It is Friday evening, around 7:30.
Here is just a little blog about all the awesome stuff that has happened just today and has me smiling from ear to ear.
LIST TIME!
1. Technically this happened yesterday, but Brad liked the CDs I burned him of The Wonder Years and Hit the Lights and we talked about attending a Fall Out Boy concert together. ^-^ Bonding over music.
2. My practicum shift this morning was AWESOME. Normally I work 8:30-10:30, except Wednesday because of my pre-student teaching, but on Fridays I make up that shift by staying until 12:30. Woof, right? It's actually not so bad. Those 4 hours FLY by! Anyway, long story short--my first student reached the next phase of all of his procedures (what a smart cookie!), he kept wanting hugs and when I laughed like his Elmo toy and tickled him I almost died his giggle was so cute. Transitions went really well too. Usually he cries and throws himself on the floor and it takes forever to entice him to the booth. Not today. He cried once the entire morning and it was only because he smashed his hand turning a toy over. My second student was relatively off task, as he is wont to do, but he didn't hit or spit. My third student was super sweet and giggly and I tried to save him from getting hit by another student and he kissed my hand when it came near his face. I got in my car after the shift with my cheeks almost over my eyes I was smiling so big!
3. Speaking of the practicum, Dr. Malott showed up today to check out how things were going. That might not mean much to you, but he is the head of the psychology department at Western, he's written numerous books, and he opened the other autism center in the area. I'm terribly inspired by this man and I'm starstruck every time I see him. (Sidenote: I was in the Wood Hall--the psych building on campus--waiting for a class and he walked by and smiled and nodded at me like he knew who I was and I also passed out).
4. I'm sort of getting my thesis together. Tracy DeMars, my Educational Psychology professor has agreed to be my thesis committee chair and Dr. Dan Morgan, the head of the Special Education and Literary Studies program here at Western has expressed interest in joining the committee. That means I'm two steps away from actually declaring my thesis! Plus I have two super intelligent minds on my side who are both interested in learning from this experience as well as helping me!
Here's what I have no far:
Raising and educating
children with autism, aiding them in developing more high functioning social
and life skills.
Ø
Imitation
Ø
Punishers/Reinforcers
Ø
Differences between normally functioning
children and children with autism in this respect
ü
Temperaments
ü
Educational aid
6. Lastly...as we speak (as I'm typing this) my friend Aaron from Indiana is coming up to meet me. He should be here any minute! This is the first time I will ever be meeting him, since we met on (embarrassing) a Harry Potter roleplaying website seven years ago and have been friends ever since. Don't worry! We've skyped and everything. I even met his mother over skype. He's 18 and pretty cool, even though he's a kid (:
Also--family and loved ones! Don't fret. Rena will be here this weekend with me, as will two of her girlfriends from back home, her brother, and her brother's best friend. So this has been properly figured out and I'm safe!
Well, that's it. Off to my awesome weekend!
Love you all!
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