Video Three - Demo

This video is much like the second. The only change is by the end you can tell that Brandon is getting a little bit frustrated. So I guess three times in one sitting is as good as it gets for now. Look out for more videos coming soon.

Video Two - Demo

This is the second on camera look into Brandon using the "Click On ___________" demo. Brandon now does not have trouble knowing how to click on the next button or try again button. Brandon is still having problems connecting name and faces. Perhaps he doesn't understand what I'm asking. But I will only know this with more trials and revisions.

Video One - Demo

This is a video of Brandon using the demo for the first time on camera. The very first time Brandon used this flash demo was briefly yesterday. In this video you can that Brandon has trouble knowing where to click to get to the next question and how to go back and try again. In the second and third trial video you can see he has gotten the hang out of it. Brandon also has trouble connecting familiar faces to names. In these videos I am verbalizing the question because I have not yet added audio to the flash file itself.

Demo Screen Shots

I've decided to start the learning process with familiar faces. Brandon will begin by pressing start and will be asked to CLICK ON MOMMY. If he chooses the wrong head an external file will be loaded in saying no and will ask to try again. Once brandon clicks try again he will be redirected to the "click on mommy" file. Once Brandon is correct another external file is loaded in with a BIG green yes movieclip stretching in and out. At the bottom of the "yes" file there is a NEXT button which loads in the next file which is CLICK ON DADDY. And so on and so on. I have tested the demo on Brandon today and he initially chose the right head, however once he was asked to click on Daddy he got stuck and chose wrong. Over time I am hoping that Brandon will be able to connect the word and sound to the face. I am working on adding sound to the file, but for now I have been verbally asking Brandon to "Click on Mommy." I chose to go with something as simple as possible due to Brandon's low attention span.

Reminder: This is just a demo to get Brandon used to clicking and getting him to connect names to familiar faces correctly. The Brandon Project plans on creating various lessons, videos, and fun opportunities for Brandon to take part in. 

Brandon: Gabby’s Perspective

     To be completely honest with you living with my brother is one of the most frustrating experiences I could ever imagine. Unless you have an autistic sibling or have lived with an autistic individual your whole life, you cannot even grasp at how difficult it is at times. Sometimes I want to pull out all of my hair and dive off of a tall building. Other times I smile when I look at my innocent little brother. He can be a pain, but he can also be entertaining, funny, loving, and sweet. Before I began this project I never really stopped to think about all of my brothers capabilities or the unique characteristics that make him who he is.  Brandon may drive me absolutely bonkers on a daily basis but there is so much more to him than meets the naked eye.

     There are times when Brandon comes down from his room just wanting to sit with my mom and I in the living room.  My mother is Brandon’s absolute favourite. Minus the violent years, Brandon loves to hug and kiss my mother. He is so innocent and kind hearted. It’s not always easy to see it, but when you sit down and think about it you realize that he is a very special individual who may have trouble understanding our complex world, but is struggling with us to find ways to communicate.

     Brandon loves to go out. He loves to go to the park to watch the waves in the pond, he loves to go various stores to look around in hope of getting a treat, and he loves to be taken out for fast food.  Brandon enjoys watching television in his room, and listening to music when the mood strikes. One of my most cherished moments with my brother is making him dance. It is so amusing trying to get him to move his body the way I move mine. His eagerness and willingness to try and mimic my every move is not only sweet, but a hilarious sight. When Brandon is alone listening to his mp3 player or in the passenger seat and the music is flowing, you are sure to know which song he is enjoying by the way he rocks back and forth or sways side to side.

     One of the easiest ways of getting Brandon’s attention is through food. Brandon adores food more then anyone I know. I’d have to say out of all the foods Brandon is allowed to consume, his favourites would have to be: chips, chicken, and tuna. When Brandon was younger he was a very picky eater and had an insanely low rate of bowel movements. To be blunt: He simply did not poop for weeks. My mother knew that something had to be wrong so she did some research, went to some doctors, got some tests done and came to the conclusion that Brandon was allergic to beef, dairy, and sensitive to many other foods. Once we were aware of this, Brandon’s diet drastically changed. He was not eating any dairy or beef products. I always have sympathy for Brandon when it comes to his diet. Cheese and chocolate are foods that I could simply not be able to cope without and he manages day to day. Mind you, if you ever leave one of those products in his sight without supervision, he does not hesitate to scarf it down whole. 

     Brandon is mesmerized by water. He would sit and look at a waterfall or a river for long periods of time. He enjoys taking baths, splashing around, and when summer camp rolls around he gets to swim in the community center pool everyday. Although Brandon’s fascination for water seems merely innocent, do not let him fool you. If you turn your back on Brandon for a moment or you doze off while watching television you can be sure he will have the water running nearly flooding the washroom.  There have been a few occasions where Brandon would flood the washroom through to the kitchen and down to the laundry room in the basement.

