Big Voice Little Voice – Weds 12th Aug 2015
By Jeannette | August 12, 2015
Today’s title instantly reminded me of “Big Cook, Little Cook”.
Who remembers them? T and D used to love watching their programme on CBeebies, singing along to the theme song on and – with a cry of “Go Small, whizz away!” – there used to be quite a bit of running around the house on a wooden spoon!
Like this with Little Cook:
Although it didn’t persuade our limited food choice children to try new dishes, it was always good fun to watch.
Anyway, today has unfortunately been a “big voice, little voice” day, one for T and one for D.
They have some similar autistic traits but react very differently to tones and pitch of voices.
T takes no notice of gentle persuasion when asked to do something, he will only take notice of a “big voice”, with a different tone, whereas both of those would absolutely terrify D and send her scurrying into a corner, making herself into a small a space as possible.
I’ve had to do both today, feeling a bit like this:
As well as a referee, as well as guilt that I’ve used that “big voice”, because nothing else seemed to work.
And it did. T disappeared to his room, extremely angry and then, an hour or so later, he seemed chirpier than he had for ages. Almost like he appreciated the “big voice”.
At the time he didn’t and D getting apprenhensive and asking why I’d raised my voice just seemed to infuriate him.
There isn’t an easy way around situations like this, different ways of dealing with our extremely individual children seem to work, sometimes it’s remembering just which tactic works though and for whom.
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