"All compromise is based on give and take, but there can be no give and take on fundamentals. Any compromise on mere fundamentals is a surrender. For
it is all give and no take. "
Gandhi
V-Excel News
This month saw the beginning of active involvement from the Chennai team at Dun and Bradstreet (D & B), a
leading global information services and data management company. D & B has identified resource persons from
their office who will closely work as a team with V-Excel to understand the nature of our work and the processes
followed. The areas where they will lend
support are documentation and system setting across various Units of V-Excel Educational Trust. We are sure this exercise
will be very useful in standardizing systems, something that is so crucial for a growing organization like ours.
We recently conducted two separate programs in two different software companies. One was an orientation on disabilities while
the other was a workshop on parenting. It was extremely heartening to see these busy professionals spending time trying to
understand the finer aspects of children’s possible abilities and lags, while pledging to bring in sensitivity towards their
unique needs. We sincerely hope to have many such programs in the near future.
Kaleisdoscope Learning Centre
July has been a month of planning and assessments, as it generally is. The new students are being reined in so to speak
and the goals of the older lot reviewed, revised and detailed for the coming year. Parents’ inputs are gathered and after an
inter-departmental conference goals are set. IEP meetings were successfully completed between July 21 - 25.
Any visitor coming to school may really get flummoxed to see the various modes of teaching a particular concept. This term
the classes are all getting familiar with the location, land forms, boundaries of India and the teachers are using eurhythmy,
story telling, free play, and kitchen activity to teach these concepts. There has been a sudden spurt of knowledge gaining and
every child in the school has picked up something in his own style. This has been an interesting experiment and we hope to report
interesting anecdotes relating to the same.
Bridges Learning Academy
The new academic year has brought with it an increase in the number of students. The new students are slowly settling
down to doing some structured academic work during the morning session. They are enjoying their art and craft classes,
and Occupational Therapy sessions, in the afternoon.
A field trip to Birla Planetarium was arranged in July. The students were fascinated with the 3D show and the ‘Cosmic Journey’
show at the Amphitheatre. For them, it was a dual experience, excitement plus learning!
Practice for the ensuing Independence Day celebrations on 15th August has begun in full swing. Students of our various Units
will present different programs; our BLA children are busy learning the lyrics for the two songs they will be singing on the
Independence Day
Academy of Teacher Excellence
The one year Diploma course in Special Education – Autism Spectrum Disorder (DSE-ASD) commenced on 2nd July with a two-hour
orientation program. Fourteen, very enthusiastic and focused trainees have enrolled for the course. This first month has seen
the trainees attending lectures by Mallika Ganapathy, Sushama Sridharan, John Murugaselvam and Sheeba Roshan. To get a
perspective on children with varying needs and the different types of school formats, they have visited regular, special and
inclusive schools in batches of 3-4 and submitted their observation reports.
Rural Outreach Program
Twenty-two Special Educators who work on our rural program acted in the ‘Awareness Program Drama’ performed in the last
week of July across the 10 blocks of Villipuram district in Tamil Nadu. In each block, more than 300 people attended. A few
parents took initiative and expressed their views. They emphasized their child’s improvement in walking and speaking, and earnestly
thanked the special educators for their deep involvement in the service.
Counseling & Assessment Unit
The children who had been receiving Play Therapy have all shown improvement. Some of them will hence not require the
therapy anymore and we shall take on new cases. The children from the Vocational Training Unit seem to be evidently enjoying
their weekly session with the Counselor. Their interpersonal communication and expressions have improved significantly. They
also seem to have built better rapport with each other and hence the group functioning has become more synergistic.
We intend to extend the play therapy service to regular schools this year, along with professional support in the areas of
behaviour modification, counseling, formal testing and assessments.
V-Excel Remedial Center
The new academic year started for VRC with the essential question for all our teachers – ‘Are you doing your best in areas
where the child needs most inputs?’ Based on individual introspection, changes in the work structure were made and are being
implemented. Nearly ten children with Autism in the school-readiness group have moved to the full time program at KLC and new
children have been admitted in their place.
We had an unusual request from a parent who wanted to include their four year old son in our group for two months with the
sole purpose of sensitizing him to his older special brother who was diagnosed as Down Syndrome with Autistic features. We are
happy to report that the experiment has been successful, benefiting all concerned – the sibling, other children in the group,
parents and teachers. Thank you parents!
Orientation sessions were held for the parents of children in group remedial as well as for those with one-on-one training.
