In The Spark: A Mother’s Story of Nurturing Genius, Kristine Barnett
tells how she and her son defied the experts. It is a memoir of her life
specifically focusing on her extraordinary son, Jacob, who at age two received
a diagnosis of autism. Though this story does provide insight into the many
struggles that parents of autistic kids face, more focus is given to the
positive experiences and lessons which the Barnett’s learned as a family,
ultimately making it a rather enlightening read. Throughout the book there is a
theme of focusing on what children can do, rather than what they cannot do. By
sharing her story and experiences, Kristine Barnett hoped to inspire parents
everywhere to pay attention to a child’s interests, whether that child is autistic
or not. Her son Jake serves as a unique and inspiring example of how effective
this specific parenting and teaching style can really be.
From the day that Jacob Barnett was born, he was
affectionate and curious. Many early signs showed that he was very intelligent.
He talked earlier than normal and learned the alphabet before he could walk. As
each week passed, Kristine began to notice changes in her son. It appeared that
Jake was no longer socializing with other kids and had become more interested
in moving shadows on the wall and anything with a pattern. After noticing that
Jake was unlike normal children his age, Kristine had Jake evaluated by a
developmental specialist. Following that day, a stream of specialists entered
their home day in and day out. The results of a formal evaluation changed
Kristine and her family’s lives forever. Jake had been diagnosed with
Asperger’s syndrome, a form of autism, at the age of two. Asperger’s syndrome
is often described as having “scattered skills” due to high functioning in
certain areas and below average functioning in others. Eventually Jake stopped
speaking entirely, no longer made eye contact with anyone, and essentially
became unresponsive and so consumed in his own world.
At
age three, Jake was off to developmental preschool where he was enrolled in the
life skills program. A comment made by Jake’s special ed teacher resulted in a
major turning point in the Barnett’s lives. Jake had a love for alphabet cards
and would bring them along with him to school every day. During a meeting with
his special ed teacher, the teacher said: “We don’t think you are going to need
to worry about the alphabet with Jacob” (p. 4), because they believed that Jake would
never be able to read. To Kristine it seemed as if the teachers had given up on
her son and were slamming the door shut on any potential. Different from Jake’s
teachers, Kristine still believed in her son and his abilities and bravely made
the decision to take him out of school and teach Jake herself.
With
the help of a developmental therapist who was conveniently a close friend,
Kristine began to provide Jake with the necessary therapy and schooling. Despite
the fact that Jake’s teachers did not believe that Jake would ever be able to
read, he began to add and read at the age of three and no one had taught him
how but himself. It began clear that Jake had extraordinary academic abilities
but now needed work on his social skills. At this time Kristine began to hold a
mock kindergarten for autistic kids which she called Little Light. Her mantra
for Little Light was to focus on what the kids wanted to do so she provided
materials to fuel every child’s individual interests. By creating Little Light,
Kristine managed to not only mainstream Jake into kindergarten; she also did
the same for many other autistic kids in the learning centre. Kristine also
started a sports program in 2005 called Youth Sports for Autism which was
solely dedicated to fun active activities in which the kids could participate.
At
a young age, the Barnett’s discovered that Jake was a math and science prodigy
and had an IQ higher than that of Einstein’s. Jake was exceeding expectations
in mainstream school and was way ahead of the material he was being taught
which is when Jake, at age 8, began attending university classes in order to
challenge himself. Jake’s list of amazing achievements since then is surreal.
At nine he began working on a theory in astrophysics that could put him in line
for a Nobel Prize; at eleven he started college; and at twelve he became a paid
university researcher in quantum physics.
The Spark
is a compelling memoir and is inspiring in many ways. First and foremost, the
underlying message within this memoir made me think of exceptional students,
and education in general, in a totally new way. In a world that tends to focus
on what we can’t do, rather than what we can do, life can become overwhelming
to an individual who seems so far behind the rest of society, either in one
specific area or in many. Everyone would serve well to learn a thing or two
from what Kristine applied to Jacob. Secondly, this book demonstrates the
profound intensity with which a mother can love her child and also exhibits the
extreme lengths a mother is willing to go to, to ensure the success of her child.
It was extremely touching and mind-blowing to see just how much time, effort,
dedication, and even money went into caring for not just Jake, but other
autistic kids as well. Kristine Barnett is arguably a supermom. Certainly
adding to this books long list of “pros” is the style with which it was
written. From the first page to the last word, I was intrigued. The story was
written in such a way that made it an easy yet engaging read.
All
in all, The Spark was enlightening
and eye-opening. It forces an individual to think deeply about what society is
and is not doing in regard to education and upbringing, and the faults within it.
Namely, the lack of emphasis on furthering an individual’s passions and talents
and instead focusing on aspects that society views as important. Though rare, Jacob’s
story is an inspirational one. Anyone who has children or works with children, with or
without disabilities, will take a lot away from this book and find themselves
inspired after having read it.
Works Cited
Barnett,
K. The Spark: A Mother’s Story of
Nurturing Genius. Random House Canada, 2013.
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