Importance of ADL in Early Intervention Programme:
Self-help training is an integral part of the Early Intervention Programme. Motor learning and cognitive learning is important to achieve independence in activity of daily living. The following are the ADL skills achieved in early childhood
• Eating
• Grooming
• Toileting
• Brushing
• Bathing

Pre-Requisite Skills:
• Hand and finger strength
• Hand control
• Sensory processing
• Planning and Sequencing
• Expressive and receptive language
• Object manipulation

To improve ADL Skills:
• Visual schedule – In visual schedule steps are involved so that the child can easily understand and remember it
• Reward chart is given for independent completion of task
• Smaller steps – Breaking down smaller steps and support the child in each step
• Routine – Use the same routine at each time
• Consistency – Use instructions short and simple
• Allow enough time – Give enough time to do and complete the task

September arrived with activities and events galore. KLC was busy as a beehive, the comings and goings of children, teachers, parents, visitors and of course the celebrations of festivals which spilled over from last month to this. Coming to think of it, our country with its rich heritage and myriad festivals is the most nourishing soil for our children to grow in. Their sense of rhythm thus established gives them a grip on life. Making sense of this world is greatly strengthened when all celebrations and events come cyclically and they are part of it.

Onam:
4 September was Onam and the traditional ‘Pookolam’ came alive in the foyer. Children and teachers danced and sang with customary joy.
Teacher's Day:
5 September, celebrated as Teachers day saw the first half of the day being used for group games and movement. The teachers stayed back to watch a movie together. 'The Sound of Music' was enjoyed with all the teachers singing along and bonding over this evergreen classic.
School Doctor:
The school doctor visited on the 7 and 8 of September and many new parents met her with their children.
Field Trip:
Grade 7 visited the ATM at ICICI bank and spent some time understanding the proceedings of bank activities. This was part of their Economics block.
Meeting:
Dr. Maria Kapasi of AIMS media had a meeting with Gita, Shashi and Puja to look at the progress of children and plan ahead. The students are by far and large showing great enthusiasm and skill in taking these classes and we are grateful to the AIMS media group for taking this on.
Movie:
On 13th afternoon, Grade 6 and Grade students and teachers went to ABILITY FEST movie show at Sathyam Theatres.

Open Day:
The highlight for this month was the Open Day held in two parts . One on 14th September for the juniors . Kindergarten through grade 5B. 15 September was open day for the senior group who are in the vocational and prevocational programs. These were for the parents of grades 5A, 6 and 7.

14th September, Junior School Open Day for Grades 1, 3, 4, 5B and Kindergarten, started from 9.15 am and continued till 2.30 pm. Every class had 4 sessions planned for the parents, except Kindergarten who did not paint.

• An observation session of an activity happening in their child's class.
• A painting session with senior school teachers.
• A massage session with senior school teachers
• A whole class meeting with Gita, along with Lakshmi (OT), Parimal, the class teacher and the mentor. Grade 5B experienced an extra session of cooking with Vasanthi Aunty.

15th September, Senior School Open Day for Grades 5A, 6 and 7, started from 9.30 am and went on till 1 pm. Our Vocational training activities started in June 2016 for these students. Parents were given regular reports of their child working in the vocations, but they had never seen it. We took this opportunity to exhibit all our Vocations which had been happening this year with the students, to the parents.

The day started at 9.45 am with a meeting of all the parents with Vasudha, Gita and Lakshmi and many questions were answered. This was followed by the observation session for the parents of all the vocations - Car Washing, Carpentry, Farming, Preparation for farming in TS, Cafe Samarth - Cooking, Vegetable cutting, Juice making, Office Skills, Stitching, Paper Making and a special hands on session for the parents in Candle Making. Cafe Samarth - Hospitality session opened its doors to the parents by serving them snacks made by the Interns from scratch to finish in Grade 6 which was converted into a mini restaurant with all the trimmings.

The sessions went smoothly and many parents tried their hands in some of the vocations. Parents enjoyed watching their child working diligently at their vocation and some of them were taken aback at how much they were able to do under proper guidance.

We received many encouraging and appreciative messages from the parents and the two days were truly successful.

