JAGRUTHI AIKYA NEWSLETTER |

Issue#16

Jagruthi
AIKYA Newsletter
February 2015

From the Director

Friends,
This issue talks about volunteering. Volunteering is
generally considered an altruistic activity and is intended
to promote goodness or improve human quality of life. In
return, this activity can produce a feeling of self-worth
and respect. There is no financial gain involved for the
individual.
One of the better-known benefits of volunteering is the
impact on the community. Unpaid volunteers are often
the glue that holds a community together. Volunteering
allows you to connect to your community and make it a
better place. Even helping out with the smallest tasks can
make a real difference to the lives of people and
organizations in need. And volunteering is a two-way
street It can benefit you and your family as much as the
cause you choose to help. Dedicating your time as a
volunteer helps you make new friends, expand your
network, and boost your social skills.

Our volunteers You sure are our assets!

JAGRUTHI AIKYA NEWSLETTER | Issue #16

While some people are naturally outgoing, others are shy

and have a hard time meeting new people. Volunteering
gives one the opportunity to practice and develop his /
her social skills, since we are meeting regularly with a
group of people with common interests.
Volunteering provides many benefits to both mental and
physical health, combats depression as key risk factor
for depression is social isolation and Volunteering keeps
you in regular contact with others and helps in
developing

a solid support system, which in turn

protects people against stress and depression while

going through challenging times.

Volunteers training kids on theatre skills

It helps one stay physically healthy. Volunteering is good
for your health at any age, but its especially beneficial
for older adults by keeping them usefully occupied. And
the organization also benefits because they bring their
knowledge and wisdom to the organization.
Volunteering increases self-confidence, provides a
healthy boost to your self-esteem, self worth and life
satisfaction.
Few of our volunteers share their experiences here and
we also see the impact of their work depicted here. Let
us celebrate our volunteers.
Parvathy Viswanath

It all starts young Right from school

Founder Director

JAGRUTHI AIKYA NEWSLETTER | Issue #16

Life Lessons from Volunteering

Shalini Ilanahai

What if every child is nurtured to realize his true potential? The Element, a book by world-renowned
creativity expert Ken Robinson sparked this beautiful question in my mind. In the book, the author
illustrates how encouraging a child to find his/her element can change their life forever with the story
of Gillian Lynne, a successful choreographer.
So what is unique about her? As a child, Gillian could never sit still, she disrupted class and was labelled
a trouble maker. But Gillian also loved to dance. Her footwork was flawless. Her parents realized her
potential and did not let her learning disorder define her life. Soon enough, Gillian joined the Royal
ballet Company to become a world class performer. Gillian, in her own words, describes herself as
someone who had to move to think.
Her story resonated with me. When I was volunteering in Aikya, I realized the importance of reading the
signs and helping children with special needs express themselves best. Keeping this in my mind, I finetuned my lesson-planning with the following exercises:

Creative problem solving: Many children with Autism spectrum disorders have a fondness for
bikes, cars and trains. One of my students has a fascination for bikes. Tapping into his
enthusiasm for bikes, we worked out Maths problem related to automobiles for fun.

Writing a journal: This involved keeping a journal to help the child focus and write about
personal experiences .I tried this as an experiment with one of my students who had Aspergers
syndrome. Drawing from the rich sights, smells and sounds he experienced during his train
journey from home to school he penned his thoughts everyday in the journal with my
assistance. Some days, we even gave poetry writing a shot to help him see the world with a
different set of lens.

Visual mapping: I found this as an effective strategy for slow learners. Tough concepts in
Science and Social science can be made simplified by drawing flow charts to help the child
connect the ideas.

Rhythm: Reading aloud rhymes turned out to be an interesting way to engage children with
fondness for repetition and rhythm.

JAGRUTHI AIKYA NEWSLETTER | Issue #16

Life-skills: Trips to the neighborhood grocery store which comprised activities such as
shopping, money- counting and vegetable - cutting helped my students develop social skills
and motor skills.

Storytelling: As part of our storytelling sessions, we read aloud stories and captured the
characters of the story on paper to give room to their imagination.

Making handicrafts: An exercise that not only fostered creativity, but also helped my
students understand group work. Some of them also learnt to share their stationery and
stay on task without my help.

Volunteers with the kids During drawing sessions

Encouraging children with special needs to find their element not only boosts the confidence level,
but also motivates them to make sense of the world, in their own way. Of course, the medium of selfexpression may vary for each child. One size does not fit all. While one child may prefer doodling,
another may find solace in music. Or, like Gillian, some children may like to move to think. The big
idea, however, is to find a way to teach the child the way he/she learns. Volunteering with Aikya
taught me this valuable life-lesson.

