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SOCIAL SKILLS (Acceptance and Inclusion – 8 )

SOCIAL SKILLS (Acceptance and Inclusion – 8 ) a blog by Jaya Sudhakar and Siddhanth Palaparti

Schooling experience becomes better for our children with special needs when there is ongoing communication between the parents and the school. Siddhanth’s inclusive school was open to suggestions from the parents and the therapists of the children with special needs. I used to source a lot of print material on inclusion strategies for implementation in integrated schools from the Forum for Autism’s library and share it with Siddhanth’s school counsellors. Likewise the school’s resource centre too would share useful material with us from time to time. Just as much as the school counsellors were eager to update themselves from the Autism workshops which I used to inform them about, they were equally keen to conduct workshops for us parent caregivers to reduce our stress levels and spread positive vibes to motivate us. So it was a constant process of growing and evolving on both sides.


In the early days, the school was open to allow Siddhanth’s occupational therapist to come and meet the counsellor, have a look at the classroom structure and give practical suggestions. Siddhanth’s developmental paediatrician also used to give updated recommendations to the school after every follow up visit. The school used the buddy system a great deal, the class teachers were picked carefully (generally those with more maturity and who were very enthusiastic about being part of the journey) and allowed access to the parents ( of kids with special needs) to join in field trips and the rehearsals before Annual Cultural Day and Annual Sports Day events – basically those unstructured events which changed from the daily routine and had greater elements of unpredictability.This helped to foster better understanding on both sides and made the journey that much easier.


There were monthly meetings with the school counsellor regarding Siddhanth’s Individualized Education Plan (IEP). Besides this there were the regular parent – teacher meetings and Open House for all parents. In the primary section, the teachers used to come to the basement every Friday for 15 to 20 minutes before school hours and we could discuss whatever we wanted with any subject teacher. This provided a good opportunity for me to interact with the teachers on a weekly basis and keep tabs on Siddhanth’s progress. I used to send Siddhanth to school by school bus and then hop into an autorickshaw to meet the teachers at the basement.


I remember Siddhanth’s third grade teacher Ms Vidya always showing a keen interest on his progress in his therapy sessions and was very enthused about supporting him in the classroom setting. If I would say that we were working on his asking for help, she would immediately suggest something like, “Do not send the eraser this week. If needed I shall prompt him to borrow it from his neighbour in class”. The compassionate teacher would also encourage many of her colleagues who were not directly teaching Siddhanth to converse with him whenever possible.


I remember once going to pick up Siddhanth and noticed that while Siddhanth was sitting in the basement waiting for me, he was engaged in deep conversation with another teacher Ms Rekha. She was enquiring from him about his Geography project – a model of a lake that he had made and carried with him to school. Her feedback of the detailed description he gave her was very encouraging to me.


Likewise there were the Open House Meetings at the conclusion of every semester which used to be spread over three hours. Parents could walk in any time during those three hours and engage with the teacher. I usually used to attend it somewhere in the middle of the slot as it was relatively less crowded at that time and I could discuss more with the teacher. Vidya Madam would often send Siddhanth to any of her colleagues in one of the neighbouring classes (whoever was free at that time) while she had a discussion with me. On one such meeting, I remember Siddhanth going over to speak to Rekha Madam. She later informed me that Siddhanth was conversing with her about his plans for the ensuing vacation. He had mentioned about going to Hyderabad but was clueless when she asked him about his ‘native place’. This kind of feedback would give me pointers about the vocabulary and concepts that we needed to work on with Siddhanth.

Developing good communication with the school authorities goes a long way in the acceptance and inclusion of our children in an integrated setup. The next couple of blogs will touch more on how with better understanding of Siddhanth’s social challenges, several well-wishers have intuitively helped him along his journey leaving us with the firm belief that where there is a will, there is a way when it comes to acceptance and inclusion of individuals with Autism in society in general.

Author Jaya Sudhakar

Jaya Sudhakar has done her Masters in Physics and was employed as an Asst.Manager in a PSU. Her son’s diagnosis urged her to seek voluntary retirement from service. She is actively involved with Forum for Autism, Nayi Disha and The Spectrum Autism. Friends,tending to plants, reading, writing, music, movies, travelling and a little bit of spirituality are her perennial energy boosters.

Typing of story in Word and Creative graphics done by CreativeSaathi Siddhanth Palaparti, Jaya’s son

Siddhanth is a budding graphic designer, coder and music lover. He has graduated in computer applications and completed several certificate courses. His work trajectory includes internships, freelancing and voluntary work for social causes. He derives immense happiness from remembering birthdays and wishing everyone for it. Swimming, travelling and playing music on the keyboard are his other passions.

