I mentioned in my post this past Wednesday how difficult it is to find fitness or exercise programs geared towards children with disabilities. It's also difficult to find places or people who encourage the creative side of children with disabilities. It's a task usually left up to parents or other caregivers, and that disappoints me.
I have seen some incredible works of art created by children with autism and Down Syndrome. I have seen beautiful paintings from children who are blind. And I have read some incredibly well-written poems by teenagers with developmental disabilities. But, more often than not, schools and after school programs dedicate themselves to teaching children with disabilities functional or life skills. While those things are indeed important, I believe that nurturing the ability to express one's self creatively is also important.
This is the first year Ashley has been included in a regular education art class at school, and she is loving it! She has done a remarkable job with her art creations, and she really, really enjoys her time in that class. It's something that I plan to insist on having in all her IEPs from this point forward.
(In the picture above, she is working on creating a castle - not bad for a kid who is blind, eh?)
That castle looks awesome. I used to volunteer to teach an art class at a social service agency I worked for before m was born. I loved it. Your post has made me think about that. Maybe I should look into starting something like that up again.
ReplyDeleteGreat Job Ashley!!
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