be back at school because the break really made me look at school at a different angle. This school is supposed to help kids on the spectrum and I always thought that they were too strict. After the break though, the rules were meant to be helpful, not oppressing.
The first semester was a long and winding road. I had some rough moments to start off with but as the first half went along, I got better at controlling my behavior and managing my emotions. It made my reputation a lot better and also made me better to be around. What I am looking forward to this school year is the off-campus internships we are doing for this program. I also am excited for the Desert Museum trip in early February. It looks like a fun ride through the rest of the second semester. I cannot wait for it! During my break, I did not travel much but I had a great Christmas and fun time with my older brother, who was down from Mesa for part of the break. For Christmas, I got an original GameCube and expansion for one of my favorite card games, Dominion. One of my older brother’s friends from grade school came to our house to visit my brother and our family from South Carolina (he is in the Navy). My older brother, his friend and I embarrassingly lost to an easy computer in Mario Party. I had a great break and I cannot wait for this semester and the rest of my school years here at Intermountain Academy. |