A lot of good things have happened since I last wrote! One awesome thing was a visit from the “godparents” (financial supporters/sponsors) of one of the boys, José Luis. He’s three years old and absolutely adorable. His godparents, Nic and Sasha, are from Austin, Texas. They came to visit José at NPH on their honeymoon! And, they were really interested in talking to me about José’s speech problem. He can only pronounce two words correctly. His brother, Toni (4) has the same problem. They don’t have an official diagnosis. I suspect apraxia of speech. Apraxia is a disorder in which the brain has trouble sending signals to the mouth for speech articulation. The oral structure usually remains intact.
The boys don’t have an official diagnosis. They have been to a neurologist and everything showed up normal on an EEG and tomography. So, Nic and Sasha happened to find a psychologist in Antigua who said she could evaluate the boys for a reasonable price. And, Nic and Sasha wanted to pay for it! That really blew my mind. How amazing is that? They wanted to contribute something more than just the $30/month to sponsor José Luis. And, they paid for Toni, who isn’t even their godson. I still can’t get over how incredibly giving they are.
We took the boys to the psychologist and I’m actually going to talk to her tomorrow to see what her diagnosis is, which should be interesting. In addition, a speech-pathologist and audiologist from the U.S. are coming to visit me and NPH on Thursday! So they’ll be able to look at the boys as well. The SLP, Jessica, is a friend of a friend of my professor’s. Jessica is from the U.S. but has lived in Guatemala and worked here as an SLP for the last six years. I’m so excited for her to come visit! Her audiologist friend is even going to do free hearing tests for some of the kids. This is AMAZING! I’ve been trying to get the doctor to set them up for outside appointments for months. And now they can get the tests for free, right here at the home.
When I started working again as an SLP in January (after a month as a tía), I noticed how much more confident I am now with my work than I was when I arrived in July. Even those six months have taught me so much. I know the kids and it is much easier for me to find appropriate goals for them. Currently I have 19 kids that I see every week, and do 6-8 individual therapy sessions each day. I’m also really excited because I added a Grupo Pequeño (small group) of four preschoolers to my schedule. The therapist for the baby house and I are working together with these kids once a week for an hour. We’re working on understanding language with an emphasis on social language. Yesterday was our first session. It was so much fun! The kids are adorable. We read a story that involved animals and then each child got to pick an animal to act out.
Today was my first day with my language class in the Special Ed classroom. I’ll be teaching that once a week for an hour – solo. Today was interesting; there are ten children in the class and some of them have behavioral problems. I thought the teacher was going to stay there and help me – oh, no. The next thing I knew, I was alone with ten children with special needs. One girl screamed (very high-pitched and siren-like) nearly the entire time, and the boy in front of her was annoyed so he kept hitting her. Between them and the other eight children, we barely accomplished anything. Next week, I am definitely telling the teacher she needs to stay in there and help me. (Although I can definitely understand that she needs a break!)
Yesterday was also the first day of our new club, Amistad Especial (Special Friendship – it’s a Best Buddies Club). The idea is that each child with Special Needs has a partner who is a typically developing child. The group was my idea and my friend Cassie and I are in charge. We also have the support of three other new volunteers (an occupational therapist and two physical therapists), plus the tíos who come along. Yesterday was a bit chaotic in the beginning, but it ended up working out really well. We played outdoors with a parachute and then a few games of “Pato, Pato, Ganzo” (Duck, Duck, Goose). It was really fun to watch the kids interact with each other. I was so happy to see the other kids helping the ones with Special Needs! They helped push their wheelchairs, talked to them, and made them feel included. I’m excited for next week. We meet every Monday afternoon for an hour.
That brings me to my next point: I am so happy that I picked the section of kids with special needs. I know I’ve talked about it before, but last week I was thinking about how different my life would be if I had chosen to mentor a different section of kids. And all the kids here are great, don’t get me wrong; I’m sure another section would have been fun and fulfilling as well. But, I wouldn’t have the close relationships that I do with some of the kids. I wouldn’t trade those relationships for anything.
Random adorable children moments:
February 3, 2011: I went to get one boy, Luis, from his class for terapia. When I told him it was his turn he took my hand and kissed it! This was adorable.
February 8, 2011: I saw José Luis outside with his tía. He said, “Quiero trabjar” (I want to work) in sign language!!!!!!!!!!! I TAUGHT HIM THAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
That’s all for now. In my next entry, I’ll have to talk about how great the twelve new volunteers are and our weekend trip to Lake Atitlan.
Pictures (not done yet, so check back later for updates):
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2065409&id=1146001044&l=daf2740ced
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2064090&id=1146001044&l=aeed9361d9
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2064445&id=1146001044&l=73bec2c0f1