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SOCIAL SKILLS (Acceptance and Inclusion- 7 )


SOCIAL SKILLS (Acceptance and Inclusion- 7 ) by Jaya Sudhakar and Siddhanth Palaparti


Art and craftwork in primary school offered a lot of scope for Siddhanth to learn new techniques and vocabulary from his classmates. The students were allowed to change places during these classes and this flexibility opened up many avenues for Siddhanth to mingle with more classmates in a fun way.The craft and drawing notebooks would be kept in the school cupboard itself and parents would have access to it only during the Open House.


So in one such meeting, the Class Magazine was also kept on display. It was a group project made by the students all by themselves.They were supposed to discuss with each other and create it with minimum involvement by the class teacher. It was aimed to foster the imagination, creativity and team work of the students.This activity had been undertaken in the last two periods of two consecutive days in the previous week.
Unfortunately, Siddhanth missed it as he was absent on those two days. So in the Open House meeting, I thought it would be a good idea for Siddhanth and me to go through the project.This would give us a fair idea of how the class magazine looked and keep us prepared for the next time around.


The magazine was created in a drawing notebook. It was filled with stories, poems, riddles, art and craft work – handwritten and beautifully illustrated by the students. Each page carried the name of the creator/ group of creators. As Siddhanth and I flipped through the pages, to our utter surprise we came across an artwork pasted neatly with the caption, ‘Art by Siddhanth’.


On enquiring, Siddhanth’s class teacher Indrayani madam revealed that his classmates had come to her asking what they should do to include Siddhanth’s work in the magazine as he was not around. Then the genial teacher had suggested to them that they could possibly cut a picture from his drawing notebook kept in the classroom cupboard and use it.


The class magazine project was one of those few school activities which happened organically at short notice and which Siddhanth missed participating in. Under the circumstances the tender affection shown by Siddhanth’s friends and his teacher remains an indelible memory in our heart, brightening up our days with its enduring fragrance.

Author Jaya Sudhakar

Jaya Sudhakar has done her Masters in Physics and was employed as an Asst.Manager in a PSU. Her son’s diagnosis urged her to seek voluntary retirement from service . She is actively involved with Forum for Autism, Nayi Disha and The Spectrum Autism. Friends,tending to plants, reading, writing, music, movies, travelling and a little bit of spirituality are her perennial energy boosters.

Typing of story in Word and Creative graphics done by CreativeSaathi Siddhanth Palaparti, Jaya’s son

Siddhanth is a budding graphic designer, coder and music lover. He has graduated in computer applications and completed several certificate courses. His work trajectory includes internships, freelancing and voluntary work for social causes. He derives immense happiness from remembering birthdays and wishing everyone for it. Swimming, travelling and playing music on the keyboard are his other passions.

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SOCIAL SKILLS
(Acceptance and Inclusion- 6 )

SOCIAL SKILLS (Acceptance and Inclusion- 6 ) by Jaya Sudhakar and Siddhanth Palaparti

Siddhanth’s school has been a big blessing in his life. The educational institution practised inclusivity in its true sense, nurturing Siddhanth’s strengths and supporting him in his challenges.The entire human resources department from the top management to the teachers and support staff followed the school’s policy of inclusion in its true spirit. In this blog, I would like to touch upon one of the many heartwarming incidents which remain ingrained in my mind.

In his pre – primary and primary school years, the children’s magazine ‘Magic Pot’ (a Malayala Manorama publication) topped the list of Siddhanth’s favourite things. The colourful magazine had many stories, comic strips and lots of activities which not only interested and stimulated him but also proved to be a big boon for enhancing his fine motor skills.The delightful gifts we received on subscribing to the magazine were an added attraction. Siddhanth loved receiving every issue of the magazine by courier and would get engrossed in it.The surprise gift of either a school bag or a pencil box or a water bottle would always add to the sparkle in his eyes.

When Siddhanth was in the 4th grade, once he had slight fever and had to skip school. He hated missing school and as on the third day he looked much better we decided mutually that he could attend school the next day. He had just finished his lunch and taken his medicine when an issue of ‘Magic Pot’ was door delivered. Siddhanth’s excitement doubled on seeing a set of stickers attached as a freebie. As he settled down with the magazine in his room, I got busy with my lunch and clearing up.

When I went back to his room a while later, I saw him working at his study table. He had stuck the stickers neatly on a drawing sheet and was busy creating multiple colourful arches around each sticker with crayons. Catching me admiring his work, he smiled and quipped, “I am going to give this to Indrayani Miss (his clss teacher) tomorrow”.

Well he did carry it to his school the next day but the story doesn’t end there. Two days later when I went to attend a Parents-Teachers meet, I was pleasantly surprised to see the same sheet prominently displayed in the class notice board.

