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Relationships

 

(You can find the full text of the 3LPlace Curriculum section on Relationships here.)

Relationships are the connective tissues that bind us to our world.  We learn everything we know as human beings through relationship to our physical world and social world.  In this module we will focus on relationships in our social world. Through our relationships with people we are able to engage with the world, widen our possibilities, practice setting healthy boundaries, and stretch our perspectives.

Relationships can challenge us to develop our own personal communication styles, understand more deeply the differences and similarities between others and ourselves, and provide us with a bridge to independence and areas of personal development. They can be sources of comfort, safety, validation, insight, creativity, and learning. They can also push our buttons, try our patience, force us to compromise, and cause us to question ourselves in uncomfortable ways.

Relationships can be complicated and challenging for anyone.  For individuals with regulation, communication, and social engagement challenges, forming and maintaining relationships may be much more complicated.  For this reason, it is essential that individuals with ASD and other developmental disabilities have sufficient experience, facilitation, and reflection when working on these skills. Differences in an individual’s sensitivity to touch come into sharper focus when decisions about intimacy arise.  Challenges in interpreting social cues can pose real barriers understanding the nuances that can accompany dating.

The material in this section outlines what to cover when helping individuals grasp the essentials of relationships.  And happily, we are able to point to a number of other exceptional resources developed for use in this area.

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3LPlace Curriculum Wiki