A TRULY PEOPLE'S CARNIVAL IN GOA.
Spark Centre at Nirmala Institute of Education in collaboration with TIES (Towards Inclusion Everywhere In Society)- a parent support group for children with disabilities, put together an event for children with special needs to celebrate the annual Carnival in Goa. A whole set of activities were put up by the B. Ed students of the Nirmala Institute of Education for the 4 day event held at Samba Square, Jardim Gardia De Orta (Municipal Garden) Panjim for the general public. On Sunday evening, 2nd March 2014, 13 children with special needs aged 8 years to 17 years studying in various resource rooms (in regualr schools) participated in this programme. Each child came decked in red- in the Carnival spirit & was requested to bring a partner in order to make the event an inclusive one. Partners included siblings, relatives and friends of family.3 students from the Goa Institute of Management also volunteered their time to facilitate inclusion. Mrs Giselle Lobo, special educator & Chairperson- TIES, briefed & sensitized all partner- volunteers before the start of the program in order to ensure its smooth running. They were then partnered age- appropriately with a child & the programme kicked off with the tying of friendship bands. They participated in various activities which included face painting, nail art, t-shirt painting, collaborative art, clay modelling, games, etc and had a long walk in the garden. Andre Velho of Spark Centre, coordinated the whole programme. A few of the children were very excited about the Bouncy Castle and spent a good 20 minutes bouncing away to glory! The parents were given a break during this time since the children were being supported by their partners. So the parents collaboratively created an art piece which was displayed on the mural wall at the Samba Square. The programme ended with a Zumba session conducted by Zumba Instructor Sheryl Furtado Vas who very kindly obliged to volunteer her time for this cause. All children participated in their own capacity and some of them danced on stage. Finally, a poster competition was held over 3 days, open to anyone who wanted to participate. The theme of the competition was "Inclusion- Helping Children with Disabilties". The event was a great success and the smiles from the children's faces made one realize that they enjoyed themselves very much and that there is a great need for more inclusive events like this one to be organized.