Childhood and schooling for our children is all about such small moments of joy which add up to their life experiences and as parents, we meet many such individuals like Siddhanth’s teacher who light up our lives, in their own special way.

Author Jaya Sudhakar

Jaya Sudhakar has done her Masters in Physics and was employed as an Asst.Manager in a PSU. Her son’s diagnosis urged her to seek voluntary retirement from service . She is actively involved with Forum for Autism, Nayi Disha and The Spectrum Autism. Friends,tending to plants, reading, writing, music, movies, travelling and a little bit of spirituality are her perennial energy boosters.

Typing of story in Word and Creative graphics done by CreativeSaathi Siddhanth Palaparti, Jaya’s son

Siddhanth is a budding graphic designer, coder and music lover. He has graduated in computer applications and completed several certificate courses. His work trajectory includes internships, freelancing and voluntary work for social causes. He derives immense happiness from remembering birthdays and wishing everyone for it. Swimming, travelling and playing music on the keyboard are his other passions.

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SOCIAL SKILLS (Acceptance and Inclusion- 5 )

SOCIAL SKILLS
(Acceptance and Inclusion- 5 ) a blog by Jaya Sudhakar and Siddhanth Palaparti



Change of season brings with it a sense of moving forward as we realize that everything is transient and it is best to savour life as it unfolds in all its varied ways. As the rains recede, the months from October onwards bring forth their own set of festivals and celebrations.


In Mumbai, the schools affiliated to the State Education Board conduct their first semester exams in October followed by a break for the Diwali vacations. So the Navaratri and Durga Puja celebrations would often coincide with exams. That however did not deter the festive celebrations in anyway. In fact, the latter truly highlighted the beauty of the diverse celebrations across people from various states. There was a temple of Ambe Mata near our home which would come to life during the ten – day festival. A huge idol of goddess Durga would grace the pandal and a hawan would be performed on the ninth and tenth days. Everyday the goddess would be draped in a differently coloured saree adhering to the auspicious ‘colour list’ for that year. Women across sectors followed this colour code while dressing and it was a fun thing bringing in a sense of excitement to mundane routines – it brought about a sense of camaraderie and some light-hearted banter between those who followed the colour code and those who didn’t.


For us, Navaratri meant an amalgamation of Tamil Golus, Gujarati Dandiyas and Bengali Durga Puja Celebrations in pandals. Siddhanth loved visiting the pandals and participating in Dandiyas with friends. The vibrant colours and music of the festivities created positive vibes all around.
Diwali was another festival celebrated with a lot of zeal and fervour. Apart from the traditional exchange of sweets and savouries among relatives and friends, there was also the excitement of decorating the home with colourful rangolis, lanterns and diyas . Siddhanth loved the new clothes, visit to my sister’s place and the Laxmi Puja in our home which meant some quality family time. In the late evenings, our building kids would gather in the common courtyard below to burst firecrackers. Siddhanth liked the sparklers, Anars (flowerpots) and Zameen Chakkars more than the noisy ones.


Another favourite annual event which Siddhanth looked forward to was the Prabhat Pheri on Guru Nanak Jayanti. One of his closest friends and neighbour Harmeet Singh Narula’s mother would invite everyone down to the building courtyard early in the morning. The devotees from the local Gurdwara forming the procession would stop by and sing devotional songs to the accompaniment of musical instruments. The devout musical strains would enhance the serenity of the dewy mornings .


Christmas in December was synonymous with a sense of nostalgia as the year would draw to an end. Schools would give a break for a week. Siddhanth loved decorating the X- mas tree. The therapy centres would often throw Christmas parties. I remember once viewing the notice board in one of the centres. They had pinned small posts of the children’s wish lists to Santa in their own handwriting. It felt lovely to see that Siddhanth’s request to Santa was to give happiness to all the people of the world.The Christmas vacation had our building kids busy planning and organizing a new year party all by themselves and for themselves. Siddhanth was always one among them. They would collect money, make an effigy of the old year to burn and buy cakes and snacks. Sometimes, they would coax some aunty in the building to prepare some favoured snack and buy the ingredients for her.


All these festive celebrations are deeply etched in Siddhanth’s heart and the community celebrations contributed a great deal to his holistic development.

Author Jaya Sudhakar

Jaya Sudhakar has done her Masters in Physics and was employed as an Asst.Manager in a PSU. Her son’s diagnosis urged her to seek voluntary retirement from service . She is actively involved with Forum for Autism, Nayi Disha and The Spectrum Autism. Friends,tending to plants, reading, writing, music, movies, travelling and a little bit of spirituality are her perennial energy boosters.

