(CBS News) — When George Yionoulis’ fourth-grade teacher asked if he’d be comfortable making a presentation in class to explain his autism, the 9-year-old boy jumped at the idea. Instead of simply standing in front of the room and talking about himself, Yionoulis decided to produce his very own music video — and now it’s going viral.
“He doesn’t necessarily know how far it’s reached,” George’s mom, Lisa Jolley, told CBS News. “He didn’t do this to become a YouTube sensation.”
But that’s exactly what happened.
The fourth-grader from Raleigh, North Carolina, originally made the six-minute video to share with his 21 classmates at Douglas Elementary. He wanted to explain why he may respond to situations differently than others.
“Sometimes he’ll go over the top responding to something or he’ll get upset in class and other kids don’t necessarily know how to deal with it,” Jolley explained. “It takes him longer to process information — to see the big picture. Why should I be quiet? Why do I have to sit for so long while class is going? What we try and illustrate is that he has so much in his head.”
But at the end of the day, as George reminded his friends in the video, “I’m a kid just like you.”
George says he loves music, dancing, “Harry Potter,” Minecraft and tacos.
“I like having fun just like you, so if you ever see me playing by myself it doesn’t necessarily mean I don’t want to play with you, too,” George said in the video.
Read more and see video, here.
