For the little ones who require particular attention – such as children with special developmental and behavioral needs, autism, or attention deficit disorder – in the 3 to 6 age group, their parents are usually worried about the children’s interactions with their peers or about being reprimanded by the teachers or segregated from class activities; all of which can have detrimental impact on their children’s learning abilities. As a parent, if you suspect that your child may have behavioral or developmental issues, we recommend consulting with our experts and have your child properly diagnosed. Joining the activities of our Hospital Kindergarten Group’s program will help prepare children with special needs, by teaching them to alter their behaviors and to be self-reliant, as well as learning how to socialize with others. The program seeks to adjust the children’s temperament to become as close to normal as possible, so that they are able to join regular classes ultimately.
Child’s Developmental Issues
Today, more children tend to experience developmental and behavioral issues – especially those with autism and attention deficit disorder. These include other delayed developmental problems. Data in Thailand indicate that, for the 5 and below age group, there is one autistic child in every 161 children.
Children with developmental concerns should receive encouragement to help them develop appropriately within the first 5 years of their lives, because it is within this period that their brains experience the greatest growth rate. Further, this will instill the basic necessary skills for their elementary school later, which is the fundamental education but with more complex learning.
Child’s Development Care
Treatment for children with developmental issues within their first 5 years is through a course of stimulation and behavior alteration by experienced specialists. For example, psychosocial therapy is prescribed for children with autism to help alleviate the symptoms of their main cause.
Studies from abroad have found that developmental stimulation and behavioral adjustment should be intensely sustained for long periods for them to be effective in promoting the child’s various skills. Also, there are additional benefits from outdoor activities to children with autistic symptoms. Apart from keeping the body healthy, some studies have established that vitamin D from sun ray helps advance the thought process while improving emotions as well as social abilities. At the same time, it raises the child’s cognitive capabilities and concentration; so that the child realizes that he/she is healthy both in body and, consequently, spirit.
HOSPITAL KINDERGARTEN GROUP Program at Bangkok Hospital
At Children Development Clinic of Bangkok Hospital, we are prepared to care for children with developmental and behavioral needs, attention deficit disorder, or autistic tendency; with our program to help encourage development, self-reliant and social skills, as well as appropriate emotional problems handling. Our program is also designed to help the parents understand their children, and discover ways to take care of the ones with special needs. This will go some ways to alleviate the parents’ stress in caring for their special needs children. Constructively, the program allows the parents to prepare their children to join others at the regular schools.
In our program, we put 3- to 6-year-old children with special developmental and behavioral needs, autism or attention deficit disorder into groups of 5 with 2 teachers. For a child who has emotional limitations, the pediatrician and our team of specialists may consider a close one on one supervision. Our program consists of:
- Outdoor Activities. These are conducted outside of a classroom and are open to the children’s ideas. The goal is to let the children experience contentment in living their lives, while enhancing their bodily strength.
- Individual Training. 4 times per course and individually supervised by each activity’s specialist for every child. The training includes communication skill development exercises, games, and therapeutic activities. They are aimed at increasing each child’s necessary proficiencies.
- Special Skill Training. Activities consist of art, music, cooking, and relaxation therapy sessions – to help the children discover ways to unwind, so that they are prepared to deal with a multitude of their emotions.
- Activity of Daily Living (ADL). This is a group activity that encourages the children to be more self-reliant. The training is conducted by our qualified instructors to reinforce the children’s ability to dress themselves, use the bathroom, articulate their needs, and eat on their own.
- Social Skill Training. The “Morning Talk” session at the beginning of each day and other group activities with our experts throughout the day help the children absorb the experience of waiting, sharing, respecting rules, feeling empathy, communication, and displaying appropriate emotions. The activities also encourage the children to be able to gradually assimilate into the society at large.
- Pre-Academic Skill Training. The Early Childhood Education activities are individually selected for each of the children, to help them develop reading as well as arithmetical skills in preparation for their primary education.
At the end of the program, your little ones will be evaluated by our experts to assess their progress and to establish a plan for further treatment, until they are able to handle themselves appropriately and contently be part of the society at large; while you, as their parent, continue to encourage their capabilities and enhance them, in order to fulfill their potentials for the future.
