Teacher to the aid

Special needs children learn 'not to waste' in art class

Seven special needs children are bent intently over their task of creating cards. Rushda Bahaudeen, the new art and craft teacher at Rashid Paediatric Therapy Centre for special needs children holds the trembling hand of an autistic child as she helps her cut the card into shape.

Gentle and warm, what makes Rushda different from other art and craft teachers is the material she uses for her work. Most things that end up in the wastebasket in regular homes are hoarded neatly in a cupboard.

With "do not waste anything" as a motto, she turns all kind of waste products like discarded tissue boxes, tins, lollipop sticks and even toothpaste lids into beautiful artwork.

The cards that the children are making, for example, are made from 100 per cent waste products. She recycles paper with the children using scraps of paper, onion peel, a kitchen blender and a sieve. With a few dried flowers and twigs salvaged out of a bouquet someone threw away stuck in the right angle, the result is simple and professional.

"The task has to be very simple, but still the end result should be professional," says Rushda.

"A lot of these children, especially those with Down's syndrome, have a creative element in them. If you can tap that, give them some training in what they are good at, it could be useful to them later on in life. The joy is in the fact that you are giving some ray of hope to these children by imparting whatever creativity you have," she adds.

An English graduate from Sri Lanka and a teacher by profession, Bahaudeen joined Sheikh Rashid Centre two years ago as an assistant teacher. Her creative talent soon shone through as she, together with another senior teacher Radhiya Dawood, prepared for their annual art and craft auction at the Golf Club which was a big success.

"Radhiya has been a great source of inspiration to me," says Rushda. "Although I have always loved creative artwork, it's here, with her that I have taught it for the first time to children," she says.

Energetic and enthusiastic, the first thing one notices about Rushda is her abundance of determination and patience. Not one to give up on a task easily, she praises and cajoles the children into completing their projects.

"With any child, special needs or not, it's very important to have the ultimate amount of patience to achieve success, because the child's interest in the task depends on it," says Rushda.

"It's a Herculean task to teach some special needs children, especially when you have to bring them back to their task 10 times over. But if you can get them to do something, at least communicate with you in the process, participate in some way, it's an achievement," she says.

A lover of simplicity, Rushda's home, too, reflects her personality. The curtains, the wall hangings, even the rugs are her creation.

With a touch of jute and what turns out to be odd bits of knick-knacks on closer inspection, it reflects the warmth of this person whose passion has been creating things with her fingers since childhood.