{"alias":"blogEntry","byline":"","standfirst":"Squirrel Dreys are doing lots to help young people, just like Oscar.","content":{"layouts":[{"type":"singleColumn","areas":[{"items":[{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Cp\u003E4-year-old Oscar is a Squirrel in Liverpool, who has selective mutism. Selective mutism\u0027s an anxiety disorder that affects your voice.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EOscar often \u2018freezes\u2019 when speaking with people he\u2019s not familiar with.\u00A0Oscar\u2019s anxiety and ability to speak depends on how well he knows someone. He can completely freeze and go mute, use nonverbal communication (such as a \u2018thumbs up\u2019), whisper to his mum, or be able to speak.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003ESelective mutism\u0027s treated by speech and language therapy. The therapy helps people close to the young person learn lots of strategies, which help them become less anxious in social situations.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EGoing to \u003Ca href=\u0022/squirrels/\u0022 title=\u0022Squirrels\u0022\u003ESquirrels\u003C/a\u003E has greatly helped Oscar. His parents talked with his leader when he first joined.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThey took on board some of Oscar\u2019s cues, such as using closed questions. This meant it took the pressure off Oscar speaking to answer. He could shake or nod his head to answer with \u2018yes\u2019 or \u2018no\u2019, or everyone could answer the questions using hands up.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EOscar\u2019s dad believes Squirrels is a valuable environment where Oscar doesn\u2019t feel pressured to answer questions.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"gridType":"gridImageBlock","gtmId":"gtmId","gtmClass":"gtmClass","image":"/media/18922/oscar-and-his-dad.jpg","width":7360,"height":4912,"altText":"Oscar is holding an orange crayon and wearing his Squirrel jumper and looking at a box of crayons. He\u0027s sitting next to his dad who\u0027s looking at him, wearing a blue t-shirt.","caption":"Oscar and his dad","link":null},{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Cp\u003EOscar gets to spend time with children his own age, and enjoying Squirrels helps distract him from his anxiety. His favourite part of Squirrels is being \u003Ca href=\u0022/squirrels/being-a-squirrel/the-programme/\u0022 title=\u0022The programme\u0022\u003Erewarded with badges\u003C/a\u003E!\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003ETypically, young people with selective mutism will find a way of getting out of social situations. However, Oscar enthusiastically talks about Squirrels and can\u2019t wait to go each week. Even in his recent nursery report, his teacher highlighted that Oscar loves telling people how much fun he has at Squirrels.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EWe\u2019re so pleased that Squirrels has been such a welcoming and positive environment for Oscar.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""}]}],"config":null}]},"searchDescription":null,"pageType":null,"location":null,"versionDate":"25 October 2022","reviewDate":null,"furtherReading":[{"caption":"","title":"Find out more about Squirrels","url":"/squirrels/","newWindow":true},{"caption":"","title":"Become a Squirrels volunteer","url":null,"newWindow":true}],"relatedLinks":[],"id":50422,"nodeName":"Squirrel stories: Helping individuals","title":"Squirrel stories: Helping individuals","type":"blogEntry","image":{"url":"/media/18922/oscar-and-his-dad.jpg?width=800\u0026height=450\u0026v=1d9becd22a7b690","caption":"Oscar And His Dad","type":"jpg","size":6889557,"width":7360,"height":4912,"altText":""},"assets":null,"headerOptions":{"headerTitle":"Squirrel stories: Helping individuals","headerSubTitle":null,"headerCta":null,"headerCtaText":null,"headerCtaLink":null,"headerBackgroundColour":null,"showSEOImage":false,"headerBackgroundImage":null,"quickLinks":null},"subHeader":"Squirrels is a positive and welcoming environment for young people like Oscar.","browserTitle":null,"silktide":"eyJjbXMiOiJVbWJyYWNvIiwiZWRpdG9yVXJsIjoiaHR0cHM6Ly9wcm9kLWNtcy5zY291dHMub3JnLnVrLy91bWJyYWNvIy9jb250ZW50L2NvbnRlbnQvZWRpdC81MDQyMiJ9","canonicalUrl":"https://www.scouts.org.uk/news/2022/october/squirrel-stories-helping-individuals/"}