JAGRUTHI AIKYA NEWSLETTER | Issue #16

Volunteers training kids on Cricket & Football

Music sessions by Volunteers at AIKYA

I have known AIKYA and Parvathy ma'am for quite sometime now. I see Parvathy ma'am more
of a teacher or a guide than the founder of AIKYA because anyone can start a school but not everyone
can provide good guidance. It is guidance that is most needed in today's society. Apart from her
phenomenal contribution towards special children, she serves as an inspiration to all by setting an
example that nothing is impossible. This makes us believe in ourselves and her constant motivation
drives us to aspire more. Very often she used to share her experiences that used to answer many
questions in my mind and helped me teach better. Parvathy madams indefatigable energy and
enthusiasm has always made me admire her. She is truly one of a kind and I wish that her good work
continues to reach great heights.
Srilakshmi Ramaswamy

JAGRUTHI AIKYA NEWSLETTER | Issue #16

Paint Your Way!

Its show time! All of us are attracted to
colors and with kids the joy just multiplies. Come
Saturdays and you can see all our kids busy with
their coloring books and charts, creating marvelous
strokes of scenic beauty from their books and
things around.

Frequent drawing sessions are conducted

where they are given specific themes and in no
time the kids come back asking for more. They
astonish you with their beautiful paintings and one
is sure to stand awestruck by the very enthusiasm
they show. Such sessions motivate and help build
confidence in them.

Holiday Projects
Home works?!? On holidays? Most of the
school kids might even hate to hear this! But for
our kids it means total fun. Exciting projects on
Science and Social Studies are given during the
holidays, based on their levels, to make them think
beyond theirJagruthi
books and improve their creativity.

JagruthiThe kids surprised us when they were back from the

winter vacation. Few of them brought charts that
explained Traffic Rules, one of them made a chart on
the Classification of Animal Kingdom and others
brought a mini herbarium explaining different
medicinal plants. Awesome, right..?!?

JAGRUTHI AIKYA NEWSLETTER | Issue #16

Jagruthi

It was during a 5-day health camp held in the 1970s. I was in the starting stages of
my career and had presented a seminar during the event. Many people who were mentally
challenged had gathered for the camp. I was confronted with mixed emotions when I
realized that there were indeed many challenged individuals in the society who deserved
better care and opportunities like their so-called normal counterparts. I often wondered,
Are there people in this world who really care for the challenged lot? Without any profit in
return? Well, my questions remained unanswered until I happened to meet her Mrs.
Parvathy Viswanath.
Lionism brought us together. We have worked on several projects and I must say
there are very few who are with such commitment. And definitely, there is a scarcity for
people who are dedicated and self-less in todays world. She took it as a challenge to train
kids with different disabilities and bring them to near normalcy. I have referred some of the
children to be trained at AIKYA and have received wonderful feedbacks about her training
from the parents. Her undivided attention and practical training has helped many such kids
to be included in the society.
And as a mother, she has been phenomenal in bringing up her son Prabhu as an
independent individual with such grace and it awes me to hear that he is gainfully
employed now in mainstream. Isnt that commendable? I have seen parents of special
children who go through an emotional turmoil and very few come out of it. Accepting and
facing reality is a challenge in itself. Mrs. Parvathy Viswanath has been inspiring and
helping parents to change the lives of their kids by methodical training.

This biography, Challenging

Infirmity, is truly a tribute to
the commendable services
rendered, and the positive
impact made, by Mrs. Parvathy
Viswanath on the lives of so
many people associated with
her.

Available as E-Book at :
http://pothi.com/pothi/book/e
book-r-komalavalli-challenginginfirmity
For hardcopies, write to:
books.aikyafoundation@gmail.com

A disciplinarian and respectful person, she does justice to whichever post she
takes up. Someone who never falls for flattery. There are people who work for recognitions
or awards. But she is someone who seldom cares about it. All that matters to her is service
and the maximum lives she can change for good. Once I happened to attend a program
where her son performed and won prizes. The first that came to my mind is her
determination and dedication in bringing up the challenged kid to such level. She never
shows the agony that she might experience but keeps up the spirit.
People who meet her for the first time might mistake her strong personality for
toughness. But once you get to know her, she will be the most humble and affectionate
person one will ever see.
Indeed she is an epitome of service to be emulated by others.
PMJF Lion Prof. Dr. K. Gireesh
Neuro Paediatrician & Neuro Surgeon

An excerpt from Challenging Infirmity

Do you want to volunteer with AIKYA?

Please call 9444960643 or mail to AIKYAfoundation1989@gmail.com

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