Teachers Day Celebration:
16th September was the day chosen by the Disha parent's group to celebrate and thank the teachers and staff of V-Excel . In a beautifully arranged program , with deep sincerity, the parents put together food, entertainment, lighthearted fun, appreciative words and thoughts and the entire organisation came together for a few hours in great comradeship and community spirit. Thank you Disha team. We hope to continue serving our children with you as partners. We greatly appreciate the efforts put in for making this happen.

Golu:
20th September, Tuesday, KLC had a small pooja for the beginning of Dussehra, with a small Golu, songs and Sundal.

Reports:
Students were given their 1st Term end reports on the 20th where their progress was mentioned and their goals outlined. This was the close of the first term in KLC.

Navaratri is a time when many homes in the southern states of India feast on colors, light, music, and food. Visitors are greeted with gleaming dolls, colorful Kolam (Rangoli) , lighted lamps, and traditionally dressed women and girls chanting slokas and singing. Traditionally, all family members participate in creating the durbar or assembly of Goddess Durga, which contains a multitude of idols of gods, goddesses, men, animals, and businessmen. This is presented in every house in the form of Golu. It is a festive occasion where everyone has a role to play, from the young children to the grandparents. Bommai (Doll) Golu is the artistic display of dolls on numbered tiers or steps, usually made of wood. The nine steps represent the nine days of Navaratri. At our center in Adyar, Sreyes, a Golu was displayed with a variety of dolls and celebrations accompanied each day.

SOWRUN

The 'Spirit of Wipro' Run (SOWRUN) brings Wipro’s run-loving community together and is the largest global employee engagement event of the organization. In India, the Run was held in 16 cities, including Chennai. Many of our trainees from our different units participated.

Interaction with Dr. Loveleen Kacker

Dr. Loveleen Kacker the CEO of Tech Mahindra Foundations came to meet us on September 20. She interacted with us regarding the Course and shared her satisfaction and happiness. Both V-Excel represented by Dr. Vasudha Prakash and TMF represented by Dr. Kacker shared a common purpose and idea regarding the ATE course and the discussions were positive and healthy. In less than three years, Dr. Kacker has redefined TMF's CSR policy and re-positioned its work into two key areas – education and employability. She is an accomplished writer with numerous publications in child welfare, art and culture to her credit.

Teacher's Day

Parents of V-Excel students organised teachers day celebrations on September 19. Mrs. Vaira Chellam, organised the prizes. Mrs. Bharathi Ambujam prepared and distributed chips (snacks), lunch and juices. Students of KLC and BLA participated in the events. Parents participated in events like dance and music. Games were organised by parents for teachers.

Mrs. Vaira Chellam (Pon Harish's mother), Bharathi (Kailash's mother), Shakila (Akila's mother), Ambujam and Elangovan (Akshayanathan's parents), Malathy Vaithianathan (Chimay's mother), Venkat (Sai and Preethi's father), Zareena (Vafir's mother), Dhanalakshmi (Praveen's Mother), Zainam (Zubair's mother), Swetha (Nilesh's mother), and Anuppamma (Krishna's mother) voluntarily involved themelves in the programs and highlighted the occasion with music and dance.

The month of September being the month of quarterly exams and Navrathri,many students could not attend the remedial sessions planned for them. So the holidays were planned for the compensations .It was easy to work with them effectively ,as they were free from their regular homework and tuitions. Apart from this, we had students coming in for Academic assessments. They came in directly with academic concerns. Some of them were referred for IQ Assessments and Occupational Therapy Assessments. For consultations coming in for availing concessions from the Board, the Special Educator joined with the Counselling consultaions,to get a clear overview.

Teachers across VRC were engaged in updating the IPP of their students. The goals were reviewed, and the Progress Report made .Every parent is to be briefed about the progress of the child along with the report. As a motivational initiative, VRC has decided to identify the Employee of the month. This would be based on the attendance of the special educator and the children allotted, the sessions, the use of resources and the upkeep of the rooms.

After the individual remedial sessions for few months, now, we think that we can group children in the readiness group to get them accustomed to the full day schooling model. Hence, we are forming a group with four children and two teachers. Their day will begin at 10.00am and end at 2.00pm. The curriculum will include pre-vocational and functional academics along with handwork, circle time, group play therapy, group games, activities, music and outings. The children will also be getting individual remedial depending on their needs. The routine of the day is well designed and the activities are intertwined beautifully for holistic development of your child.

