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This is a good question. I'm curious to know if anyone has tried martial arts with their autistic child. My son is a very active 4yr old… read more

We haven't had success, but we've been wanting to try again & your list of successful sports is a good place to start. Thanks… read more

Hi there, my son, Kai, has really enjoyed swimming as a physical sport, and has even taken some courses towards lifeguarding (he is currently… read more

My daughter Shannon has been skiing for 7 years she started when she was a little over 4 years old she does not have any coordination issues… read more

Forget team sports. Our kids spealize in many other activites where they can be successful in their own right. Team sports are over-rated. I… read more

I do agree that some kids and parents don't do well in team sports but my daughter loved deck hockey and it was a team that had other… read more

Boys tend to gang up on the weak link. My son will probably be a professional musician. He is so focused on his guitar I can hardly get him… read more

Horseback riding is another good option, though it can be spendy.

my son does karate as well helps him learn to focus let out aggression as well as feel like he can defend himself and work on balance and… read more

Ryan loves swimming, and is obsessive about swimming everyday. The coach at Islamorada said he could be competing on a team by next year if I… read more

That is how my Shannon felt about hockey as long as she defended well she was happy It was a matter of what they each did even though it is a… read more

My son has been doing tae kwon do for a couple of years now. He wasn't crazy about it, but now that he is breaking boards and stuff, he… read more

My daughter loved karate as long as it was just the routines and not the sparring. She is awesome at horseback riding even though she has only… read more

Against most odds my 12 year old son is in 6th grade and asked to play tackle football on a league. Before he always said he hated football so… read more

That's awesome! My son likes karate and loves swimming. I wouldn't say he is wildly successful at them, but he enjoys them. He did… read more

My daughter has participated in bowling and track and field in the special olympics and gets a kick out of the gold medals (and others) she… read more

My son races BMX also! It is a great sport for him and he loves it.

Don't totally discount team sports! My daughter plays sports with Special Olympics Unified Sports. This is a branch of Special Olympics… read more

About two years ago we tried soccer for our daughter and it wasn't quite what we expected. She wants desperately to be a part of this… read more

The school Monika was in, would not allow her to be in extra curricular activities they said her disability prevented it.

fencing if they can handle the noise-literally live-action chess- (my 5yr old asked for a chess set for christmas & his 17yr old brother… read more

No. He wants to be in soccer but he can't handle it when he is accidentally bumped, or gets hit by the ball unexpectedly. He also gets… read more

Someone mentioned earlier about horseback riding. I was wondering how common this "animal bond" thing is with these unique kiddos. I… read more

Hi @LisaKeckMartin. Hippotherapy (horseback with a therapist)is suppossed to be an excellent program for Autistic children (especially… read more

That is what I am doing with Monika, it was kind of weird, because I had the directions to the place in my hand,when I was driving, but I… read more

Bornbeth... thank you for your comment. I love watching Hope with animals. It's like she possesses some kind of energy with them and… read more

Kaykayjo... I got cold chills reading your comment. Isn't it beautiful when things like that happen?! :)

My daughter is 11 and the only activity we have tried with her and had success is ballet. You should see her up on that stage! She absolutely… read more

Lisa I wanted someone to work one on one with Monika for years,I didn't find out she had High Functioning Autism until she was 13?… read more

Our daughter is 23 and has been horseback riding for a bunch of years now. She really looks forward to it and it has given her a lot of… read more

And I just remembered she has started walking in 5K runs/walks. She likes this as it gets her out and she walks with one of her therapists.

My son played soccer this past Fall through our local AYSO. Around here at least, they have a VIP team for special needs kids. He will be… read more

Our daughter has been taking Karate for 2 years now and it has changed her in so many ways. First it is exercise, and it gives her confidence.… read more

My son took Tae Kwon Do for 4 years, from age 3 on and was in a "regular" class. He is taking a break to try other interests but… read more

Austin has done Baseball, Basketball, Football, Soccer, Swimming, and Water Polo. He just figured out how to catch a baseball last year.… read more

Nick likes fencing.

@debbiwebbie Jourdonmom has her son in Tae Kwan Do on the movie Extremely Loud and Incredibly close the boy is in some form of martial arts… read more

SHould be a period between Tae Kwon DO and ON the movie- sorry!

We have Jacob taking swimming lessons. He's getting the hang of it and LOVES being in the water. I've been THRILLED with the… read more

When my son was young sports were too sensory confusing with too much input - too overwhelming.
We found a special needs baseball team and it… read more

@LisaKeckHughes Horse back riding is awesome for all of people, Autism or other or just stressed out.. I din know one thing about taking care… read more

My son is 9, will be 10 in July and I am wondering what kind of activities he might enjoy as well. I know he LOVES swimming and is a natural… read more

Yes, my 9 year old loves karate and is about to get his junior black belt. I think it has helped his balance and self confidence.

