World Cerebral Palsy Day Celebrations at MBCN
Mata Bhagwanti Chadha Niketan (MBCN) celebrated the World Cerebral Palsy Day with a lot of enthusiasm and vigor. Life is a celebration to those who find happiness in fighting a battle every day against a grave condition bravely. Imbibing the same thought, the words of students echoed from MBCN, the charitable school for mentally and physically challenged – ‘I fight Cerebral Palsy, what’s your super power.’
Join the World Cerebral Palsy Campaign
On the occasion, we celebrate the abilities and confidence of the children with Cerebral Palsy. The idea that was propagated was to love, understand and accept these kids the way they are. Like every year, we had fun activities like- ‘Chitrakari Badi Nirali’, ‘Aaja Nachle’, ‘Chalo Zara Sambhaal Ke’ etc. lined up to bring out their potential in the open.
A Gift of Fun with Therapeutic Effects
These were no ordinary activities but games in the form of exercises that showed how these children came a long way while braving the odds. It was an interesting sight at the Occupational and Physiotherapy department at MBCN where a lot of buzz was going on. For example – The teachers asked each child to colour a picture of apple but it meant a lot more than adding to the fun element. Physical, occupational and recreational therapies were going hand-in-hand with the planned games involving a token of gratification.
Colouring to Modulate Senses
Every child was colouring an image while leaning over a therapy ball. It is not only doing well to their visual, vestibular and multi-sensory processing but also modulating senses related to muscle tone and endurance. The act is beneficial in getting the kids to maintain a rigid position or posture during activity and makes them attentive while helping them have a better grasp.
Dance for Endurance and an Auditory Sense
Those who were dancing to the tunes of music were not unaware that it supported their auditory and multi-sensory processing and improved their muscle tone. As the feet moved, children were no longer lethargic or moved stiffly and paid attention to every beat. They were responding positively to the loud noise that only encouraged them to perform better.
Can Do Spirit Leads the Way
We were observing the joys of Cerebral Palsy and the fighter instinct that exists in all those who overcome it every day. It was an interesting sight to see them wear an ‘I’ and walk through a maze created in the shape of ‘CAN’ leading the way. What was remarkable was visual processing mingled with the modulation of multiple senses.
It wired their brains to put the puzzle together when they easily made their way to the finishing point. Children who finished tasks efficiently in a limited time were declared the winners. What cheered them more was the large crowd present to laud their efforts and the motivational posters pasted all around the walls.
There were few more acts like fetching objects and tearing paper into bits, and passing successfully through the hula hoops. Simultaneously, these activities allow better visual sense, muscle coordination and help an individual self-propel when lying down.
