Summer Reading Discussion Underway
Upper School students discussed the all-school summer reading book with psychologist Christopher Overtree from the University of Massachusetts.
Upper School students discussed the all-school summer reading book “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time” on Friday with psychologist Christopher Overtree from the University of Massachusetts.
Overtree, a graduate of Princeton University with a master’s and PhD from the University of Massachusetts, is a child/adolescent/adult and family therapist with specialties in anxiety disorders, depression, cognitive-behavior therapy, and family conflict. He is director of the division of clinical psychology's training clinic for graduate students at UMass as well as an assistant professor of psychology.
The book, a novel by Mark Haddon, tells a murder mystery from the point of view of an autistic 15 year old, Christopher John Francis Boone. Boone is mathematically gifted and socially hopeless. He takes everything at face value, not having a “theory of mind.”
”This book presents the struggles that all adolescents face through the eyes of a person with a serious disability. Christopher Boone struggles to identify how to make his way through the world, and he negotiates some difficult personal, interpersonal, and family crises along the way,” Overtree said. “This book allows us all to see how ‘difference’ can be something that can make our lives more enriching, and not just more challenging. It can help us realize the importance of respecting our own individuality and those of our peers, family members, and communities.”
Overtree talked about the qualities that make Boone different and helped to explain how people with autism thought. He also talked about the realm of normalcy and personal responsibility.
”I hope students were able to take away some solid information about children who suffer from autism spectrum disorders, as well as a desire to explore the field of mental health more deeply,” Overtree added. “I hope they were able to challenge previously held notions about what it means to be ‘mentally ill’ and that they will help to encourage the eradication of the stigma that is still attached to mental illness.”
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Overtree, a graduate of Princeton University with a master’s and PhD from the University of Massachusetts, is a child/adolescent/adult and family therapist with specialties in anxiety disorders, depression, cognitive-behavior therapy, and family conflict. He is director of the division of clinical psychology's training clinic for graduate students at UMass as well as an assistant professor of psychology.
The book, a novel by Mark Haddon, tells a murder mystery from the point of view of an autistic 15 year old, Christopher John Francis Boone. Boone is mathematically gifted and socially hopeless. He takes everything at face value, not having a “theory of mind.”
”This book presents the struggles that all adolescents face through the eyes of a person with a serious disability. Christopher Boone struggles to identify how to make his way through the world, and he negotiates some difficult personal, interpersonal, and family crises along the way,” Overtree said. “This book allows us all to see how ‘difference’ can be something that can make our lives more enriching, and not just more challenging. It can help us realize the importance of respecting our own individuality and those of our peers, family members, and communities.”
Overtree talked about the qualities that make Boone different and helped to explain how people with autism thought. He also talked about the realm of normalcy and personal responsibility.
”I hope students were able to take away some solid information about children who suffer from autism spectrum disorders, as well as a desire to explore the field of mental health more deeply,” Overtree added. “I hope they were able to challenge previously held notions about what it means to be ‘mentally ill’ and that they will help to encourage the eradication of the stigma that is still attached to mental illness.”
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