Awkward by Ty Tashiro

Author:Ty Tashiro
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi, pdf
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2017-03-02T05:00:00+00:00

Helping Awkward Kids Build Social Fundamentals

ONE OF MY vivid memories from childhood was a recurring incident that begins in the Wendy’s parking lot. My parents would park our station wagon, turn to the backseat where I sat, and one of them would say, “Let’s get mentally prepared.” Maybe it owes to my father’s military background, but these mental preparation drills of my childhood had the feeling of a sergeant’s remedial efforts with a soldier who has trouble marching in step. My parents’ series of well-orchestrated questions led to Socratic dialogues about how I would engage with others.

These mental preparation drills took place in parking lots all around the city and in the privacy of our home before going to a restaurant, the grocery store, a birthday party, or a church event. The drills would go on for as long as needed, which on one of my bad days meant that we could be in the car for ten minutes trying to prepare for a two-minute interaction with a cashier. My parents wanted to make common social situations, like ordering at a restaurant or riding public transportation, become second nature to me through deliberate practice. These drills might sound pedantic, and at the time I was certainly not an enthusiastic participant in these Socratic dialogues, but as a socially awkward kid I needed this level of detailed instruction. I’m sure my parents disliked these mental preparation drills as much as I did, but they saw them as necessary exercises to help me learn the unspoken rules of engagement, and ultimately they were right.

PARENTS’ QUESTIONS

MY ANSWERS

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