Here are the happenings from BLA and Neev Schools

Bridges Learning Academy (Gayathri Bhaskar)
"The best teachers don’t give you the answer; they spark within you the desire to find the answer yourself. It is the supreme art of the teacher to awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge."

It was another fabulous and Hectic month for BLA .Teachers day was celebrated in V-excel on September 16th by the Disha Parents Forum of V-Excel. Students of BLA participated in the program and it was a proud moment watching our newly joined student delivering the Vote of Thanks. It was a memorable occasion for all with tasty food. We are grateful to each and every parent of Disha .A special thanks to Mrs. Dhanalakshmi who initiated our children to participate in the function and the entire staff for their participation.

Students with intellectual disabilities are not a homogeneous group. All do not have the same educational needs. An individual student's reasonable adjustment needs may vary depending on the requirements .Determining specific strategies for ensuring this clarity and precision, is an ongoing process.

Accordingly the syllabus was prepared for BLA- Level1 based on
• Academics
• Literacy skills
• Verbal skills
• Numeracy skills
• Comprehension Skills.
We could complete the portions for the first term for Level1 and the first Assessment test is scheduled for October-7th .For NIOS students, the coming days are going to be hectic as they will be attending the Practical and Theory papers. The students are being given practice through regular tests and the previous year papers.

Meeting with the Unit Head was conducted to discuss about the functioning of BLA and the teachers experiences in handling children and their goal setting.

Students of BLA-Primary had their 1st Term holidays from 25th Sep.The NIOS students were given study holidays from 28th Sep .Hoping to meet them all with Positive vibes.

Neev:
This month, Teacher Training workshop at Cathedral School, MP Anandh school and Malathi Matriculation School were well received. The topics included were child development and Transactional Analysis. Teachers enjoyed and gave positive feedback.

In all our schools, under our Neev project, children were giving their quarterly exams. This was the time, the teachers completed their documentations, prepared their progress reports and next term Individual plans.

The first Quarterly evaluations of all the school children were carried out during the third week of September. Evaluation work sheets were prepared and children were assessed by The academic co-ordinator Mrs. Sadhana Joshi and Psycholgist Mrs. Pradnya Apte. All the kids co-operated with their "examiners" and performed very well.

Our Regional director Mrs. Jayanthi Vishwanath visited Latur, a city situated in Marathwada region of Maharashtra to address a gathering of 800 Rehabilitation professionals in a two days seminar organized by the Government of Maharashtra. Mrs. Jayanthi spoke on two different topics: (1) Early Detection and Intervention and (2)Dietary modification for children with special needs.(Photo enclosed)

On 28th September, Durga puja was performed in the school followed by the children and the teachers playing Raas-garba and Dandiya. It was a joyful scene to behold, with the children dressed in colourful and special Navrathri attire.(Photo enclosed)

On the last Saturday of September, the teachers gathered together and prepared new IEPs, which shall be implemented during the next quarter.

Our Vocational trainees received a maiden order for 500 Newspaper bags from a Medical shop. The order was completed and delivered by the last week of the month.

The trainees were taken on a field trip to Dwarka post office on the first Saturday of this month. The Post-master explained the services offered by the Post-office and presented a post-card to all the trainees. It was a different experience for the trainees.(Photo enclosed)

From Gopal Jahagirdar in Solapur
On 4th September students made clay idols of Lord Ganesh with the help of Manohar Kanaki.
On 4th September Teacher's day was celebrated
21st September Mrs. Jayanthi visited our center. She stayed for two days and observed the center's progress
Mrs. Jayanthi and Mrs. Swati Salgar went to TATA Motors and booked a school van for our Center. Mrs. Salgar's effort in getting a donation of Rs. 2,00,000 towards the purchase of the van was greatly appreciated
23rd September Mrs. Sunita Vaidya and Sri. Raghvendra Patil went to Latur to attend a workshop in which Mrs. Jayanthi addressed the teachers and parents
24th September Sri. Dilip Kulkarni attended our monthly parent meeting and all parents were very happy about his involvement in meeting. He met with Sri & Smt. Gavande in their home and discussed the new building's plan.
FRom 21st September we started training our school's adult students in making brooms. One trainer comed everyday for an hour to train our students. The training will last for 40 days after which they will get a certificate from Zilla Udyog Kendra, Solapur.