Introducing the new structure and inclusion of aspects of Anthroposophy during the remedial sessions formed the focus of the
meetings. This included experiences of ‘movement’ or eurhythmy for all.
Some snippets from our classrooms -
The young adult group welcomed a new volunteer with cheer and learned to get along with her seamlessly. What was
remarkable was that she spoke only Hindi and was totally new to dealing with children, let alone children with Autism.
The power of patience, understanding and cooperation, irrespective of the language barrier, was experienced by all of
us first hand.
Mridula and Sriram, both children with Autism, are toppers in their respective schools, securing maximum marks in most of
their subjects. Success with independent writing at school and reduction of transition difficulties are indeed very heartening
for our teachers
Vocational Training Unit
We have appointed a male special educator for the benefit of the male students. A number of ADL’s (Activities of Daily Living)
essentially for self-care such as managing own bathing, toileting, dressing, grooming, eating etc.) are more effectively
handled by same-gender persons.
Vocational trainees will all undergo kitchen skills as a part of developing practical living skills. With the help of the
trainer, the trainees in the kitchen unit will be trained to cook their own functional lunch.
The tailoring unit is also now operational. The trainees are learning to sew using the tailoring machine; initially they are
stitching straight lines on cloth.
The trainees organized a mock birthday party, under the guidance of teachers. The goal for this session was developing
independent organizing skills. The students were divided into teams – invitation team, food team, decoration team etc. A trainer
was assigned to each team to guide them wherever required.
A visit to the Theosophical Society was organized in the last week of July as a part of their monthly field trip. The
objective was to expose them and sensitize them to the serenity and beauty of nature. After their nature walk they were taken
to the camping site at the Society campus where a tent was pitched. It was a very different experience for the children and
they thoroughly enjoyed it.
Contact Info :: India:
V-Excel Educational Trust
#1 Norton 2nd Street
Mandaveli Chennai 600 028
Tel: 91 - 44 - 24620243
91 - 44 – 24956373 E-mail us or visit us at www.v-excel.org
Contact Info :: USA:
Academic Concepts, Inc.
1403 Merrywood Drive
Edison, NJ 08817
Tel: (732) 572-3748
Tax ID: 22-3632715 E-mail us
Volunteer Info:
Volunteers are an integral part of our success. Our most pressing needs are in the areas of occupational and speech therapies, and
as teacher aides. We also require assistance in library management.
If you have any of these and are interested in volunteering at V-Excel, please contact us.
India Autism: Trying Tradition
In India, old ideas are giving new options to treating autism. Liz Neisloss reports on that country's approach.
What is Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS)?
A person with CFS feels completely worn-out and overtired. This extreme tiredness makes it hard to do the daily tasks that most of us do without
thinking — like dressing, bathing, or eating. Sleep or rest does not make the tiredness go away. It can be made worse by moving, exercising,
or even thinking.
What causes CFS?
No one knows for sure what causes CFS. Many people with CFS say it started after an infection, such as a cold or stomach bug. It also can follow a
bout of infectious mononucleosis (mono), the “kissing disease” that drains your energy. Some people with CFS say it started after a time of great stress,
such as the loss of a loved one or major surgery.
What are the signs of CFS?
The signs of CFS can come and go or they can stay with a person. At first, you may feel like you have the flu. As well as extreme tiredness and weakness,
CFS symptoms include:
* forgetting things or having a hard time focusing
* feeling tired even after sleeping
* muscle pain or aches
* pain or aches in joints without swelling or redness
* feeling discomfort or "out-of-sorts" for more than 24 hours after being active
* headaches of a new type, pattern, or strength
* tender lymph nodes in the neck or under the arm
* sore throat
How would my doctor know if I have CFS?
It can be hard for your doctor to diagnose CFS because there is no lab test for it. And many signs of CFS are also signs of other illnesses or medical treatments.
If you think you may have CFS, see your doctor. Your doctor will:
* ask you about your physical and mental health
* do a physical exam
* order urine and blood tests, which will tell your doctor if something other than CFS might be causing your symptoms
* order more tests, if your urine and blood tests do not show a cause for your symptoms
* classify you as having CFS if:
1. you have been extremely tired for 6 months or more and tests do not show a cause for your symptoms AND
2. you have 4 or more of the signs listed above.
How is CFS treated?
Right now, there is no cure for CFS. But there are things you can do to feel better. Talk to your doctor about ways to ease your symptoms and deal with your tiredness.
