Autism program to help kinder kids get ready for school

A DETERMINED mum started a preschool program catering to kids with autism after her son was rejected from a kindergarten.

Julia Ryan with her autistic son William and business partner Liz Shaw. Picture: George Salpigtidis

A NORTH Warrandyte mum’s experiences with her son have inspired her to start a preschool catering to children with autism.

Julia Ryan’s little boy William was diagnosed with autism when he was two years old a couple of years ago.

She immediately started looking for early intervention programs to ensure they would get him ready for school in time.

But the difficulties faced by children with autism were soon brought home to her.

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“We were looking at possible kindergartens and we thought we’d found a place but they rejected him,” she said.

“It was our first rejection in the schooling world and we felt a bit lost — we had a child with autism who needs extra assistance and we didn’t know what to do. So we figured we’d make our own program to help him.”

So Ms Ryan and therapist Liz Shaw started William Ready, a program that was designed to complement William’s experiences at mainstream kindergarten.

“It all basically just started because we wanted something in addition to kinder. To build on those skills, for kids on the spectrum, it’s just providing something extra,” Ms Shaw said.

“The components cover things like engagement, literacy and numeracy, and fine motor skills and gross motor skills.”

And with William now all but ready to move on to primary school next year, Ms Ryan, who liaises with parents, and Ms Shaw are ready to take on enrolments to help other families.

To learn more about William Ready, visit williamready.com.au