Today I encourage you to think about tic tac candies. Yes, I mean the teensy little mints that come in the clear plastic dispenser. As a parent of a child with autism, I must admit that the tiny tic tac has proven to be a powerful ally. This understated little candy has been a lifesaver (pardon the confusing pun) on countless occasions in my world. Passing H the entire wee package has been a strategy and an accessible resource too amazing for me to keep to myself. Let me wax poetic and extol the virtues of the humble, understated, but not to underestimated, tic tac.
1) tic tacs are light, and inexpensive to carry around in a backpack or purse
2) I believe they are actually too small to be a choking hazard for a child (although I am certainly not qualified to say this as a certainly)
3) tic tacs are musical and can be shaken in rhythm to accompany a song
4) tic tacs are a sensory item and can be wiggled or shaken in a pocket or a hand and provide a lovely calming activity
5) tic tacs provide a fine motor activity – in the opening and closing of the tiny flip top lid
6) You can give your child a whole package of tic tacs – it wont cost you a fortune and even if they eat the whole bunch- they probably contain fewer calories than a single hard candy
7) tic tacs never go stale
8 ) The left over containers can be used to store beads, bb pellets, Lego accessories, or other tiny treasures
9) tic tacs come in a variety of flavours and they taste good
10) You can bite them or eat them slowly
11) One package of tic tacs can last all day
12) One tic tac can be given to a child before they enter the barber shop or healthfood store (or another place with an overwhelming smell) and they are less impacted by sensory overload
13) Face it!! Sometimes bribery works!! (But we usually like to call it positive reinforcement or a token economy)
14) It is impossible for tic tacs to spoil your dinner
15) And most importantly… tic tacs are SOCIAL and meant to be shared and this encourages a short patterned dialogue and the opportunity to practice thinking of others!!!
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30 Days of Autism is a project designed to promote social understanding and offer a glimpse into the perspectives of those whose lives are touched by ASD.
© Leah Kelley, Thirty Days of Autism, (2011)
Going to buy some tic tacs! They’d be such a mellow sound for those with kids who NEED to, at times, make noises with something.
I have been reading your Blogs and thoroughly enjoying the scope of your writings…So very much understanding and knowledge to give to others on this very important and so little understood topic…You certainly have given a gift of yourself during this month of Autism Awareness…Thank you.
I love this! I will be sharing this idea.
Thank you
Post Script: I sent this post to the tic tac company, with a suggestion that they consider sponsoring some kind of campaign for Autism Acceptance and Understanding (maybe next year??).
Tic tacs can be used for a mindfulness exercise. Focus on the taste of the tic tac, keep returning to the taste when other thoughts go through your mind. No really, it works – even for kids. I had a child with autism calm down significantly in my office this week by focusing on the taste of a hard candy in her mouth.
Thank you so much for adding this wonderful idea Barbara. For me it could also be a mindfulness activity even to slowly enjoy the experience of a whole tic tac and not to bite it. That will certainly require considerable focus.
I must add that it was also recently pointed out to me that tic tacs can be shared without spreading the germs that are sometimes on little hands…
Now I love them even more!
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I love this! Great work! It’s inspiring to make something so simple hold so many options, especially when faced with so many challenges!
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Happiness, Leah, thanks! x
Thank you, Renee
Must confess I’d never given tic tacs much thought above their low calorie status but I am seeing them in a totally different light now. I wonder if my daughter would like them? She doesn’t like sweets (at all) but it would be worth buying a packet; she can always share them out
Oh… Nice! I hope you can find a flavour your daughter likes. My son likes the orange ones! I prefer original… I finally realized that they taste like vanilla – took forever to figure that one out