Recently I have begun teaching martial arts to a group of teenagers. One is autistic (I will call him John although this is not his real name) and so, I am told, accounts for his disruptive and disobedient behaviour, his inability to control himself, his apparent mood-swings and his rudeness. John is also aggressive (an outlet, I suspect, for frustration and annoyance within himself) as well as being a liability to the group and others as he has already used some of the moves I have taught him outside of the class.

Needless to say I have already excluded John from the class!

John is not ‘unteachable’. He is not a monster but, in my experience, a nice young man and rather quiet when I talk to him one-to-one. It is just that he needs to be taught by me in a small group where everyone is autistic. Better still he needs to be taught by me on a one-to-one basis where his parents and/or a social worker are present. Read More→