From Abhyasa Kendra - Srirangam
Abhyasa Kendra Areca Leaf Plate Vocational unit has delivered its first order of 1,400 plates to Kinchitkaram Trust for their Navarathri Yathris.
The vocational food products unit has produced 10 kgs. of Paruppu podi with in week and deliverd at Chennai for Navrathri Golu.
Teacher's Day was celebrated on the 5th at Hotel Anbil at Trichy.
Vijayadasami and Ayudha pooja were celebrated on the 28th .

With two streams of trainees working simultaneously, the unit is buzzing with activity and movement.

The foundation group trainees have settled and adapted to our functional and vocational activities. They were exposed to a variety of activities individually as well as in group and their skill sets and levels of proficiency have been assessed. Parents were met with and individualised programs were set.

The production group has been very productive. They have executed large and small orders alongside regular ongoing production. They have been extra active as mentors to the new entrants.

Our trainee Mr. Vaithiyanathan and our admin manager Mr. Manivannan visited Sringeri to deliver the bags which were stitched by our trainees. Our trainees participated in Sowrun 2017( Wipro marathon) which was conducted by Wipro.

Foundation Group:
The foundation course has got its pitch. The trainees are able to do many products along with the vocational group. Our Foundation course trainees make tea daily for the VTU staff as a part of kitchen activity.

Vocational Activity:
Next set of Sanitary napkins made by our trainees are ready for delivery.
Gada bags from our unit which were stitched by our trainees have been exported to United Kingdom on specific order.
Jute Bags for Sringeri have been stitched and couriered.
Art and Craft the trainees have done bead works, coin bags and jewelry work. Two more trainees are now being trained in the craft work.
The unit received a different kind of orders for Dussehra gifts this year. The trainees were being trained to make paper bamboo products and many a person who saw them placed orders for the same. Our trainees made paper mache lantern, jute lantern, paper roll pen stand, cardboard lantern, ice-cream stick mobile and pen stand.
Apart from this we had the usual orders for thambulam bags and jute bags.
Bhoomi Mitra bags, our carry along shopping bag, continues to be a favourite.
The therapy assessments for all the trainees have been completed and programs for the therapy have been started.
On September 22th we celebrated Golu festival and invited all the units to VTU sreyes. The trainees of YES participated. Our trainees and staff members and trainees of YES sang songs. The highlight of the day was Master Sudersan's performance of classical dance .
On September 27th we celebrated Saraswathy pooja The trainees participated and worshipped. The importance of the pooja was explained to them.
In the midst of it all, we had Mr. Ramanujam in our kitchen at Cafe Samarth when children and staff from Alphabet School were our guests.

From Youth Empowerment Services:
From Rama Nagarajan's Desk This month YES trainees participated in two Marathons. On the five trainees participated in the 'WIPRO SOW RUN' Marathon.
On the 24th our trainees Ankit, Deepa, Harish and Gokulakrishnan took part in the ‘Run T Nagar Run’ Marathon where they honoured the participants.
In our Baking and Confectionery Unit, we received an order for 100 kg. of assorted chocolates from 'Chakra' a placement service company. Our trainees were able to finish it on time.
In our Printing and Documentation Unit, we received an order of printing 1,750 Invitation Cards and 400 coupons from the Alumni Club of Anna University.
We are proud in doing all the internal Printing Orders of V-Excel. Printing on 2000 Sanitary Napkin packing covers was done by our trainees. For 'Run T Nagar Run' Marathon printing on 581bags was done. Printing on 1,000 Chocolate boxes was done by our trainees.
In our Laundry Unit, we have started taking orders for Starch polishing of cotton clothes.
All our trainees were assessed for OT / PT needs. Shortly we are going to start our therapy sessions. Our Counselling Department visits regularly and meets our trainees and their parents whenever there is a need. Our counsellor Mrs. Sushama Sridharan also visits the Baker's Cafe where our trainees are placed.
In the Weaving Unit, on an average our trainees weave a stole in four days.