Mentally challenged and Summer Camp- concluded

1] Our students in Krishna Temple.

2] On play ground, trying cricket.

3] Padmanabh trying tabla at leisure time.

4] During evening walk.

5] Music and dance in our hall.

6] Punit Mishra try his hands on giving water to plants in our campus garden. He had a 3 year old child's expression on his face while holding the water pipe. Probably he was experiencing this for the first time.

7] The youngest, Shubhankar

Bidkar helping Punit Mishra in putting on his teashirt button.

8] Our employee Nilesh helping Padmanabh during bath.

9] Principal of SSS shaves Aditya Jogalekar.

10] Summer camp inmates.

11] Summer camp inmates.

12] This is during dinner time.

Yes, summer camp for our 10 mentally challenged students concluded on Monday, the 10th May'10 at 4.30 pm. We had a small function involving parents of these children and all our staff members. Mr.Alok, our recently promoted Principal conducted the proceedings. He did fairly well. Though there is lot of scope for improvement. He is off course learning. Mr. Alok talked for about 15 minutes and was following the points he had on his pad, a good habit indeed. He still does not give hundred percent eye contact but he is improving in this deficiency also. I know he needs improving his vocabulary for English and Hindi as well. Alok presented the overall formate of the camp including its objectives, daily routines, his observations and suggestions to parents for the better daily management of their mentally challenged ward.

Dr. Shailesh Pande presented the BMI [ body mass index ] of these children. He gave figure at the beginning and and at the last day of the camp. It was a interesting scientific data.

It was my turn to summarize the proceedings and the camp activity. I told parents that, me and Dr.Uttarwar being there in the camp through out, think that either we under estimate the child or in some cases and for the same child in some specific instances we over estimate the same child. Both the things are wrong. In the first place, we must learn to give sufficient time to the child to perform a particular task. And this time factor should not be as per our need but it should be as per the childes response time. Secondly, we must take care of giving enough number of opportunities also. I told them that, in first few days we also committed mistakes and than quickly realized and corrected it. Most of the participants performed when ever they were asked to do a act. In my opinion and through my observation I feel, mentally challenged and autistic children can perform provided we are seriously committed in giving them time and opportunities.

Our staff did a wonderful job. The whole thing went as per the plan and schedule. The power shut down for Wednesday from 6 am to 10 pm was the worst part of the camp. Though we have a power inverter, it can be used for couple of tube lights and a fan or so. My self and RMU are seriously thinking for a silent gen set. It is not only on Wednesdays that we have shut down but on many other days also there is a power break down as well. In general,our mentally challenged students have a very short attention time span and in addition if there are such power interruptions or failures or shut down then they are further disturbed and there performance is affected adversely. Mentally challenged severely lack adaptive skills and are simply at a loss to adjust to such situations like no power. Thus we are now exploring the option of having a 5KV silent gen set.

Most of the parents did accept that, they never believed that there ward can manage him self with out his parents aid. They were repeatedly asking us about what sort of problems we faced in managing there mentally disabled child during these last seven days. I personally feel that the hectic daily routine of parents and there life style preferences really matters as far as progress of their mentally challenged ward is concerned. It is our priorities which makes all the difference in our own life and its quality. It is like one prefers partying often to over come his woes and worries and other person will prefer doing meditation for more number of times for over coming the same problem. This same priority principle is applicable to the problem of mentally disabled and there parents as well.

By: Navin Deshpande, Secretary, SSS

Website: www.sandnya .org

email: navindesh@gmail.com

Mentally challenged and Summer Camp-Day 6

Photo no.

1] Residential camp participants.

2] 7.30 am, during yoga.

3] Dinner time at 8.00 pm.

4] 7.30 pm. recreation.

