From Matthias' Mom - 3 Sep 2012:
The training went as well as we expected. Matthias is a very tough student and tends to follow the same learning pattern. He actively thwarts all efforts to learn a new skill, using all sorts of avoidance tactics. He tries to get teachers off task, and he purposefully gives incorrect answers or behaves as if he has no idea what a teacher is talking about. He has done this as long as I can remember. Typically he fights a good teacher, seemingly learning absolutely nothing. Then after several weeks or months, he will accomplish the task randomly and perfectly. The only way this pattern is not followed is if he gets a teacher who is really nice and allows him to run the show. In those cases, he learns nothing. Luckily, Justin is a smart and determined teacher. He did not allow Matthias to take charge, so I am confident he learned more then he is currently exhibiting.
We have had a few immediate benefits of the training. We have been asking everyone which cane and tip he should be using and why, and we have never had a good answer. We now have a good cane as well as an appropriate technique which is working well for him. Matthias is on the cusp of running, so I am sure that will be coming soon. He was pushing around a cart at the grocery store yesterday and came close to running when he realized the cart could be used as a big battering ram. He just needs more motivation like that, and he will get there.
I think Matthias sensed open and closed spaces before training, but he seems to make better sense of them now. He is easily locating open doorways and hitting his head far less then before. When he focuses on his clicks, he can actually walk down the center of a hallway. Justin theorized that Matthias sensed borders but didn't understand them. He now seems to understand those borders a little better. For whatever reason, he is really good at hearing our cars and understanding where they begin and end. He also said that Matthias has huge gaps in his world, not seeing or understanding large chunks of his surroundings. He seems to have a sense of those gaps now, even if he doesn't understand what those gaps are or what they mean. He now wants to know what those gaps are. He has always been a brave little explorer, but he seems even more curious now. We have found him exploring more thoroughly than before.
I think his skills will emerge given a little time. For now, we are going to focus on his cane technique and deepening his understanding of open and closed sounds using his clicks. He is in preschool half day, so we will dedicate a little time each day to working on both. While I have no expectations on the time it will take him to learn these skills or how well he will do it, I know my kid. I would not be surprised if he just starts doing it really well one day when I am not expecting it.
As a curious side note for your research, instead of causing Matthias to sleep more during and since the training, he is sleeping less. It is like his brain has been wickedly stimulated, and I don't think he has slept more than 7 hours at a time since we began his training last week. He was sleeping at least 10 hours every night, with one short nap a few days a week. He is now regularly skipping nap and staying up until 10 or 11 PM. Thanks for that, BTW. Really, not a bad thing necessarily. Just an interesting little tidbit for your research. We are curious as to when his sleep patterns will return to normal.
Thank you for agreeing to allow Justin to come back when Matthias is ready for more information. [We] know enough now to get Matthias started, but I know we will need further assistance in several months when Matthias is ready to take this to another level. In all honesty, we are ill equipped to help him advance in these skills. I know his questions will be much better handled by an expert. And it is really fun watching Justin and Matthias have a battle of wills. The entertainment value is almost as good as Matthias gaining greater independence.
Matthias has big plans for Justin. We officially, in writing, take no responsibility for any psychological trauma Matthias may cause to Justin now or in the future. …