Words & Phrases 词汇与词组 - For Children's Day, focus on autism

For many kids, Children's Day is a joyous time to go out and have fun. But there is a group often excluded from the festivities: children with autism.

 

Currently there are more than 1 million autistic children in China, but few people are aware of what this disorder is, let alone how children with autism behave.

 

At a conference in Shanghai to help children with autism held earlier this March, specialists agree that early intervention and a basic lack of understanding of those children are the biggest boundaries facing this disorder. 

 

Organizations and outreach

 

Every Thursday, a skating center in Haidian district, Beijing provides free skating for children with autism. Each child is accompanied by one or two volunteers, who will chat and play with them.

 

A woman surnamed Zhang, a mother of a 12-year-old autistic boy, said she learned about the skating rink in an online forum. Upon coming here, her son became happy at the prospect of skating and meeting friends.

 

"He is excited every Wednesday night," Zhang said.

 

Huang Tiantian, a college student, is a volunteer. "You should be sincere, because they'll return the same feeling. They skate with you and talk to you, all in a genuine manner," she said.

 

This skating center for autistic children is owned by a man surnamed Fu, also a manager of a Beijing-based sports company. He set up a foundation for autistic children in hopes of providing a place for them to communicate and do sports.

 

Fu started this rink two years ago in Shanghai. Now five more cities, including Beijing, Chengdu, and Foshan, offer the same activity.

 

Forty-two-year-old Hu Anfen is a mother of an autistic child. She also runs a training center for autistic children in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province.

 

Hu is busy preparing Children's Day for the 20 or so autistic children in her center. She said this year she hope some volunteers will attend. As a non-profit entity, the center is facing financial difficulties. Hu, however, remains optimistic.

 

Aside from organizations that hold activities for autistic children, other outreach and communication about autism is minimal, though there have been films about this special group.

 

Barry Levinson's Rain Man, starring Tom Cruise, is one of the earlier films that focuses on autism. Last year, Chinese actor Jet Li participated in the film Ocean Heaven, which explores the love between parents and autistic children.

 

Early this month, a film called Son of the Stars aired in China. The film documented the life of a migrant woman and her autistic child, winning two awards at this year's Beijing College Student Film Festival.

 

Yibie Ruyu, a short film about the same group of children, is currently shooting in Jiling Province. The actress is a mother of an autistic child. These films, however, have not gained much public attention.

 

Understanding autism

 

Autism is one of the three disorders in the autism spectrum. There are no medical tests to diagnose autism. It was first officially labeled in 1943, and incidents of autism continue to increase worldwide.

 

Although China reported the first case of autism in 1982, many people remain unaware of the disorder and its symptoms.

 

Children with autism often exhibit "bad" social communication behaviors, such as screaming in public, whacking a peer, or suddenly bolting from the room. Few autistic children intentionally misbehave.

 

Currently, there is no cure for autism. Cece McCarton, director of the McCarton Center for Developmental Pediatrics in New York City told The New York Times that, "despite all the hype, we don't know what causes autism."

 

Autistic children can learn skills and improve their behavior, but they will remain autistic. Rebecca Landa, director of Autism and Related Disorders at the Kennedy Krieger Institute in Baltimore said in the The New York Times that "we need to equip kids with ways to make sense of the world so that they can open more doors by themselves. The sooner we can do that, the more the child will be able to draw to himself the kinds of learning experiences that will enhance his development."

 

Family support

 

Families with autistic children are under a great deal of stress from friends and society. Parents with autistic children often experience depression and desperation.

 

In the movie Ocean Heaven, the single father with terminal cancer asks his autistic son, "If I pass away, will you miss me?"

 

Zhang Minyan, a mother of an autistic boy, organizes a group for parents of autistic children. "I often talk with young parents. We have to come to terms with the facts, and accept our children, which may make the situation better."

 

Zhang has a 19-year-old son who was diagnosed with autism years ago.

 

"When he was a little boy, he grabbed a lady's hair. I wanted to explain, but the lady slapped me before I could. This happened more than 10 years ago, when people knew little about the disorder."

 

When Xue Libing took her autistic kid to the hospital for a shot, her son cried and screamed. The nurse blamed her for spoiling her son.

 

Autistic children need many types of treatment and care. Zhang persuades parents to focus on treatments.

 

Zhang maintains friendship with parents of autistic children, depending on each other for support. They hope to one day start an organization to bring together similar families.

 

Chinese you need:

 

Children's Day：儿童节 (ér tóng jié)

Autism：自闭症 (zì bì zhèng)

Skating：滑冰 (huá bīng)

Volunteer：志愿者 (zhì yuàn zhě)

Sincere：真诚的 (zhēn chéng de)

Non-profit：非营利的 (fēi yíng lì de)

Optimistic：积极的 (jī jí de)

Disorder：疾病 (jí bìng)

Diagnose：诊断 (zhěn duàn)

Intentionally：有意地 (yǒu yì de)

Cure：治愈 (zhì yù)

Desperation：绝望 (jué wàng)

Situation：形势 (xíng shì)

Spoil：宠坏 (chǒng huài)

Care：关心 (guān xīn)