V-Excel One time funding request Supporting Therapy Services for children with special needs

V-Excel- Overview http://www.v-excel.org/ and https://www.facebook.com/freehearts Based in Mandavelli, Chennai Non-profit, non-religious, non-sectarian and non- discriminatory organization Cater to children with special needs Dr. Vasudha Prakash is Founder-Director and did Special Ed in NJ before moving to India Since 2001, Asha Seatle supported since 2006 Asha Seattle support scholarships for deserving children

V-Excel Vision Mission a world that believes in human potential, where individuals with special needs can integrate and contribute to mainstream society. Mission create an environment where individuals with special needs can grow to lead dignified, independent, and productive lives in society. With a unique holistic approach, we work on the all-round development of every individual’s abilities, rather than their disabilities.

Focus Core philosophy is that every child has the potential to learn and that the focus should be on abilities, not disabilities Early Intervention group for infant and toddlers. School group for school going children group (6 to 14 years of age). Pre- vocation group Vocation group for children learning a vocation – 14 to 25 years of age Remedial group for group for Regular children with some learning disabilities

One time funding request

Supporting Therapy Services for children with special needs Children with developmental challenges are most comfortable in a positive, safe, educational environment with caring adults who accept them unconditionally. V-Excel recognizes this and is unrelenting in its effort to provide excellent infrastructure, facilities, and trained professionals that make learning effective and a joy for the children. Children with Autism, as well as those with other developmental disabilities, have a dysfunctional sensory system and hence face sensory integration problems. One or more senses are either over - or under-reactive to stimulation and results in behaviors like rocking, spinning, and hand-flapping. Gross and/or fine motor coordination problems are also common when these three systems are dysfunctional and manifests in speech/language delays, social inappropriateness, and academic under-achievement. Behaviorally, challenged children become impulsive, easily distractible, and may react with frustration, aggression, or at times, withdrawal. We extensively use Occupational Therapy (OT), Sensory Integration (SI) and Neuro-development Therapy (NDT) that necessitate use of specialized setup and products for developing their gross and fine motor skills, visual/auditory perception and processing, vestibular- proprioceptive and other sensorimotor abilities. At V-Excel, these therapies are an integral part of our program for calming down disturbed children, putting them in a susceptible frame of mind and body for learning, and holistically addressing all the development domains.

Request for Supporting Therapy services Sensory Integration (SI) - Creating a Perceptual Motor Park for therapeutic play At V-Excel, we want to create a Percepto-Motor park in our Chennai premises. This is a sensory rich play arena that helps children with special needs develop perceptions and understanding of themselves and the word around them. It aids them in overcoming their physical, cognitive, emotional, or social difficulties in a fun and therapeutic manner. The enrichment of perceptual motor skills positively impacts the overall development of the learning potential of children due to improvement in Physical fitness activities to improve muscular strength, endurance and flexibility. Body awareness, balance and spatial orientation Eye/Hand/Foot Coordination Locomotion Eye Tracking Fine motor and visual perception/discrimination Group activities to improve communication and social skills. Our school building has a backyard where we have open sand and play area. We would like to use this optimally for children with special needs for giving them various sensory experiences for their development that facilitates their learning. Swings and a variety of other sensory inputs are necessary as therapies for children with neuro-developmental issues. Beneficiaries of your support : We anticipate about 100 special children to benefit from these therapy services. Estimated Cost: Rs. 2,90,000

Request for Supporting Therapy services Neuro-development Therapy – Setting up a Skating Rink Skating is advantageous in that it may be enjoyed on a competitive or recreational basis as well as in individual or group settings. This is important considering the barriers individuals with autism face with regard to social interaction as well as fewer opportunities for participation in community-based physical activity and sport. A structured therapeutic skating intervention helps develop on motor outcomes and functional capacity. It helps children in improving their balance, motor behavior, and functional capacity for their daily living activities. It produces physical benefits for children with autism spectrum disorder and offers a viable, community-based alternative to other forms of physical activity. The benefits of skating include: To socialize with other children at every session To have the joy of skating as a recreational activity To help in neuro and vestibular development To develop control mechanisms in motor movements To build focus and balance by skating forward with/without assistance To improve balance, motor development, skating skills, and speed To reduce activity limitations and functional impairments Setting up a skating rink comprises of the flooring work and sketching, skating rink, accessories, chain barricades for safety of children. Beneficiaries of your support : We anticipate about 100 special children to benefit from these therapy services. Estimated Cost: Rs. 2,25,000

Request for Supporting Therapy services Occupational Therapy (OT) - Engaging therapists and professionals The overall goal of Occupational Therapy is to help the person with autism improve his or her quality of life at home and in school. The therapist helps introduce, maintain, and improve skills so that individuals with autism and other disabilities can be learn functional ADLs (Activities of Daily Living) for self care. These are some of the skills occupational therapy fosters: Daily living skills, such as toilet training, dressing, brushing teeth, and other grooming skills Fine motor skills required for holding objects while handwriting or cutting with scissors Gross motor skills used for walking, climbing stairs, or riding a bike Sitting, posture, or perceptual skills, such as telling the differences between colors, shapes, sizes Awareness of his or her body and its relation to others Visual skills for reading and writing Play, coping, self-help, problem solving, communication, and social skills The services we offer are all extremely resource intensive. While we charge some fees, these are far from adequate to cover the intense essential services we provide keeping the special child’s development in mind. Apart from the infrastructural need, our challenge is to hire and retain trained professionals such as Occupational-Therapists and Physio-Therapists that have other lucrative job options. They form an important part of our multi-disciplinary team and bring significant value to a child’s development. We request your support for offering good therapies services. Beneficiaries of your support : We anticipate about 100 special children to benefit from these therapy services. Estimated Cost: Rs. 9,00,000

Thank you Through all the above therapies, children with Autism and other developmental disabilities: Develop peer and adult relationships Learn how to focus on tasks Learn how to delay gratification Express feelings in more appropriate ways Engage in play with peers Learn how to self-regulate Your contribution will go a long way in ensuring that children with disabilities are able to gain independence and lead productive lives in mainstream society.