The Deafening Noise amongst the Chaos!

Have you ever just put your fingers into your ears to just escape all those noises in around you? Living in crowded metropolitan like Delhi, such chaos, ruckus, noises are a part of your everyday life. In fact I start by day with my neighbors royal Enfield’s sound of its thundering engine. Then you have the alarm ringing, then shouting at your siblings for a turn at the bathroom, your mother calling you for breakfast and your dad taunting you for never being on time; now an everyday life is mix of honking, shouting, screaming, taunting etc. (My Poor ears, I just pray so much noise doesn’t make them bleed someday). We crave for the quietude and the solitude of a much more calming environment. Living through these noises, we take it as a punishment, and all the things about noise pollution levels rising, makes us even more wary of it.

But, then have you realized, what you consider a pain, is in fact somebody else’s joy. I am taking about the people who cannot hear. They are devoid of a share in the hustle bustle of the society, they do not experience the happiness that comes with hearing your mother call your name, they do not know how the melody of the chirping birds; they do not know the rolling thunder of the clouds. We complain about the deafening noise of the rambling city, they complain about the deafening noise of their quiet city. Close your ears once and imagine how it would feel to not hear your mother’s scolding? What would be the feeling of not hearing your own laughter? We take it as granted the ability to be able to hear, ask the people who never had it.

Thankfully, with many schools for the deaf and school for autism, addressing this issue, they are creating a society sensitive to such needs; a society which is becoming friendly to people’s special needs. A rambling society which will not be a deafening noise amongst the chaos!

Special Child, Special Parenting

When it comes to parenting a child with special needs –it is no easy feat. In fact, that holds true for parenting at large, for every child is special.

But if your child has a physical or mental disability, it is first and foremost necessary to understand that it shouldn’t be considered a ‘disability’ but a ‘special need’. So for children with special needs, it becomes important to have a special upbringing as well.

At MBCN (Mata Bhagawanti Chadha Niketan), these special needs are tended to. The completely charitable special school for children with special needs is not just a school –but a home. Recognising the specific needs of such children, the school creates specific programmes of study and rehabilitation, as best suited to every child.

Based on the ideology that such special children ought to be loved and respected as any other, Mata Bhagawanti Chadha Niketan has emerged as one of the Best schools for the blind in India. But they’re not just limited to that; the services of the school extend to a dedication to rehabilitate children with the developmental disorder that is autism, thus coming out as the Top school for kids with autism as well.

But whatever the special needs of a child are, the parents in question will also have special needs to deal with. And MBCN realises that parents require some form of counseling to be able to deal with the same. Just as the involvement of parents is crucial to the development of a child with special needs, counseling parents through the various stages of development of a child with special needs is equally important. Regular counseling sessions provided by MBCN aids parents to cope with not only the child, but themselves as well.

The first step in mainstreaming a child with special needs is for the parents to become involved and internalise the need for the same.

Schools for Special Children

Special schools are orchestrated for children with special needs; children with physical, communicative, mental or social difficulties are often sent away to these special schools for doing so is considered best in their interests. 

The enrolment process in the best school for the blind or in any top school for autism kids is not that difficult or challenging for it is not based on any official law governing the educational authorities. The best way to know whether the school is fit for your child is to ask a lot of questions and have all your doubts regarding the same removed. Try to put your child in some imaginary situation before he actually joins in and know whether he will be able to survive in the school or not.

If you are able to zero out on a private school, fees might come across as a cause of worry. But these days many organizations are offering financial aid and scholarship programs. Community support, scholarships and bursaries and tax breaks can surely help a way out with the fees.

The benefits of attending a private special needs schools are plenty. The curriculum is specially crafted to look into the divergent needs of the special kids and to meet the needs of each unique student to the best of his learning ability. Private schools usually allow the kids to learn and grow as per their accord, without being too overwhelming and rigorous on them. They provide kids with all the help before, as well as after the school. 

Private special schools also have arrangements for providing extra-curricular activity to children. This way, students can learn, explore and develop their interests and potential through a wide variety of out of the class practices like sports, dance, music and arts. These activities help them grow out of their shell.

Hiring Domestic Help in a Family with a Special Child

Taking care of a special child can become a little overwhelming you are trying to manage all fronts of life alone. Parenthood becomes a full time job while work and family stay just as engaging as they ever were. So, hiring domestic help to smoothen things out is only obvious. But before you do that you must realize that they will be your extended family. And being a part of your home, they need to share a friendly equation. Especially, if your child will be dependent on the helper or the arrangement includes him spending time alone with your child then it is extremely important that you have the right person for the job, says a teacher at a special school.

However, judging a book by its cover can be difficult. So here are a few tips to help you read between the lines and hire someone who is compassionate as well as skilled.

• Foremost, make sure that the concerned person at least has some basic education. Looking for that in India can be comparatively costlier but not difficult. This will ensure that if need be, you can rely on the person to access emergency help, time your kid’s medication, and a lot of other things advices a teacher at a mentally challenged school.

• Look for someone who preferably has worked with kids in the house, if not special children.

• Try to assess from their reaction, what they feel about your child and his disability.

• Ask them if they could manage taking care of the child if you were away for a while, even if you never intend to do so. Their reaction and body language will give you a fair idea.

• Word of recommendation from previous employers matters. Try to find their work history.

• Police verification is mandatory. Get your domestic help registered at your nearest police station, if you haven’t done that already.

• Explain to them the exact nature of responsibilities they are expected to take care of.