July 21, 2026
The Power of Everyday Objects
Accessing Parent Creativity
Last week, I brought a set of plastic cups with me for one of my autistic little friends. When I created an obstacle course in hopes of helping access his vestibular system, he was not interested in my idea! He enjoyed stacking the plastic cups instead.
After I left his home, his mother brought out her own set of plastic cups.
At first she reported he only stacked them, but then she helped expand his play by making the cups into shapes and saying, “Let’s make a circle!” He repeated, “Make circle.” She then asked, “What’s next?” to which he answered with a variety of different shapes, letters, and numbers.
He did not repeat back the question, demonstrating understanding which carried over to a recent visit to the eye doctor for new glasses. For the first time, when asked the question, “What is it?” to identify a shape, he answered correctly allowing for an accurate prescription to be written. His understanding continues to grow.
When we started therapy, he was a gestalt language processor at Natural Language Acquisition (NLA) stage 1 with emerging songs that were not recognized by others. Fast forward to a year and a half later, where he is now at stage 3 using single words, novel word combinations, and occasionally using full sentences.
He is learning to use his gestalts in different ways and using those gestalts to connect with his family.
It is beautiful to watch his growth over time.
I have the privilege of bringing new ideas to his home where his creative mother (who knows him best) tailors the ideas based on his interests. It is a beautiful partnership where problem solving and creativity helps my little friend thrive and grow.