We always tell our children to be themselves. However, if your child is a preteen with autism, being themselves can be considered “wrong,” which can be confusing to them.
Being a preteen isn’t easy, and even after your child graduates from their developmental therapies, you should still help them with their behavioral, social, and communication skills. Taking the time to understand them, research their interests, and be with your child could mean more than you know. Even as preteens, they need our guidance and support on some things. To be that support system, here are some activities to do with your preteen with autism.
The Importance of Encouraging Your Preteen
When your child was younger, they were probably in applied behavioral analysis (ABA) therapy. Helping your child with socializing and improving their self-confidence is part of how ABA therapy works to help them overcome certain developmental challenges. However, as their parent, you should continue to encourage your child to work on these same skills after they finish therapy to ensure they can live independently.
Social activities allow your preteen to:
- Learn new recreational skills like sports, dancing, and playing an instrument
- Develop the confidence to try new things
- Develop new interests
- Create new and lasting friendships
- Learn accepted social behaviors
How To Choose the Best Activities
To find the best activity for your child, start by talking to them about their interests and what they want to try. While talking, you and your child can think of the following:
- New activities your child can learn
- Activities your child can individually
- Activities you both can do
- Planned events, such as school gatherings
Different Activities To Try With Your Preteen
Engaging with your preteen can seem like a lost cause, especially when there’s a new trend or interest every week. However, there are always a few simple activities you can do with your child that are fun, engaging, and stimulating. Below are three activities that you and your preteen with autism can do together.
Listen to Music Together
An activity you can do with your preteen with autism is relaxing and listening to some music. Music can be therapeutic, helping those with autism develop language and speech abilities. Whether your child is verbal or non-verbal, music can help improve your preteen’s mood and encourage positive changes in their behavior.
Solve a Puzzle Together
A puzzle brings different parts together to create one big picture. In a way, we’re like puzzles, and what better way to celebrate this than by putting one together? Puzzles also help enhance cognitive abilities and communication skills, which is an excellent tool for engaging with preteens.
Go on a Camping Adventure
If your preteen loves the outdoors, going on a camping adventure is a great way to learn new skills and use older ones! Whether you decide to camp with friends, family, or just each other, your child can experience sitting underneath the stars and putting all their knowledge to use. If camping at a campsite is uncomfortable for your child, try camping in your backyard instead.
