Children of the rain. They got this name after the release of the film "Rain Man". Rain as a symbol of specialness. These are autistic children. Children of the Sun are babies with Down syndrome. We note right away that autism and Down syndrome are not, in the strict sense, mental illness. These are children with a different perception of the world around them. They require a different approach to education and training. Often these children are very capable. They just differ from the majority.
Features of autistic children
The concept of autism was introduced in 1920, and childhood autism was described in the forties of the last century. The main thesis when describing autists: a child is disconnected from the world around him, when a person does not perceive or does not understand the events taking place around him. The peculiarities of "rain children" are described in detail in the book by E. Blair "Autistic Thinking".
From the first months of life, a child with autism avoids direct contact and interaction with adults, does not cuddle when picked up. They avoid looking directly into the eyes of their mother, look out of the corner of their eyes, because their peripheral vision is more developed. Autistic children cannot respond in the usual way to sounds, to their name.
An autistic child may be capable of mathematics or music, draw beautifully, but be helpless in everyday matters, it is bad to make contact with people. Other areas of life and activity that are not interesting to autists may not be affected at all. The IQ of such children often exceeds 70 points out of 100 possible.
With proper and patient teaching, time-consuming, raised in love and care, such children can show significant creativity, be smarter than many ordinary children.
Rain children have many phobias. They are bound by stereotypes much more than the average person. They are afraid of everything new and incomprehensible. Changes in external conditions, even to a small extent, can be a real tragedy for such a child. Another feature of autists is the lack of visible attachments to close people, even to a mother or brother, sister.
Recent theories do not consider autism to be a hereditary disorder. Rather, a hereditary predisposition can be transmitted. The emergence of autism in a child can be associated with birth trauma, due to impaired fetal development during pregnancy, and other factors that have not yet been studied. There are more and more “rain children” in the world.
Children of the Sun or Down Syndrome
This is one of the most common genetic disorders. But not a disease. In a normal cell there are 46 chromosomes, half of the paternal chromosomes, half of the maternal ones, and they are located strictly in pairs. In children with Down syndrome, an extra chromosome appears in the twenty-first pair. An extra chromosome is determined only by a geneticist for a blood test. This deviation occurs quite often. For every 800-1000 newborns, there is one with the 47th chromosome.
The cause of the anomaly is unclear today. Such children can grow up both in the family of a scientist or politician, and in the family of a farmer or worker from a factory. In families of parents leading a healthy lifestyle or living for pleasure. Deviations are not related to environmental problems or climate.
Children of the Sun are easily recognizable. They have a difference in the shape of the head and facial features, they are very similar to each other. Their health is usually weak, there is a high risk of diseases of the cardiovascular system, gastrointestinal tract, often there are dysfunctions of the thyroid gland and vision.
Disgust towards the children of the Sun is unfair and humiliating. The opinion that they are aggressive is deeply mistaken. The sun symbolizes their kindness and spiritual purity. And the use of the term "down" is simply unacceptable.
Usually these children are developmentally delayed, but the level of ability differs greatly within this group. With appropriate upbringing, the children of the Sun learn to speak and read. They just need to study in other programs. Such children can freely attend kindergartens and schools. Upon graduation, more than 80% of them receive a profession and can successfully work in many areas.