     Brandon’s mischief certainly does not conclude with water.  Over the years I can concoct a small list of all the materials Brandon has spread all over his body and anything else around him. This list includes but is not limited to:
- Paint

- Peanut Butter
- Excrement
- Baby Powder

- Mud

- Ketchup

Brandon has also been known to dump out dish soap, laundry detergent, empty Kleenex boxes, unravel toilet paper, scratch faces off of old photographs, and rip apart clothing.

     Brandon can also be quite embarrassing out in public places. If you think a few pimples on your face is embarrassing then you have not taken out my brother shopping. Brandon has not only caused plenty of scenes in public, he has also urinated in the middle of an aisle, attacked me while waiting in line at the grocery store, suddenly stopping and sitting on the floor refusing to get up, waving his arms around, exposing his private area in the office of the real estate agent, suddenly yelling in a quiet area, and who knows what else I’ve repressed or forgotten over the last 19 years.

     Brandon is big on routine. Certain things must be in certain places, certain foods must be eaten when certain family members come home, and certain DVDs need to be watched everyday. For example with my mother comes home from a hard day on the job Brandon rushes down the stairs to greet her at the door and thus begins “mommy’s home” routine. Brandon must have chips, then tuna, then chips again if he can get away with it.

     One of the most frustrating aspects about Brandon would be what I call “Pause Mode.” Brandon often gets into a mode where he pauses before he does anything that he is told to do. For example: Brandon is told to get the DVD and go upstairs to put it into the DVD player. Either Brandon will pause mid way on the stairs waiting to be told again, pause at the top of the stairs, pause in front of his bedroom, or pause right in front of the DVD player. Sometimes he pauses at all of those points. Even a simple task such as putting on socks can take more time than the average Joe. Sometimes Brandon is in what I call “Ultra Pause Mode” where he must be instructed to eat every spoonful of rice or every leaf of lettuce in his salad. This can become very maddening. In “Ultra Pause Mode” Brandon tends to yell an indescribable sound to let whoever know that he needs further instruction in order to complete said task. In creating The Brandon Project I hope strengthen his ability to communicate so that the indescribable maddening sound will come to a peaceful end.

     Although Brandon can be utterly “pull your hair out” irritating, he can also be calm as he flips through picture books, or standing by his window flashing the neighbourhood. This is also something that needs to be addressed in this project. Brandon must be taught not to expose himself in his bedroom window or in the office of the real estate agent.

     One of the biggest problems that Brandon has besides communication is using the proper washroom facilities. Now that Brandon has a regulated diet he produces a healthy sized bowel movement almost everyday. The problem is where he produces the bowel movement. Brandon still has trouble understanding that must use the toilet to do his “business,” including number one and number two.

     Brandon has a lot of lessons that must be taught and not a lot of time to do so. It’s bad enough that there are almost no programs available for individuals with moderate PDDNOS, and the school he is currently attending will only be able to have him there until he is 21. Brandon is currently 19, so that leaves two years to teach him everything he needs in order to successfully function in society. If he is not prepared by then, then what will we do? Who will watch him when everyone is at work? Who will entertain him all day? When will the stress and the worry end? Why is there almost no support? These are all unanswered questions many of us are struggling to understand and not willing to accept.

     In conclusion Brandon may drive me insane and cause me to wish for an early death, but all in all he is a special individual struggling to live in a world where the majority does not understand him and is not willing to understand him.  His subtle gestures of love and general curiosity in everyday tasks give me hope and motivation. Overall I love Brandon, and the sooner he is able to function independently, the sooner we can all relax, and the faster we can create hope for other families.  

Brandon Visciano in a Large Complicated Nutshell

     Brandon Adriano Visciano was born on March 8^th 1992 at North York General Hospital's Branson Site on the south side of Finch Avenue West in Toronto, Ontario. On December 7^th. 1995 at the age of 3 Brandon was diagnosed with Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (PDDNOS) with developmental handicap in the moderate range. PDDNOS is part of the Autism Spectrum Disorder and has a vast array of hopeful treatments and dreams for a “cure.”

     Before Brandon was diagnosed with Autism his mother and primary caregiver Sabra Pollen noticed there was something different about her second child. He did not latch on when breast-feeding like his older sister had when she was an infant. He was not catching on to words, it was very hard to get him to sleep, he did not make much eye contact, and it seemed as if he was in a world of his own.

