 | “Spoon feeding, in the long run, teaches us nothing but the shape of the spoon.” – E.M. Forster As foster parents to precious children in our care, we are keenly aware that it’s not what we do for them, but what we teach them to do for themselves that will make them successful human beings. It’s often easier to “spoon feed” than to engage the intelligence of the child, but we know that path leads to a dead-end. We only help those who cannot help themselves while nudging forward those that can. It’s a strategy that has been successful at Sri Arunodayam, and also because we choose to see children as innately wise and capable beings. Sometimes, all they need is to be pointed in the right direction and pretty soon they are making wise decisions on their own! In this issue, we give you a small round-up of activities over the past month. The pandemic has slowed things down in a number of ways, but life goes on and remains very purposeful at Sri Arunodayam :) | Celebrating Women's Day The 8th of March was an eventful day with several programs being held in honor of women at our home. The program was presided over by our Founder, Managing Trustee – Iyyappan Subramaniyan, our Administration Head – Chitra Deepakraj, and two special guests – Mrs. Prema Karthikeyan and Mr. Raja from Manitham who judged the debates and competitions. Many staff came forward to present their views on the topics for debate and it was an exciting mix of ideas that made the judges’ task much harder than they anticipated! The program ended with prize distribution and high tea, which the children thoroughly enjoyed. The children learned some important lessons that day, about honoring women and leading full, purposeful lives that can positively impact the lives of others. | District Child Protection Unit Officer visits our Girls Home On the 8th of March, the District Child Protection Unit Officer from the District Child Protection Unit visited our Girls Home as part of regular audits to ensure child safety and protection at all children’s homes. The purpose was to check the home’s records and the children. Satisfied and happy with his experience, he encouraged us to “keep up the good work of providing care and protection to children, as this is the primary need of the hour.” | Psychological Assessments Completed From March 8th – 23rd, the IQ Assessments for 89 children were conducted at our home by Dr. Varadharajan, Clinical Psychologist and Teacher in Psychology at CS Academy, Coimbatore. This is an annual exercise. 70 boys and 19 girls were assessed in March and the remaining children will complete their assessment in April. Tests of intellectual functioning are designed to measure different mental abilities including reasoning, problem solving, abstract thinking, judgment, academic learning and experiential learning. This permits comparisons of individual scores against average scores for the same group, which provides vital information about a child’s skills and abilities relative to their peers. Comparisons between group and individual scores are matched by age, culture, education, and other factors known to affect IQ scores. This activity helps our Special Educators and Vocational Instructors appropriately grade the children and set new goals for them to achieve in the coming year. | Children receive Polio Vaccination In January this year, all our little girls received their Polio vaccination, and on the 18th of March, Baby Sabari was given his vaccination shot at the Egmore Children’s Hospital. (Those who haven’t yet read Baby Sabari’s unique story, click here). India is Polio free for more than nine years but before the polio vaccine, the disease had killed thousands of people each year. Getting vaccinated is the best way to prevent polio and is best administered in childhood. | The stimulating world of Science! On March 20th, Devika Manoj and Richa from Blooming Seeds, U.S., conducted some very interesting science experiments helping our children explore the stimulating world of science. Around 20 children (mainstreamed and vocational center youth) learned about the catapult and Lava (through a lava lamp). There were individual and group experiments, which the children thoroughly enjoyed and asked many questions about. | Fun day at Funcity, VR Mall Around ten girls were instrumental in stitching 3000 beautiful cotton face masks as part of an outreach program for REACH (Resource Group for Education and Advocacy for Community Health), a key partner and leader in the fight against TB. The girls took 12 days to complete this work. We wanted to reward them by taking them to Funcity at VR Mall for a fun day! So, on March 22nd, our staff took them to Funcity and they enjoyed the day out. We make it a point to reward our children for any effort they put into their studies or work. It teaches them to enjoy and excel in all that they do. | Menstrual Health & Hygiene program for girls If able-bodied women find menstruation a challenge, what about those who are physically handicapped or intellectually disabled? When it comes to communication, interacting with the intellectually disabled and being able to convey information accurately is a tough task. It could be dangerous too if they interpret the information incorrectly and follow wrong practices. But the medium and method of communication was uniquely developed by our social worker Seena Thomas and Shiny Christina George, an intern from the U.K., who conducted the sessions on March 25th for our young girls. Instead of being spoon fed, the girls were taught to take care of themselves through a mindful practice of personal hygiene. | Please take a moment to give us feedback and visit our website for the latest news and sponsorship options. Sri Arunodayam is a secular organization with zero tolerance for discrimination against children regardless of religion, caste, race, ethnicity, disability or gender. | Sri Arunodayam Charitable Trust
Tel: 91-44-26511450; Mobile: 91-9444915803
Email: sriarunodayam@gmail.com
https://sriarunodayam.org/ | | |
