CHENNAI: A peep into life with dyslexia and other learning disabilities is what Sankalp – The Open School exhibited through their fest, on Friday. With a sankalp (wish) to change the perspective of people about Autism Spectrum Disorders and Specific Learning Disabilities and to promote acceptance, the school celebrated the talents of their students by showcasing their works, applauding their performances, and presenting what learning disabilities look like.
Celebrating differences
The students wore badges of different labels word smart, number smart, art smart, body smart, people smart, self smart and nature smart, based on Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences highlighting their prominent talent.
Emphasising that they are no different than anyone, the fest began with a drum recital followed by a dance with roller skating, gymnastics, and silambam performances.
Chief guest Jacintha Lazarus, the commissioner for the welfare of the differently abled, said, “I can see a whole lot of compassion and dedication here. We all do things differently and these kids are not different from anybody. Programmes like this will also enrich me in my role as a commissioner. This place inspires me to work with a heart.”
The fest reflected the spirit of the school a celebration of differences.
Lakshmi Krishnakumar, founder and director of the school said, “Awareness is the first agent of change and through this fest, we are trying to bring in inclusion and acceptance. The children have stories to tell of how they were not given chances to perform or showcase their talent in their previous schools. Here, talent comes to the forefront. We as a team are constantly learning and listening.”
From classes 1 to 12, the school has around 110 students, all of them prospering in their fields of excellence.
With the help of their class teachers, each class exhibited artwork and creations, including paintings, jewellery, bakery, recycled products, and puppets. Tanya Maria Mehta from class 12, the sports captain who aspires to pursue sports after school, said, “The fest was a fun experience and we had coordination as a team. Our teachers helped us to put up the show. It is for creating awareness that we are not different from other children and we just need to be treated the same. ”
Inculcating life skills
The school prepares them for the NIOS examination and trains them with skills like data entry, bookbinding, baking, lamination, jewellery designing, sports training, and other extracurricular skills.
The school also focuses on providing executive functioning skills including planning, organising, and time management. Sangeetha Karthike, the principal, shared, “The executive functioning skills will help the children to pull through in their daily life. The little things like getting ready for school or remembering where they have kept their things might be difficult for them. We address these issues and train them. Also, we conduct classes for social-emotional learning, to help children manage their emotions.”
Not bound by any type of pressure, and giving equal prominence to academics and co-curricular activities, the school instils hope in every child and parent to embrace their skills.
The officials summed up their upcoming teacher training programme, “We need to create a pool of resources and train teachers for the students. Upcoming training is a month-and-a-half programme where the teachers are taught the theory and given practical experiences of dealing with the children. We are inviting graduates and postgraduates in any field with a good command of the English language to apply. We are also looking forward to working with a lot of student volunteers.”
For more information, visit: www.sankalpnet.org