     There are many different types of Autism. In Brandon’s particular case he had very little verbal skills, a good range of consonant and vowel sounds, and he could learn quickly when motivated such as drinking out of a juice box with a straw. After years of treatments and supplements such as Applied Behavioural Analysis, Secretin, Melatonin, Holistic treatments, various vitamins, and thousands of dollars spent, Brandon’s immediate family were left with more unanswered questions, frustration, despair, and an empty wallet.

     Once Brandon hit puberty he not only grew upward, but outward as well. Brandon’s height and weight was not the only thing that had suddenly changed; due to increasing levels of testosterone his temper had taken a turn for the worst. As a small child Brandon would bite his family for unknown reasons, however his biting had stopped until puberty hit. Brandon became violent, attacking those around him by grabbing, punching, hitting, pinching, biting, along with occasionally grabbing the steering wheel while a family member was driving. Brandon’s family lived in terror for a long time before appropriate medication was found. When the rages, and violence finally subsided from the ages of 16 to 19, Brandon’s immediate family could finally watch television without worrying about Brandon running down the stairs ready to attack.

     Over the years Brandon has progressed slowly and makes an effort to communicate with others when he wants something such as food, a bath, or to go outside. In recent years Brandon communicates using some simple sign language. He can use sign language to express wanting to go outside, wanting to take a bath, wanting certain foods. He also an understanding of signs such as hat, shoes, socks, and water along with a few others.

     Along with the various treatments Brandon has received over the years, he has been a part of respite programs in both Toronto and Brampton. The most recent respite center supported Brandon until the age of 18. Once Brandon turned 18 his family had an understanding that there were other programs available nearby to help with support for Brandon. So far nothing has been available and has left Brandon’s family scrambling to find alternatives.

     Since there is very limited support for Autistic adults in middle-income families, The Brandon Project is working towards teaching Brandon how to communicate, safely live everyday life, and use the proper washroom facilities. This project will not be developed overnight. This project will take months of research, development, and revisions.

     The Brandon Project has one final fundamental objective, and this is to allow Brandon to become an independent individual that can be integrated into society and to one day provide options for other families living with individuals with PDDNOS.

     For more information regarding The Brandon Project feel free to contact the creator of The Brandon Project; Gabriella Visciano at thebrandonvproject@gmail.com

Links:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0002494/

http://www.autismcanada.org/

http://www.autismsocietycanada.ca/

http://www.autism.net/

http://www.autism.com/index_b.asp

http://www.autismspeaks.ca/

http://www.cbc.ca/news/health/story/2009/04/02/f-autism.html

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/2011/04/viewers-guide-autism-today.html

The Brandon Project

     After the age of 18 support and education for autistic people are limited and in some cases non-existent. Brandon Visciano my 18 year old autistic brother. Brandon may physically be 18 years old, but mentally he is still a young child. More than anything else, Brandon needs to strengthen his communication skills in order to allow myself and others to understand and determine his wants and needs. Brandon also must become independent so that one day he may be able to live on his own. The Brandon Project will be a long trial and error process. I hope to be able to create a successful online portal for education and entertainment.  

     The Brandon Project will ultimately serve as an educational tool to strengthen Brandon’s communicational skills, potty training, along with entertainment and awareness of everyday options. This project will be a very lengthily process with many changes according to the needs and understanding of Brandon.

In every project there will be setbacks and roadblocks to overcome. In this case some set backs include:

a. Brandon’s capabilities

b. Brandon’s attention span

c. Copyrights, Licenses, Releases

     Brandon’s capabilities, attention span, willingness to learn and accept the program are all factors and potential setbacks, which will determine the success of the project.

     Since I plan on using music in this project I will have to find out how to buy the rights to use the track on the website for Brandon without infringing or violating some kind of law.

     I will be spending my time planning and developing a user-friendly educational website to enable my autistic brother to improve his communicational skills, toilet training, provide entertainment options.  The communicational skills will consist of simple sign language, pronunciation, and understanding the names of the people in his life. The toilet training will consist of tutorials and questions regarding going to the washroom instead of having accidents on the floor. The entertainment options consist of providing a selection of the places he would like to go, the foods he would like to consume, listening to music and possibly an easy workout video with countless prompting and instruction.

     Since this project is going to be very lengthily and time consuming I hope to collaborate with others. I am going to ask friends and family to be apart of the educational experience by being filmed doing simple sign language. It will motivate and interest Brandon to have people he knows in the videos he will be watching and learning from. I will be attending Brandon’s school to better understand the programs he is now using, how he is utilizing them and which catches his interest.

     Creating this learning opportunity for Brandon will not only benefit Brandon and the household, it will also benefit society. If Brandon can become Independent enough to be able to one day live on his own he will not have to live in government housing and can be a successful member of the community.