Praymehome... thank you so much for the beautiful story. I'm a retired medical transcriptionist and love to type, so I'm famous for… read more

My daughter is 10 and is a brown belt in karate. Team sports were never her thing, so it is nice to see her succeed in her own right. She does… read more

@LisaKeckHughes Thank you for your comment! I have not had my Son "medically" diagnosed yet, I am so dreading all the test they will… read more

I think team sports can be a problem at times. Because of the bad sportsmanship. It depends on how the parents are in team sports and how they… read more

My oldest with Autism is an artist and also wants to go into the ministry but he did Letter in wrestling up to his Senior year and decided he… read more

I was hesitant at first to get my son who is 5 into sports. He was diagnosed with Autism at the age of 2. A great program called E Soccer came… read more

We have found the 'team' sports where you compete as an individual have been the best of both worlds. Swimming was are first attempt… read more

It's not a sport, but my step-son (14 yo Aspie) has done really well with school drama. He had a starring role in the junior high… read more

We have an after school program that you pay $25.00 and any child can go. Last year I didn't do it because the spec ed was quick to say… read more

Oh and we also put them in swimming on the weekends. Good teachers.

My son also loves to ride his bike... when he is having an off day it scares me though. Doesn't want to put helmet on..socks... but he… read more

reading your post reminded me... he loves lazer tag.. I have to get him a set.

DEfinately!!!Every child should be given as many opportunities possible!!!

Our aspie, 17 yr old daughter plays golf and had been doing taekwondo. She had too many activities and had to stop taekwondo, but wants to… read more

Our son with Asperger's loves gymnastics. He was on a competitive team last year. This year we're having issues with the coach (his… read more

I have found it is all about the coach...if they understand how to deal with different kids, find what motivates/works for each...then it has… read more

My son loves baseball. He got pretty good at it. His knees started to hurt so he is taking a year or two off. He usually doesn't consider… read more

We have been highly successful with Boy Scouting. James (14) is in a special needs unit that is comprised of boys with all kinds of… read more

They are amazing at the things they take interest in. For my son its origami and video games. He is also quite the artist...he can duplicate… read more

My daughter does Shorin Karate and loves it. She has been doing this for a few years and has finally started sparing. The focus and discipline… read more

My daughter is in gymnastics and LOVES it! It helps with her sensory input and ADHD. It wears her out!

LOVE THIS CONVERSATION!!! Thank You ALL. Jake just told us that he wants to play T-Ball. WOW. We were so excited that we hopped online to find… read more

My son is only 4 and was just identified as having ASD 4 months ago. But I have been taking him to Pee Wee Soccer for kids 4-7 years old.… read more

Matthew plays soccer during the summer months. We get him involved because it helps w/his social skills, or rather it's supposed to. He… read more

swimming

I have had great luck in using sports for structured experiential learning. It's can be tricky and you need the right coach etc. Some… read more

Alex plays soccer on the "I believe" foundation team sponsored by belefonte pediatric rehab, its redisgned to fit autistic chilren.… read more

and.... swim!

He also loves loves to skate!

CJ is 5 and we have enrolled him in a gymnastics class...he loves the extra input and we love that he is getting great social interactions… read more

My ds loves to skate too.. he is learning... also bowling. He is in the after school activities right now it is soccer. He doesn't like… read more

Our 8 year old daughter loves her dance class-thankfully the dance studio near us has an "adaptive" dance class that are very… read more

The only things my son will do is stuff i make him do. He took swimming classes for at least three years. He has been taking Tae Kwon do for… read more

Special Olympics works for my son. Fitness, social and self-confidence. They have a variety of sports, superb coaches and mom (me) gets to… read more

i will get him to go to the pool swim just so his can play. that the only thing i can get him to do if i push it to much about sport him just… read more

We have had all three of our kids in martial arts my oldest Peter enjoyed it and it really helped with his coordination but then he kinds got… read more

from my story:
Karate. Not "after school" karate, this is not always run by the best disciplined instructors. And, I'm not… read more

We are applying for a service dog through Canine Companions for Independence. If you qualify, the dogs are free. There is up to a 2 year… read more

My 5 yr old competes in kids rodeos every summer and other than that rides horses very frequently. He recently just began the AAU wrestling… read more

I am a retired school psychologist. In my opinion, you need to ask for an evaluation to consider possible special education categories for… read more

im 17 autistic and im professionaly sponserod by dk bmx bikes im glad parents like you are giving your childern the chance to enjoy bmx i… read more

try dance...even with poor coordination, kids can learn to just move to the music and have fun. My son also loves pottery and ceramics.

My son plays basketball on his school team, and little league baseball. I have always tried to keep him involved and team sports are a great… read more

Our 8 year old son takes private gymnastics classes, because he's too wild to join a class. He's getting a lot more coordinated and… read more