I’m Baaaaacccck!

Guess who’s back! Back again. Matt is back! Tell a friend. Hello everyone! It has been such a long time since I last updated this blog. There has been an incredible amount that has taken place in my life since I last posted on here. I would like to apologize in advance for going so long without updating this marvelous blog. It is going to take me some time to think of everything that has taken place in my life since I last posted.

I have had many epic adventures and blessings that have taken place in the last three years. At the same time, I have gone through my fair share of trials and tribulations. I have learned that you can never take anything for granted in life. I have learned many important lessons in the last couple of years that have ultimately shaped my character and resilience.

The best news I can tell you all about right now is that I just completed my Associates Degree. This is such an improbable and amazing accomplishment for me in my life. I have had to literally fight for this degree. Working hard to overcome my deficiencies in math and working to manage my learning disability was certainly quite a challenge. I went through years of stress and anxiety trying to get through this portion of my college career.

I will now will be transferring to Florida Atlantic University where I will be majoring in Special Education. I am extremely excited about entering this new chapter in my life! It is going to be a fantastic educational journey for me. I have so much hope and optimism for the future. The future is going to be so bright that I will need sunglasses!!

Anyways I will be posting on a regular basis with the goal of inspiring young adults who have autism related disorders. I also want to provide hope for parents, teachers, mental health advocates and professionals along with others who want to help someone they know who has been diagnosed with autism.

Talk to you all later

Matt Blue

Seven Tips to Help You Get a Good Grade on Your College English Paper

I’d like to share with you some writing strategies to increase your chances of getting a good grade on your college English paper. They worked for me!

– Start working on your paper as early as possible.

– If you have the choice of choosing your own topic, select a topic you are passionate about and also make sure you have a significant amount of knowledge on that topic.

– Spend time on prewriting.  It is important to invest a good amount of time brainstorming or free writing, which includes just getting your thoughts and ideas down on paper. Also, it is important to spend time creating a web or a concept map. Think everything through and don’t be intimidated by the length, the elaborate topic, the requirements, or even the professor.

– Focus on organization. Make sure you have a strong thesis statement; make sure you use transitions frequently; make sure your hook and your intro is strong; make sure your body paragraphs introduce and discuss the ideas in your thesis. Lastly, make sure your conclusion is strong and developed.

– Dont bore the reader or the professor to death. Make your paper as interesting as possible by using strong verbs and adjectives.

– Spend a good amount of time proofreading your paper!

– Most importantly, have fun, relax and enjoy the writing process! Your thoughts will come together more clearly and you will be able to be more creative if you are not worried about the outcome.

photo by English106

Navigating College with Autism: Great News! An “A” On My Process Analysis Essay

I have some great news to announce! On my Process Analysis Essay for English class, I recieved an A! That grade shows that I do have the ability to get an A on a college paper. At the end of the day, it just comes down to me really applying myself. My mom helped out by proofreading my paper after I proofread it. She does a great job catching mistakes that I don’t even see, which also  helps me to improve my writing even more. My mom always has excellent suggestions and advice. During last semester’s English class, the highest grade I recieved was a B. So far I am off to a great start! On my Process Analysis essay I wrote about what it takes to be a successful blogger. I went into many details about how to start a blog and how to promote your blog effectively. I knew I was headed in the right direction with this paper, when I got an A on the outline and thesis portion of the assignment. Right now I feel like I am on fire! In the near future, I just need to continue to follow the directions and the format. Also, most importantly, I need to continue to work hard.

Photo by laurenatclemson

Navigating College With Autism – Working Hard On My Research Paper!

I am currently working on a research paper which is on a comparison/contrast movie review. The movie I decided to do it on is Slumdog Millionaire, since it won the Academy Award for best picture of the year in 2008. I have done an extensive amount of research for this paper. You are required to document your sources through parenthetical documentation. It is imperative to use direct quotes, paraphrases and block quotes in the research paper. I have completed my Works Cited page, a detailed outline showing evidence, and I wrote the first two paragraphs for my rough draft.

When I was younger, I never imagined myself in a million years, writing a research paper in college! It is truly amazing when I think about it! As a parent, by getting your child the neccessary early help and intervention, you can have hope that maybe one day your child will be writing a research paper in college. As a college freshman, I have gone through my fair share of trials and tribulations, but I am committed to never giving up and I am maintaining a positive attitude.

Photo from masterorz

Autism: The Importance of Early Diagnosis and Intervention

Autism is defined as a severe developmental disorder that begins at birth. Autistic children look perfectly normal in appearance; however, they typically engage in disturbing and confusing behaviors. For many years autism was considered to be very rare. Now 1 in 150 children are diagnosed with autism. Boys also outnumber girls four to one.

I was diagnosed with PDD (within the autism spectrum) at the age of 4 in 1994. My mom got me all the help she could, including speech therapy, play therapy, and occupational therapy. It was like a full-time job for her! But she says that she wishes she would have known even earlier, that I could have been getting help from the time I was 2 years old.  Today there is so much more awareness, information and help out there for parents of autistic children. Early intervention is extremely important. Don’t wait. Get your child all the help you can as early as possible.

Photo by ali edwards

Life as a College Student with Autism: A final grade of B on My Advertising Analysis Paper!