Typing of story in Word and Creative graphics done by CreativeSaathi Siddhanth Palaparti, Jaya’s son

Siddhanth is a budding graphic designer, coder and music lover. He has graduated in computer applications and completed several certificate courses. His work trajectory includes internships, freelancing and voluntary work for social causes. He derives immense happiness from remembering birthdays and wishing everyone for it. Swimming, travelling and playing music on the keyboard are his other passions.

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SOCIAL SKILLS (Acceptance and Inclusion- 4 )

SOCIAL SKILLS
(Acceptance and Inclusion- 4 ) by Jaya Sudhakar and Siddhanth Palaparti



The rains bring fond memories of Mumbai, rains and Mumbai are inseparable. Even as the southwest monsoon leaves its magic over the island city year after year, every Mumbaikar or even a visitor has countless observations and multiple stories to tell about the ‘rain experiences’. Over the years, Siddhanth has thoroughly enjoyed the Mumbai monsoon in all its glory – from stretching out his hand to feel the first rains of the season, looking forward to going to school wearing a raincoat, sailing paper boats in the puddles of rainwater, to relishing hot ‘butta’ or freshly roasted cob (with a dash of lemon dipped in salt and spices) procured from street vendors. As he grew older, he used to have anxious moments too when dark clouds and impending rain delayed the possibility of going outdoors.


The peak of the rainy season – the months between July and September- brought with it numerous festivals and the joy associated with them.There was a Shiva temple near our home and Siddhanth loved to see the stream of devotees making their way to the shrine on the auspicious Shravan Mondays. One memory which remains etched in our mind is associated with the Brahmakamal flower.
When Siddhanth was around 9 years of age, he had a good friend in Hemant who was just a couple of years younger and lived on the same floor. He was a regular visitor to our home and the two kids would bond over board games. One rainy night, Hemant’s mother Shilpa went around inviting everyone in the building to come over for a few minutes as the first Brahmakamal flower had bloomed in her plant. As we all assembled she lit a small diya, did a small puja and distributed pedhas. Prior to this I had neither seen nor heard about the beautiful flower with its divine fragrance. It usually blooms only in the night. I had gone over with Siddhanth and my sister who was visiting us then. My mother couldn’t accompany us as she was in the early stages of recovery from a paralytic stroke and her movements were severely restricted. She felt very happy for us and listened to us with keen interest as we tried to describe the beauty and fragrance of the sacred flower as well as we could.
The following week Shilpa was delighted to get a bloom of three Brahmakamal flowers and that too on an auspicious Shravan Monday. She was able to offer a couple of flowers to the Shivaling in the nearby temple and guess what? She came over to give the third flower to my mother. My mother’s joy knew no bounds.The kind gesture was a big morale booster for her. We kept the flower in a small mandir in my mother’s room and the entire room was filled with its sweet fragrance.

The other rain festivals too brought several opportunities for Siddhanth to interact with our neighbours and his friends from the Sports Club. As our flat on the second floor was facing the street, Siddhanth’s friends would come over to witness the ‘Dahi Handi’ celebrations from our living room window. Raksha Bandhan saw Sirsha unfailingly tying the Rakhi to Siddhanth giving him a wonderful feel of the festival. Likewise the Ganesh festival meant visiting Pandals with his friends and cousins and the visits to the homes of many friends, where Ganesh idols were kept and worshipped with reverence for a few days before immersion.The processions during immersion were also interesting to watch along with friends from our living room window – the music, dance and huge Ganesh idols – the whole atmosphere getting charged with a feeling of bhakti and a twinge of regret to bid farewell to the Elephant God after his annual visit to the city – Siddhanth enjoyed them all, the noise notwithstanding.

Over the years, we realized that even though the heavy spells of rains in Mumbai bring outdoor sports and swimming sessions in the sports club for specially abled children to a grinding halt – all of which form a major chunk and significant part of the lives of our neurodivergent children and adults – the vibrant community celebrations of our monsoon festivals step in to compensate. They always offer a lot of scope for our individuals on the spectrum and our families to mingle with our friends and relatives and rejuvenate ourselves.


Author Jaya Sudhakar

Jaya Sudhakar has done her Masters in Physics and was employed as an Asst.Manager in a PSU. Her son’s diagnosis urged her to seek voluntary retirement from service . She is actively involved with Forum for Autism, Nayi Disha and The Spectrum Autism. Friends,tending to plants, reading, writing, music, movies, travelling and a little bit of spirituality are her perennial energy boosters.

Typing of story in Word and Creative graphics done by CreativeSaathi Siddhanth Palaparti, Jaya’s son

Siddhanth is a budding graphic designer, coder and music lover. He has graduated in computer applications and completed several certificate courses. His work trajectory includes internships, freelancing and voluntary work for social causes. He derives immense happiness from remembering birthdays and wishing everyone for it. Swimming, travelling and playing music on the keyboard are his other passions.