Make your school environment-friendly for children with physical disabilities

The specially abled children have a sensitivity like no one else. They are often more tolerant, accommodating and friendly, if you just give them a chance. While there are special schools for the hearing and visually impaired, there are still several other specially abled children who can be accommodated and accepted in regular schools with some efforts.

As your students are back to school for another session, how can you make your school environment more friendly for these special children? We have got some ideas. 

A welcoming reception 

Children are more emotional than we think. If they get a drift of a friendly environment at school right from the entrance, they start to feel comfortable. You can ensure this happens by making your reception area equipped with things that make the specially abled children feel at home. 

- If there are any steps at your entrance area, do place a handrail on both sides of these steps since children with mobility challenges put extra caution for going up and down the stairs. 

- You can get a metal ramp placed at the entrance of the building. The width of a wheelchair is usually 60 cm so the metal ramp can be made slightly wider than that. It is often an inexpensive gesture that goes a long way for specially abled children. 

- Install a bell with a symbol of wheelchair or walking stick at the entrance so any child needing assistance with walking may call for help easily.

- Make sure your classrooms, toilets are built on plane surfaces to make them easily accessible for special children. 

Training the staff for special children

Making your school really friendly for special children is not limited to keeping hearing, walking or visual aids. Ensure that all the assistance staff as well as teachers are sensitised towards the needs of children with physical disabilities. The staff must know the basics of hearing and walking aids along with being kind and gentle while dealing with such children. The special children are otherwise like any other child. Akshaya Patra, an NGO that has played a vital role in implementing the Mid-Day Meal Scheme in government schools in India, also serves in the Deaf and Dumb Industrial School in Nagpur Maharashtra. Several children from Central India regularly come to this school due to the friendly environment created by the staff and the wholesome lunch provided here. 

Sensitising other children 

One of the roles of NGOs in India is to teach the society about how to treat special children. A similar sensitisation is needed in all schools where teachers counsel and develop a sense of accommodation and acceptance for special children among students. They can be taught through role plays, small skits and stories of courage so whenever there are any specially abled children, the students are ready to welcome them with open arms. Older children can be encouraged to donate for education in India or use Internet for running online fundraising campaigns for small school projects for specially abled children.

Five Reasons Why You Should Invest in Education

‘An investment in knowledge pays the best interest’ – these wise words of Benjamin Franklin, one of the Founding Fathers of The United States of America, are timelessly true. Education is the most important tool for the pursuit of knowledge. School education in particular, is of paramount importance in shaping young hearts and minds and securing a bright future for them. Keeping the flame of education alive, though, needs collective effort and significant investment. One way to invest in education is to donate to charity, towards organisations that work towards it. The Akshaya Patra Foundation, an NGO that supports the cause of ‘food for education’, serving nutritious mid-day meals to over 1.6 million children across India, strives to keep the light of education burning in the lives of its school children.

Why, you ask, is investment in education so important? Here are five reasons for it:

To secure the future of children

Children are the future and they deserve a tomorrow that comes with financial, physical and emotional security. Education is a means towards this end. It boosts future prospects, encourages their dreams and empowers them to pursue them. Without it, job security and quality employment are difficult to come by and the scope for advancement is limited.

Education breeds gender equality

The world and all the wonderful opportunities it presents, is for both, men and women to inherit. Education plays an important part in freeing people from the shackles of restrictive, outdated mindsets. As the popular saying goes, ‘if you educate a girl, you educate the entire family’. Well-educated adults, thus, challenge traditional gender roles and help create a fairer, more gender-equal world.

A tool for nation-building

If a nation has to progress – economically and socially – education is the first necessity that needs to be met. A well-qualified workforce is a formidable asset that attracts and multiplies investment in the country, leading to more jobs, higher incomes, better standards of living and greater prosperity for the nation. It also leads to a rise in a country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). A sense of pride develops among citizens when a nation progresses impressively and provides them with great motivation to strive for its further development.

Leads to a healthier population

Education brings knowledge of health and hygiene. Healthy practices in daily life are adopted by well-educated people, since they are made aware and convinced of the rationale behind them. Be it everyday practices, issues related to maternal and child health, or general awareness about steps to take to ensure a healthier future – education is greatly instrumental in teaching people about the same.

It gives back to the giver

Donating to charity benefits the donor as well – it avails them income tax exemption. Under sections 35AC and 80GGA of the Income Tax Act 1961, every donation upwards of Rs 500 made to a registered non-profit organisation, is eligible for 100% tax exemption. Isn’t it wonderful, the fact that investing in education avails tax benefits for the one making the donation?

Education, thus, is the need of the hour and Akshaya Patra is striving hard to ensure that no child is deprived of it due to hunger. So, make the decision to the cause of ‘unlimited food for education’ and make a donation towards it now.

The Different Techniques to Ensure Children Enjoy School

Children change their minds more quickly than grown-ups. One moment, they have an urge to play, another moment, they want to eat something specific. What’s the key to keep them motivated for school without repelling them from certain subjects? At Akshaya Patra, an NGO in India, we have first-hand experience of coping with this during the Mid-day Meal Programme run in schools in collaboration with the government.  Here’s what we have tried and tested over the years. We are happy to share this little piece of wisdom with parents who often struggle to send their kids to school.  

Fun enforcement or no enforcement 

Make sure that you learn to bite your tongue when children refrain from going to school. While it’s good to hear their reasons, you must also be able to tell when a child is only playing you. Count the things your child loves about school. It could be friends or a games period or a drawing class. If you really know what your kid is interested in, you will know what to say when sending them off to school. For instance, reward your children when they agree to go to school without tantrums. At Akshaya Patra, we encourage children to come to school so they have nutritious meals. Our sponsors who often donate for education in India find it fascinating how our volunteers and staff keep the children always excited for mid-day meals in schools.

Appreciation

Children have a forgiving heart and so they won’t hold a grudge that you sent them to school without their will. Most likely, they will not even remember it. So make sure you develop a habit of praising your child for any big or small achievement in class. Always be a proud parent and get your kids interested in extra-curricular activities. 

Plan sumptuous lunch

We have seen mothers who would cook sumptuous and nutritious lunch as a motivating factor for the children to eat during school. Akshaya Patra’s Mid-day Meal Programme in schools ensures that the lunch served is full of vegetables, proteins, dairy, grains, oils and nutrients. Just the whole excitement of opening the lunch box during school often gets children excited about school. 

Assure help in homework

Often children find school dreary and a burden due to the homework. They often feel overwhelmed and scared. Always be the parent who makes homework a team activity. Ensure you are always around to guide, instruct and help the child as he or she sits down for homework. That would assure the child of an ever-present help and would motivate them to look forward to school. 

Akshaya Patra is an NGO in India that has been running Mid-Day Meals Programme in schools since 2000. One of our biggest lessons during this programme over the years has been that children need motivation at every step in their lives. As for the Mid-Day Meal Programme, the organisation is working towards building a sustainable network of kitchens to reach five million children by 2020. If you are someone who is considering donating for education in India, you are welcome to join our mission.