2903 Final Reflection

 Final reflection for community service

I will be talking about the place I volunteered in and about the organisation, the best parts of my volunteer, what I have contribute and support the community and what I have learned in and will cherish with me in the long run.

First of, I volunteered in ZHO (Zayed Higher Organization), the organization is for humanitarian care and special needs. The organization was established in april 19th of 2009 by H.H Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan. It has 12 centers for special needs such as, training and education, vocational and therapeutic rehabilitation, sport activities and family counseling.

Secondly, The best part about my volunteer was that i was able to help others and that I was able to give back to the community. I have also increased my patience and tolerance in teaching my son. Because teaching special needs is way more harder than teaching a normal kid. Now I also know my class mates way more better than we started because we all aimed for one goal and that goal was to help the people of ZHO with the most we can.

Third, we supported them by teaching them shapes, colors and how to communicate in basic and that it was never to late learn. We contributed by helping them make candles out of scrap and how to shape it and we told them where wax actually came from, we also helped them make frames by using tools and what were the tools used for and when to use it.

Finally, I learned a lot of things but, the most important thing that i have learned is that I should be thankful for what has god gave me and that i should be happy for even the tiniest blessings because I’m more fortunate than other people and that everybody needs help. The thing will bring with me for a long time is that I’m more confident and I have more self-esteem when I left ZHO than entering.  

Video of my interview

Interview with Ms. Sharon

Interview with Ms. Sharon

Me:Hi, First of all can you tell me more about yourself.

Ms. Sharon: Sure, My name is Sharon Kigen, I'm from Ireland I have been leaving now in the UAE for nearly 7 years and i have been working here for the past 5 years.

Me: So where have you been for the other two years?

Ms. Sharon: In international schools.

Me: So is this the first time you worked with handicapped people?

Ms. Sharon: yes, This is the first time i have been officially working with them i have been volunteering with special needs organisations since i was 14 in Ireland

Me: So what do you think is hard about your job?

Ms. Sharon: There is pros and cons, i have this thing about my job probably is trying to convince their families to take more interest with their children's some of them are absolutely with us but some of them we tried to encourage them to do more and they in a type where they can't be convinced its also hard to deal with them sometimes because there is a lot of behavioural problems and they also have very severe cases the children of their age. so its hard sometimes.

Me: When you first came to the UAE did you really plan to work with special need people?

Ms. Sharon: I always wanted to work with special needs. thats why i have been volunteering since I'm quite young with special needs. i initially wanted to be in the phycology part but this is how it is now I'm in the education side things now. and now I finished my masters so i will change over to phycology.

Me: What sorts of thing do you do with them?

Ms. Sharon: they are all none verbal and their motor skills are limited and most motor skills are in wheel chairs but more than half can't ride a wheel chair. so most of the stuff that i teach is not purely academic its more like the things you learn when you are small that you don't even know that your learning like learning to pick something up, how something feels, focusing on somethings and paying attention to something.

Me: HInterview with Ms. Sharonave you ever teach someone that he could communicate with you?

Ms. Sharon: one of my student's had his first word a month ago. he is also talking to me now without speaking i have taught him to use communication devices so i can actually have a full conversation with him now he tells me yes or no. it makes it all worth while.

Me: ok thank you.

Fourth day of our voulenteer

fourth day

On the last day of our volunteer. I first went to the class of Mohammed Al shamsi to help him and to say good-bye to him and that i hope to see him again. After that, we went to the candle making class with the teenagers to help them with their work. Firstly, we on the heater of the wax and melted it then we helped them put the liquefied wax in solid containers the had shapes such as hearts,stars and starfish. While we waited for the wax to dry we went around the place and said our goodbyes to the others. When we returned the wax were already in their solid form and they asked as to each take one as a souvenir. At the end of the day we now know how to make candles and we had more knowledge on how it was made their were no challenges at all because they cooperated with us all the way.

