Joining a team sport is a huge step for a child with autism, let alone one just in the second grade. Curtis was never more than lukewarm on the idea, but knowing he had a couple of friends who would be playing basketball helped to make him feel better about joining the team. He was at least curious and that was a start.

As his parents, Laura and I weighed potential pros and cons and figured it was worth a shot. Nothing teaches like experience, and it had been some time since we had tried something like this. Anyway, pictured is the view Curtis had for most of his first basketball practice last Wednesday.

The practice started off great. Curtis fit right in during warmups, sinking a good percentage of his baskets, counting them, and playing among friends. However, the wheels came off rather quickly when warm-ups were done and the kids were to sit in a circle at half court to discuss the season, the rules, team name, etc. Curtis just wanted to shoot baskets. The way he plays basketball with his dad. When I put the ball he was using aside so his playing wouldn't distract the team, he followed me into the supply closet and watched much of the practice from there with me and his mom.

The first practice proved to be an enormous challenge and there were a number of factors working against its success. These included the fact that this was an out of the norm after school activity, bright gym lights, multiple bouncing balls, new rules, expectations of team work, the gym is hot, all leading to sensory overload for the little man. He was clearly overwhelmed by the situation, never really understanding why he couldn't just stand under the hoop and shoot the whole time. He just wanted to go home. His mom took him out in the hall for breaks but insisted we stay for the entire practice, even if it was just so Curtis could watch his friends play and get a sense of how these practices would go. He stayed the whole time, and for day one, that was good enough.

The plan at this point is to keep going every week and try to expand his participation slowly. He has another practice on Wednesday, and the goal will be to get him to participate in at least one drill or meeting and again stay for the whole practice. We plan to take it slow, and not make Curtis do anything he isn't comfortable doing, at the same time anticipating that his own curiosity and drive will bring him to want to participate more as the season develops. My initial thought was that he simply isn't ready for this but his mom reminded me that swimming started much the same way. It began with hesitancy, confusion, and some of the outright defiance we've come to know so well as parents of an autistic child. But now he is doing laps in a pool, and maybe soon he'll be passing a ball to a teammate.

The fact that he is willing to give the basketball team a shot is a success on its own. And hopefully as he continues to go to these practices, the overwhelming feeling he felt that first week will subside and he'll eventually walk away from one of these practices saying "that wasn't such a big deal". Regardless of what happens at his second practice tomorrow, he'll get hugs from his parents when its done and we'll make sure he knows we're proud of him.

Greg, Dad