Elements of Down's Syndrome

Thought it would be good to provide my readers with basic general knowledge of some of the types of disabilities I have commonly come across in school.

A well known & most common one is Down's Syndrome or Trisomy 21. It is a genetic disorder caused by the presence of all or part of an extra 21st chromosone. It is named after John Langdon Down, the British doctor who 'discovered' it.

Often, Down's Syndrome is associated with some impairment in cognitive ability & physical growth as well as facial appearance. Down syndrome can be identified during pregnancy or at birth. Individuals with Down's Syndrome can have a lower than average cognitive ability, often ranging from mild to moderate learning disabilities.

Some common physical features of Down's Syndrome may include:
(1) A single transverse palmar crease (a single instead of a double crease across one or both palms)
(2) An almond shape to the eyes caused by an epicanthic fold of the eyelid
(3) Upslanting palpebral fissures,
(4) Shorter limbs (floppiness)
(5) Poor muscle tone
(6) Protruding tongue.

Health concerns for individuals with Down syndrome include a higher risk for congenital heart defects, gastroesophageal reflux disease, recurrent ear infections, obstructive sleep apnea, and thyroid dysfunctions.

Early intervention during childhood, screening for common problems, medical treatment where indicated, a conducive family environment & vocational training can improve the overall development of children with Down syndrome. Although some of the physical genetic limitations of Down's Syndrome cannot be overcome, education & proper care will improve quality of life.

In my next entry, I shall share with you all my experience working with children with Down's Syndrome - my little darlings! :)

Food Glorious Food!

In Yogjakarta, fruits & veggies are always fresh! We went crazy over some of them! Ate them non-stop & whenever we managed to grab our hands on them at buffet meals. At the airport, we found A&W! Woo hoo! I was so excited b'coz you can no longer find them in S'pore. How could I miss out on their famous ice-cream waffles?

There was also this very interesting boxed meal we had when we went on a tour of some of the historical landmarks. Sure looks good but it was tough & quite tasteless! Still, I lile the way the food was presented. And when you're hungry, you jolly well eat anything they serve you!

Dessert cakes at the 5-star Sheraton Hotel we stayed in for the conference were so to die for! When converted to S$ currency, it worked out to only about $2-$3 per slice of sinful & mouth-watering cake! One could only guess how many slices we shared & ate among the 4 of us throughout our stay at the hotel! Haha!

Food at eateries are served to you pipping hot & fresh! When ordering food, try not to do so when you're famished otherwise you will tend to over-order as it is very affordable!

17th Asian Conference on Mental Retardation

In 2005, 3 of my colleagues & I went to the 17th ACMR held in Yogjakarta, Indonesia from 19th - 23rd November. Your luggage had better be made from sturdy material that can take hard knocks coz this is how you collect your luggage from the "out of nowhere" airport.

The theme of the 17th ACMR was "A Concerted Effort". About 400 participants from Bangladesh, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Macau, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, Austria, France, Iran, Netherland, Russia and the USA attended it. There were school visitations, training sessions, welcome cultural dinner, plenary & discussion sessions packed over these few days.

Some of the teaching resources we saw in one of the special schools we visited. Some were similar to what we have in S'pore but some were really an eye-opener at their creativity to handmake some of these resources to adapt to the individual needs of their pupils. E.g. handmade paper mache 3-D model of the female anatomy with the names of the parts typed out in braille. More to come in my next post!

Mooncake Festival

In school, our lesson plans are themed-based. This term's theme is Food & Technology. As the mooncake festival is coming, I will be buying some mooncakes for my kids to taste/try & enjoy in class. Here are photos of fake "mooncakes" we "baked" in class last year. Made of flour, water & food colourings. Had to purchase special plastic moulds from a specialized bakery shop! We had quite a fun & enjoyable time making them & some even thought they were real! Haha! Thank goodness no one chomped down on them! It was a timely souvenir my kids can bring home to show their parents what they have done in class.

We do a lot of sensory-based activities to stimulate my kids' senses, interest & level of interaction. Makes learning much more fun & meaningful! No Zzzzz....in class (I hope!) :)

All Wrapped Up

This is the "After" photo of my poor foot all bandaged up after surgery. Doesn't it look like a dumpling? (bak chang) It was not as bad as I expected. The 3 injections given to numb my toe was quite painful though. The nurses were quite amused with me as I was quite nervous! After surgery, I was made to sit in the recovery room for about 30 mins with my leg elevated. Have been given 6 days of MC till Sunday. Guess I can't chase after my kids hobbling like this! Could feel slight stinging pain when the LA started to wear off. Quickly bought a Delipotato wif tuna for late lunch before I could pop the (I presume strong) painkillers.

The nice nurse at ASC gave me this blue shower cap thingy to wear over my bandaged foot to keep the dressing clean. It is slid-proof & easy to clean. I like it! But the plastic material makes my foot melt as if in a suana! Have to go to the polyclinic/GP to get the dressing changed every 2-3 days. Showering might take some effort though. Thank you for all your prayers. Till now, I don't feel any pain & am quite comfortable.

Ingrown Toe Nail Drama!

This is the "Before" photo of my poor longsuffering ingrown toenail. Say goodbye to it for today shall be the day I end months of anguish, pain & discomfort b'coz of it. Will be having it cut out at SGH's ASC (Ambulatory Surgery Centre) at 1pm. Under LA & day surgery. Have a low tolerance for pain......hope I don't faint or freak out!As you can see, the nail is quite long. Each time I attempt to cut it (like I cut every nail), my hand will tremble & I end up leaving it alone. Discolouration as a result of the antibiotic cream & herbal remedies proposed by concerned relatives. Wonder how it will look like after the surgery. My cell group members & church friends are praying for minimal or no pain coz I'm such a crybaby when it comes to my sensitive fingers & toes! Boo hoo! :(

Me me me! :)

Hello there!

Finally! My 1st entry in my blog! Never thot I'd get to it. Sure am glad I finally did it!

I am a teacher in a special school in Singapore. It has been 5 years now (in abt 3 mths time) & my passion for teaching children with special needs still runs strong!

I have been teaching pre-schoolers with special needs ever since I started. My school caters to individuals with a wide range of disabilities (e.g. Autism, Down's Syndrome, Global Delay Development, speech language impairment, etc) from age 0 to 18.

In my journey as a special educator, I have learnt lots not only abt myself but also been much blessed by my kids in class.

I sure hope I can last for another 5 more years (if not more!) in this unique field where many come & go!

In this bloggie of mine, I will be sharing lessons learnt, experiences & my thoughts & emotions at work & in church!

Cheers! :)