15 YEAR OLD BECOMES THE YOUNGEST ASTROPHYSICIST IN THE WORLD
Taken from http://www.beautyexists.net/news/15-year-old-becomes-the-youngest-astrophysicist-in-the-world/
Doctors said that Jacob Barnett would never be able to tie his own shoes, but at the age of 15…Barnett has become the youngest astrophysicist in the world.
At the age of 2, Jacob was diagnosed with moderate to severe autism and doctors said he would never be able to read or write. But his mom Kristine Barnett, refused to listen to their words. Instead, she set out to help him transform his life. The key, according to mom Kristine,was letting Jacob be himself — by helping him study the world with wide-eyed wonder instead of focusing on a list of things he couldn’t do.
After his diagnosis, Jacob was visited frequently by a number of psychologists under an Indiana program called First Steps, which included a developmental therapist, an occupational therapist, and a speech therapist, among others.
Jacob spent years in the clutches of a special education system that didn’t understand what he needed. His teachers at school would try to dissuade Kristine from hoping to teach Jacob any more than the most basic skills. But Kristine started to notice that when he was not in therapy, Jacob was doing “spectacular things” on his own. For example, she told the BBC: (more…)