Autism and Classical Myth: Connecting autism and myth - during Autism Week ***and beyond...***

Why classical myth and autism?

Why classical myth and autism?

The idea for this project started to take shape at a meeting in 2008 with a special needs teacher, who mentioned that, in her experience and those of her colleagues, autistic children often enjoy classical myth. I began to wonder why this might be the case, and whether – as a classicist who researches, and loves, classical myth – there was anything I could contribute. I started this blog to report on my progress which was often sporadic until the launch of the Warsaw-based European Research Council-funded project Our Mythical Childhood (2016-22) to trace the role of classics in children’s culture.

My key contribution to the project is an exploration of classics in autistic children’s culture, above all by producing myth-themed activities for autistic children. This blog shares my progress, often along Herculean paths, including to a book of lessons for autistic children focusing on the Choice of Hercules between two very different paths in life. The image above, illustrating the homepage of this blog, is one of the drawings by Steve K. Simons, the book's illustrator, of a chimneypiece panel in a neoclassical villa at Roehampton in South West London. The lessons centre on this panel.

Thursday, 1 April 2021

Connecting autism and myth - during Autism Week and beyond...

I have mentioned previously on this blog that I do like doing things in connections with particular "Days," "Weeks" and "Months." Here, for example, I say something about an event I hosted during February 2021 for LGBT+ History Month. And I have several times now been active on this blog during Autism Week, not least two years ago when I blogged - sometimes quite extensively - each day, starting here, about issues that bore in some way on autism, mythology, Hercules and mythical "hope."

I love the energy and focus that a Day, Week etc can call up - and I see any activities doing during that Day e.g. as part of something ongoing, as well as a time to reflect on progress to date for instance, or to try something new.

This year, there has been a lot going on, and each thing is part of an initiative that, beginning here, will continue for this rest of this year, and beyond. What's going on is, in each case, part of ACCLAIM, the network for anyone interested in where autism and mythology connect. ACCLAIM has been around for a few years now - but it now has its own spaces on social media to help facilitate existing - and new - connections.

We have a website, hosted by Our Mythical Childhood, whose creation - on day 1 of Autism Week - is has been enabled by the support of Katarzyna Marciniak and created by Rafał Łempicki.

Since day 1 - we're still only in day 4 - the site has been growing, including with an emerging "Members" page. The screen shot above - taken yesterday - is already out of date. Click the link now and you will see Aimee Hinds' name in blue to signal that her bio is ready. You will find too the photo and bio of Dani Shalet. You will also find pictures and bios of our newest members, Cora Beth Fraser and of Katarzyna Marciniak. That's four rows now complete...

You will also find an emerging page for interviews conducted by Adam Soyler, a Roehampton student who is doing a work placement with Our Mythical Childhood. The first interview, with myself, will go live very soon, today hopefully, and others will follow soon, including with Lisa Maurice and Ayelet Peer. Another page, for "Events" includes, to date, the initial notice about an event that Erika Ruminate, another Roehampton student currently doing her placement with OMC, is organising.

We also now have a twitter account @AcclaimNetwork - as of Sunday evening of last week!

We shall keep putting up content, and if anyone reading this posting has ideas - or indeed would like to join - do get in touch. There's a "contact us" bar on the website, or anyone can add a comment to this posting.

Happy Autism Week 2021- and beyond :)