What I Wish I Knew About Autism, Blackness, and Early Literacy

By Ivory Duncan

I wish someone had told me that developmental milestones aren’t the gospel. That just because my son didn’t speak when the other toddlers didn’t mean he was "broken." That his curiosity, his laughter, and his deep engagement with the world in his way were all forms of communication, even if they didn’t show up in typical speech patterns or standardized checklists.

I wish someone had told me that being neurodiverse in America can be a bind if you allow it. That the systems evaluating our children were never built with them in mind.That too often, Black boys are labeled as defiant before they’re ever seen as delayed. And that when a mother, especially a single Black mother, raises concerns, she’s more likely to be dismissed or judged than supported.

When Caleel was diagnosed with autism at four, I had so many emotions. Grief. Guilt. Shame. But what I lacked most was guidance, especially around his learning.

I didn’t know how to teach him to read in a way that felt joyful.

I didn’t know which tools would support his brain and honor his identity.

I didn’t know how much of the early literacy world was rooted in methods that ignored kids like him and kids like mine altogether.

So I began learning. I immersed myself in the Science of Reading. I studied culturally responsive teaching. And I listened, to my son, to other mothers, to the stories buried between the lines of our children’s IEPs and report cards.

That journey became Phonics Flow, a curriculum rooted in joy, difference, and cultural affirmation. It’s not just about decoding words.

It’s about helping children see themselves as readers, no matter their pace, their wiring, or their skin.

It’s about healing the wounds we carry as Black families navigating systems that were never made for our thriving.

And it’s about what I wish I had back then: A reminder that my son wasn’t behind. He was simply blooming on his own timeline.

To every parent reading this, know this: Your child’s brilliance may not show up on a data chart. But it is real. And it is worthy of being nurtured.