Recently I received a B on my Advertising Analysis paper for English class. I put in a tremendous amount of hard work and dedication into writing a successful paper. The paper was a staggering 874 words! I decided to write about an advertisement mainly about taking care of the environment by recycling, planting trees, growing organic fruits and vegetables, and creating green gardens. These are some of the progressive initiatives which were outlined and described in this advertisement. I felt extremely nervous about writing this paper because, even for a good writer like me, it was a very difficult assignment. The most difficult part of the assignment was trying to a find the appropriate ad, which included enough text and pictures. My overall grade consisted of an evaluation of my structure and focus, content, and the quality of writing. I feel very proud and thrilled about my grade! I was genuinely astonished about getting a B on this assignment. This is probably the happiest I had ever been about receiving a B in my life! The purpose of this assignment was to explain the evidence in your selected advertisement using photographs, captions and text. It was a requirement to write a minimum of 700 words. Also, I was expected to use direct quotes and paraphrases extensively throughout my paper. My attention-grabbing title was the Green Effect- Winning Ideas for a Better World. I proofread my paper very thoroughly, correcting errors and implemented the necessary changes that I needed to make. At the end of the day, I felt very proud of my hard work and very proud of my writing ability.

Tutoring Help From TRIO Grant Program

I feel very privileged to have such an outstanding math tutor. She has a tremendous amount of knowledge about all of the different algebraic concepts. The Trio tutoring program is a great program for students with disabilities. It is so nice to have such a knowledgeable one-on-one tutor free of charge. I cannot emphasize enough how important it is for students with disabilities to have the opportunity to get the necessary tutoring help they need. My tutor has been very patient so far and she is very caring and understanding as well. She is in the Nova Southeastern University Medical Program and has a passion for math. Currently, I am doing some extra pre-algebra practice, which will help prepare me for the class I will be taking next semester. My tutor is very dedicated towards helping me achieve my goals.

The TRIO Grant Program

I have some great news! I have been selected to participate in the Office of Disability Services TRIO Grant Program. The Trio Grant program is a federally funded program designed to assist students with disabilities in being successful at Broward College. This program can help you get you’re A.A degree within two years. The goal of the program is to get you into a four-year college or university. I am honored to be one of fifty students selected for this program. The TRIO Grant offers one-on-one specialized tutoring, technology support, mentoring, tracking services that support your academic success, Specialized Career Awareness Assessments and Financial Aid assistance.

This program should help me out tremendously in my pursuit towards my academic goals. I am looking forward to the tutoring help that I will be receiving. This appears to be a very good program.

Navigating College with Autism: The Importance of Advocating for Yourself

I cannot even begin to tell you how imperative it is to advocate for yourself in college, especially for students with disabilities. College is not like High School where teachers and support facilitators are constantly checking up on how you’re doing. In college you are completely on your own. Basically I saved myself just very recently by advocating for myself.

I was academically misplaced into the wrong math class. I knew something was up because the material was extremely difficult for me, right from the get-go. I was placed into Elementary Algebra when really I was supposed to be in a class called MAT002, which is a prerequisite to Elementary Algebra. I went directly to my disability services specialist and I told her that I was really struggling and falling behind in that class. She promptly looked up my test scores and realized that they placed me into a higher level class. If I had not scheduled an appointment to talk with her about my struggles in this course, the consequences could have been big. By speaking up for myself, I got switched into the correct class for next semester. In conclusion, people are always willing to help you in college as long as you are willing to speak up for yourself.

 

Navigating College with Autism – So far, so good!

I have been doing very well in my English class, Computer Lit class and my total wellness class. The only class I am struggling in right now is algebra, since it is by far my toughest subject. I am good with words, not numbers! I am trying to put the extra time into studying my notes and I am doing the best I can to seek help. This is just one of those math courses where the goal for me is going to be just to get through it. My A’s and B’s will come in my other classes.

In contrast to my math class,  I am having no problem whatsoever in my English 1 class. We have been doing a grammar and punctuation review unit in order to get us prepared for the research papers and essays we are going to be writing all term. I have done an excellent job on the grammar review packets, and I have a feeling that I did a great job on the unit test we took on Wednesday. I grasped the grammatical concepts immediately, while most of the students in my class have been struggling.  English is a subject that tends to go very easy for me. I have a passion for writing, which is why I am very interested in eventually going into journalism.

My professors have been very reasonable and helpful so far. It’s very interesting how they all have very different teaching styles and philosophies. My learning disability is definitely a major player in math. I have always struggled tremendously in any kind of math class. It is very imperative for me to get the help I need. I will give you three career fields that you can automatically eliminate for me: rocket scientist, mathematician, and an engineer! Let’s be real here, right?

Socially speaking, I am still looking to make new friends and I want to be as active as possible. I am looking into clubs or organizations that spark my interest. I am into politics, sports, and most importantly helping people! I would love to do some volunteer charity work around the community.  I want to make a difference in other peoples’ lives.

It’s amazing because after the conclusion of my first month of college, I feel like I have enjoyed the college life much better than I did the high school life, and I belive my comfort level will increase as time goes on. Incredibly, this is after four long years of high school. High School just was not for me.

Photo by Nic’s events