The finish product that they gave us

cylindrical shape candle container

Where we heated the wax to turn to liquid

Heart shaped container and its finish product

cylindrical shape candles

Third day volunteer

Third day volunteer

On our third day we went to the same class we went to the first day. I met Mohammed Al Shamsi again and I helped him with few stuffs like telling him different colours and shapes. but, then they transferred us to another class which was from 7 to 12 years old. Many kids in this class were happy to see us. Specially Mansour he is disabled from his feet to his neck.  He smiled a lot and was very cheerful i talked to him and tried to make jokes so he would enjoy my company because he couldn't do much work. Ahmed on the other hand the kid that I tried to help him speak and write was the only one in his class that could walk a little bit. Then we transferred to an even higher class that was from 13 and above. In this class they taught teenagers about family and what did the house contain of by showing them pictures. They even teach them how to pray and show them videos about the meka and the mosque. There was more practical things to do like you can see bellow in the pictures there are camels that they put in the sand and let them touch it so they know what is sand where to camel live as if they were in the dessert so that it would make it more easier and fun to learn if they had an actual sand. You can see they even had folders which they keep their progress in and was shown to their families every month. They even teach them how to use music instruments as shown bellow. In this volunteer that showing someone a specific thing can help them know about it faster the only challenged I faced was that the class of teenagers was shy and didn't want to talk to us.

Class from 7 to 12

Everyone has a specific place to hang their bag

Names are hang in the ceiling so they would know where to sit

Camel toys

Folder of their monthly progress

Zho second day volunteer

Second day volunteer

On the 6th of november we went back to ZHO, I felt more confident this time because I worked with middle aged and teenager patients. On that day each of us helped them build a frame. I really enjoyed because it was more practical work and they kept on smiling at us. They said they were happy to see other people that helped them. They were very co-operative with us. we held the machines for them while others hold their hands to assist them in cutting the piece of woods. The only challenge for me was that I was afraid that they would get injured but, thanks god everything went smooth. As you can see bellow we finished the frame but unfortunately they didn't want pictures taken of them. At least now i know how to cut pieces of wood and how to stick them.

Machine that was used to cut the wood

Tools we used to make the frame

More tools to smoothen the wood and glue

The master piece!! 

ZHO day one

First day

When we got to ZHO we went ahead to the class room of the children they assinged me to a boy named Mohammed Omran Al Shamsi they were doing stuffs about the flag day I helped him to stick coloured  papers of the flag of the UAE. At first, he was not comfortable with me and was saying that he doesn't want me to help him he wanted his nanny, every autistic child should be accompanied by their nanny. but, after 1 hour i was talking to him he started to become calm and comfortable to me. so, i held his hand and gave him the coloured papers and he started to stick it to the papers. After that I helped him with a puzzle that are made out of shapes. I talked to his nanny as well about him. She said the Mohammed wasn't always autistic. When he was around four years old he drowned in a swimming pool and that was the reason he is what he is till this day. now he is 7 years old and he is getting better he could talk and understand what I was saying to him so they told me that they will move him to a higher level. Finally, I said my good byes and told him that i would be back next week.

The shaped puzzle and the coloured papers

Monthly achievements

Things they can do

He scattered the papers

Hassan helping as well

Orientation

orientation

I had a wonderful time in our orientation. We were first introduced to the wards, there were 4 wards, the first ward was for females the second was for mix females and males the third was for old men and the fourth was for young males. they have many facilities as you can see in the picture below. But, i couldn't get many pictures because some of the facilities and patience are forbidden to take pictures of. They helped special needs people from any age. The children that has 70% of their brain working studied from 8am to 1 pm. The adults and physical disabled were given things to help them improve their abilities. They have workshops and candle making and their are doctors which help people with physical disabled people to walk, in the hallway their were kids who use cycles to exercise their legs and speak they also had a hydro treatment for them, everyday each patient does it for 45 minutes. We also saw their rooms, each room contains 2 patient in them.

Finally, she ended the tour and told us that she would assign us to help in one of those area she showed us. each day we came back would be a different thing to help with.

Chair To move the people with special needs around  the ward

Room of one of the patients

hydro treatment for the patients

Candle making for activities to the patience

They made candles for the UAE national day

Class room for the young patient with critical needs