Abu Dhabi: School opens therapy room to support students of determination

Abu Dhabi: Empowering students of determination and their families, an Indian school in Abu Dhabi has launched a new therapy room to offer specialised therapeutic services.

Mayoor Private School, the winner of the Best Inclusive Practices Award last year from the Abu Dhabi Department of Education and Knowledge (ADEK), invested the award’s cash prize into opening an on-site ‘TheraNest’ facility. It provides speech and occupational therapy to students with additional learning needs. In addition to the school’s inclusion team, therapists from medical and rehabilitation centres will assist the students.

Philip Thompson, Office Director for Student of Determination at ADEK, noted that having a therapy room and specialist services accessible within schools not only supports the well-being of children but also meets the practical needs of their families.

“Mayoor has specialists from licenced clinical centres coming to the school to meet the needs of the children. This is exactly what we’re looking for all schools to do,” he told Gulf News after inaugurating ‘TheraNest’.

The room features a climbing wall, monkey bars, rope ladder, swing, physio balls for exercise, a sensory board with activity panels, a mini trampoline, and other elements designed to develop motor, sensory, behavioural, emotional, and communication skills.

“The school’s commitment, demonstrated by the sheer resources they’ve invested, truly highlights their dedication to providing inclusive education,” Thompson said.

Inclusion department

Dr Annahita Pagdiwalla, Principal, pointed out that Mayoor was the first CBSE school in Abu Dhabi to launch an inclusion department back in 2014.

“We have been implementing inclusion activities since 2014. We are passionate about it. With this therapy room, we are offering students additional resources to develop their abilities. We are training our teachers and expanding our inclusion team to meet the needs of students of determination,” she said.

Developing skills

The school currently has 62 students of determination across different grades, as well as 18 other students who require support. Among the students of determination are those with autism, Down syndrome, speech, language and communication disorders, intellectual disabilities, and more.

Lopamudra Dutta, Head of the Inclusion Department, said that the therapy room represents a safe space where students of determination can develop essential executive function skills.

“Furthermore, having this facility on-site eases the stress and inconvenience for parents, eliminating the need for them to travel back and forth between therapy centers and home,” she added.

The core inclusion team includes Sakina Godhrawala, Khushnavaz Bhathena, and Bhavisha Dedhia, among others.

Parent ambassador

Dr Nidhi Mahajan, a parent ambassador appointed by the school to connect with other parents, underlined the importance of therapy for students of determination. Her son, Tanmay, who has autism spectrum disorder, joined KG1 in 2016 and is now in Grade 7.

“Intensive therapies are crucial for such students. Occupational and speech therapies, especially for fine motor skills, are essential. Tanmay has greatly benefited from the inclusion department. Now, we don’t have to worry about taking him to therapy sessions outside of school hours, as the therapy will be conducted during school time,” she said.