Camp of our mentally challenged students is going on expected lines. We do not find much problem. Gravity of the problem is a matter of approach we have. All problems can be avoided if we are pro active. If we know the limitation of students, then managing them in such camps is much easier. In fact what I have been observing in these camps since last more than five years is that, these mentally challenged children normally are not asking you any thing. The only thing probably they expect is to get what ever they are used to. A drastic change in the environment and expectation disturbs them. Since they are deficient in the adaptive skill, it is but natural that there performance level goes down. Having said this, in many cases we observe that what ever their parents have told us about his particular habit or liking or disliking, the child behaves contrary to that. For example, Shubhankar does not sleep alone in the night and some body should be sleeping very close to him routinely at home, his mother informed. But here in the camp, he slept on the independent bed with out any problem. One of the parents of the inmates informed that their child can not manage his toilet chorus independently, but here in the camp, he is managing his toilet activity with very minimum verbal prompting. Till this date all of them look like they are happy here except Padmanabh. Padmanabh seams to be reluctant from day one. He looks like in the shell and does not take interest in any activity or communication with his peers or staff. He seams to be under stress. And when on Friday, they were going for a visit to Lokmat Press by our school bus, he was so jubilant thinking that they are going back home. But for a exception, yesterday, when on the ground and playing football, he was participating and was enjoying the game also. And today in the hall during morning hours, he played tabla also. We did not know from his parents that he is interested in tabla playing. In fact, we had asked parents through a questioner, the relevant information regarding their child which will help us in better management in this residential camp. Few parents did provide the information though not sufficient but many of them did not take any trouble. All said and done, one thing is sure that our staff does a excellent job in taking due care of these non verbal mentally challenged children with out any complaint and with smiling faces.

By: Navin Deshpande,Secretary, SSS

email: navindesh@gmail.com

website: www.sandnya.org

Mentally challenged and Summer Camp-Day two

Second day of residential camp for our mentally challenged students went much smoother. The day started early morning at 5.20 am. After going to toilet and brush they lined up with sports shoes on for a long morning walk. Ten students with four staff members went for morning at 6.00am. They returned at about 7.30 am just in time for morning tea. They had their tea and promptly entered the ground floor hall for yoga. Finished yoga at 8.15 am and headed for bath. With school uniform on they were at dinning table for breakfast. Who says they are not manageable? We really do not face much problem with them. Arrangement for sleeping is in the big hall like in a dormitory. They enjoy this arrangement. There teachers also sleep in the same hall.

By: Navin Deshpande,Secretary,SSS

website: www.sandnya.org

Mentally challenged and Summer Camp-Day one

Yoga time

Checking blood pressure of each student

Students waiting for their turn

Taking height of each student

Since we have shifted to Sandnya Srushti, we have been under taking summer camp for our mentally challenged students. It is more than six years now that we have been doing this. My self and Dr. R.M. Uttarwar, both of us stay here for the whole period of eight days. This camp is meant for male students only. There is mail staff who stays with us to carry out the camp plan. The objective of this camp is to train the children in certain activities, specially in activities for daily living. Many times it so happens that parents are not in a position to understand how to get a particular act done from their mentally challenged child. For example, a boy may not co operate with his parents for going to toilet in the morning or he might not have toilet training or he might not be in a position to put on the buttons of the shirt he is supposed to wear or he can not eat with his own hand or he can not take bath by him self. Or he might be having some behavioral problems. We, during this residential camp try to address these problem areas. This is one part of it. Another aspect is to give the child an opportunity to learn things by him self. He gets a chance to live with his peer group and through this he gets an opportunity to learn and to get socialized with others also.

We have selected 10 students for this summer camp. The youngest being Shubhankar Bidkar. He is only 10 years old and has not left his mother ever since. The first day is always difficult for the boys and the staff as well. Most of them have not leaved with out their parents. They are not used to slipping alone. The routine will start from tomorrow. Dr.Pande, our therapist, took height, weight and blood pressure of each mentally challenged student. And all these parameters will be rechecked again on the last day of the camp. Our staff has to monitor very closely for their daily habits and routines, many of them are on certain medicines, schedule for the doses must be followed very meticulously. Today being the first day of the camp, we are receiving phone calls from parents asking about the welfare of their wards. They are obviously anxious and are not sure that their ward can stay away from them. Specially mothers are more apprehensive and doubtful. We know on first night some of them may not sleep quietly and might have disturbed sleep. They may wake up during mid night and ask for their mother. There is the real test of our staff during these moments. They have to keep lot of patience and many times scarifies their own night sleep also.

By: Navin Deshpande, Secretary, SSS

website: www.sandnya.org