Hello everyone!
I apologise that it has been so long since you have heard from us – it has been very busy and I just about have time to stop and sleep! We will have many updates coming soon!
But first I want to update you about Deduako Life and Community Special School. Many of you may know that Afia started at Deduako in September 2019 which was very exciting and I am happy to tell you she is doing great. She has made many friends and her independence and confidence are growing. Afia has been placed in Agriculture class, which is perfect as when she vacates home she spends a lot of time helping on the farm.
Whilst the school has a good vocational programme where adults with special needs can learn shoe-making, beading, agric. For those with more complex needs, espeially individuals on the Autism Spectrum and with sensory processing difficulties the knowledge is still limited in Ghana and the interventions and education is difficult for the teachers. Deduako School has an Autism Classroom, however the teacher struggles to engage the individuals in most activities.
We have decided to build a sensory room and carry out Autism Spectrum Disorder and Sensory Processing Disorder training to support the staff to enable all individuals to thrive within their school. The room labelled sensory room previously had one mattress in a room with incomplete walls and ceilings. Currently we have put up ceilings, completed the wall structure, had electrical sockets put into the room and painted it a calm blue colour.
We want this to become a room for those who can become overloaded or seek sensory stimuli to come and feel safe. We would support the school staff to identify individuals who would benefit from sensory strategies and enable them to use the room often to help regulate their needs so that they can reach their full potential in class. Unfortunately, due to funding, the teachers are few for the amount of individuals within the school. Therefore, we need to take this into consideration and make the room safe and interactive if students are unsupervised.
Our plan:
- Soft walled Ball Pit with pipes on the wall: students can lie in the colourful ball pit to gain proprioceptive input and use the pipes to put the balls down and hear the noise when they crash back into the ball pit.
- Touch and Feel wall: A wall with a variety of textures and noises that individuals can touch and interact with.
- Soft wall: Offering individuals a safe way to rock.
- Sensory Lights and calm music: Calming sensory lights attached to the ceilings so individuals can lie on the mattresses and relax with lights and sound.
- Fixed exercise ball: For students to sit and bounce on.
- A variety of sensory interactive materials
- Organise and structure the ASD classroom using visuals and a timetable suited to the needs of the students.
- Train staff in Sensory Processing Disorder and ASD
- Offer ongoing support to the school, staff and students to ensure that the sensory room and training is put to good use.
To be able to achieve our plan we have budgeted around £300 to complete the Sensory Room and ASD Classroom – including flooring, mattresses, curtains, balls, CD player, sensory lights and materials, exercise ball, etc. We have purposely designed this room so that we can find all items in Kumasi and we aim to make some resources, such as some of the sensory toys, from local resources.
We are asking for donations to make this possible. If you would be interested in making a donation – you can do so at our website or email me for more information: www.familyfirstghana.com/projects familyfirstghana@hotmail.com
We are very excited about the difference this will make to students with Autism Spectrum Disorder at Deduako Life and Community School. Please help us to make this dream come true!
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