MUSIC REVITALISES AND ENERGISES THE SOUL
Music plays a very important role in a child's development, as it can improve cognitive skills which are core to thinking, reading, learning, memory, reason and attention span. Music provides opportunities for teamwork and social interaction while teaching discipline and structure. It is also relaxing, and offers relief from anxiety and stress.
We've found that children with intellectual disabilities are passionate about music, and have associated things that they've learnt with particular music. We work with music teachers who epitomise the approach that we are focused on – teaching the children the way that they learn best. If you know of someone who teaches music to children with special needs, please help us to connect with them.
Our son played a piano solo in a recent small concert for children to gain exposure playing before an audience, where children with a range of intellectual disabilities participated. He also played the drum and our foster daughter with Down Syndrome worked with a shaker to participate in the concert. Hans has been learning music for 2 years, and has made good progress on the piano and the guitar. Mia has been in our care for approximately 1 year now, and her development is progressing in leaps and bounds.
Other students have a real talent for singing, which brings them great joy.
HOW CAN YOU HELP?
Financial sustainability is an important enabler of what we are able to do in respect of building facilities, hiring care givers, providing therapies and health care, transport and logistics.
Disability is not linked to socio-economic status or demographics, but affects children across the spectrum. We especially want to provide for those less fortunate, whose families can’t afford the developmental inputs and health support that the children need.
Mia has been placed with us in foster care. She has had a rough start in life due to a challenging home environment with issues including substance abuse and neglect that have held her development back significantly. Although she was 5 years old when she came to us, an Occupational Therapist initially assessed her at between 15 – 18 months developmentally, as she had received almost no input or schooling. We've worked with her, along with a host of teachers and therapists, and she is making progress. After 10 months of quality input and nurturing, and a lot of prayer, she was assessed at almost 3 years old developmentally in some respects. She has a long way to go to catch up with where she should be, and over the next few years, we will invest heavily in her development to give her the best foundation possible to equip her for a bright future.
We need all the financial support that we can get to pay for the ongoing therapeutic input and educational development of each child. There are more children to reach than we can support without your help.
