The 'Silvia' Day Centre - The next chapter (March 1st - 8th 2009)
I can hardly believe that it had been a whole year since our last visit to Piatra Neamt. Dr. Maggie Anderson and I had been to visit the children and staff at the Silvia Day Centre on two previous occasions - October 2007 and February 2008. We believe there is such potential for the centre, in becoming a 'centre of excellence' in caring for and educating children with disabilities. It has been such a challenge to communicate this belief to our colleagues in Romania, where there is little (or no) training or resources for those who teach 'special' children.
Following our first two visits, it was clear that staff from the centre really needed to 'catch the vision' we have for them. So the plan unfolded for Doina and Olimpia (two of the teachers) to visit the UK to see for themselves what might be possible for the children in their care. What an inspiring week we shared with them in November (2008), visiting schools with children who have special learning needs: mainstream primary, secondary and special schools. They were overwhelmed by the loving, yet purposeful way children were being educated. So much information was shared that week, and there was much excitement for the future - Praise God!
And so... it was with excitement and anticipation that we returned to Romania in March of this year. We were able to take with us a new team member this time - Kevin Davies. Kevin is the ICT manager at Shorefields Special School and has a bottomless pit of knowledge about technology! He worked tirelessly throughout the week, setting up a suite of computers for the children, getting them all online too. Kevin has already become a bit of a celebrity there, and I don't think we can return without him! It seems God has provided for our needs, including ones that we didn't even know we had.
Our week-long visit was packed full with appointments, and turned out to be even busier than ever. Maggie's expertise in Austic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is becoming renowned locally, and she was able to deliver a number of training sessions for local teachers and other professionals. There was even a 45-minute interview with her on live television! Time was also spent sharing the concerns of parents, and discussing their children's needs. We spent an afternoon with parents/carers of children with Down Syndrome, answering questions, sharing information, offering support.
A highlight of the week for me was the opportunity to visit Cristina in her local state school, and to talk at length with her teacher about her educational needs. This is such a valuable partnership, which the school is anxious to continue. They receive no information, advice, support or resources from the local authority, and so are very mch 'finding their way' in educating Cristina. This would be true for other children with Down Syndrome, like Cristina, in their local state schools.
Our main aim for our most recent visit to the Silvia Day Centre was to work with the children, staff and parents to write an individual learning plan for each of the children. This proved quite a challenge with the time constraints, but with God's enabling, we did it! We are hugely aware that we are all on a major 'learning curve' with the work in the Day Centre. It is easy for us to make suggestions for improvement, but what a challenge for our Romanian friends - change is difficult and sometimes unnerving. However, we continue to be overwhelmed by their graciousness toward us and willingness to believe what we say!
The charity believes that we are entering a new phase now, where God is enabling us to move towards developing a quality learning environment for these precious children. We are privileged to be a part of this, will continue to trust Him in all things, and learn humbly from our successes and also our mistakes!
Please pray for the Silvia Day Centre:
* That we will continue to develop our relationships with staff, based on a sense of love and mutual trust.
* That our work there will continue to develop and be increasingly effective.
* That the staff there will feel empowered and increasingly skilled.
* That we will continue to have opportunities to reach out to the local education community and surrounding areas.
* That plans to develop the day centre building will come to fruition - repairs to be roof, converting the upstairs area into a life skills room (for older pupils) - funds will need to be raised for this.
* That God will release the people He needs to be added to our team, to achieve all this.
Linda Edgell. April 2009.
Following our first two visits, it was clear that staff from the centre really needed to 'catch the vision' we have for them. So the plan unfolded for Doina and Olimpia (two of the teachers) to visit the UK to see for themselves what might be possible for the children in their care. What an inspiring week we shared with them in November (2008), visiting schools with children who have special learning needs: mainstream primary, secondary and special schools. They were overwhelmed by the loving, yet purposeful way children were being educated. So much information was shared that week, and there was much excitement for the future - Praise God!
And so... it was with excitement and anticipation that we returned to Romania in March of this year. We were able to take with us a new team member this time - Kevin Davies. Kevin is the ICT manager at Shorefields Special School and has a bottomless pit of knowledge about technology! He worked tirelessly throughout the week, setting up a suite of computers for the children, getting them all online too. Kevin has already become a bit of a celebrity there, and I don't think we can return without him! It seems God has provided for our needs, including ones that we didn't even know we had.
Our week-long visit was packed full with appointments, and turned out to be even busier than ever. Maggie's expertise in Austic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is becoming renowned locally, and she was able to deliver a number of training sessions for local teachers and other professionals. There was even a 45-minute interview with her on live television! Time was also spent sharing the concerns of parents, and discussing their children's needs. We spent an afternoon with parents/carers of children with Down Syndrome, answering questions, sharing information, offering support.
A highlight of the week for me was the opportunity to visit Cristina in her local state school, and to talk at length with her teacher about her educational needs. This is such a valuable partnership, which the school is anxious to continue. They receive no information, advice, support or resources from the local authority, and so are very mch 'finding their way' in educating Cristina. This would be true for other children with Down Syndrome, like Cristina, in their local state schools.
Our main aim for our most recent visit to the Silvia Day Centre was to work with the children, staff and parents to write an individual learning plan for each of the children. This proved quite a challenge with the time constraints, but with God's enabling, we did it! We are hugely aware that we are all on a major 'learning curve' with the work in the Day Centre. It is easy for us to make suggestions for improvement, but what a challenge for our Romanian friends - change is difficult and sometimes unnerving. However, we continue to be overwhelmed by their graciousness toward us and willingness to believe what we say!
The charity believes that we are entering a new phase now, where God is enabling us to move towards developing a quality learning environment for these precious children. We are privileged to be a part of this, will continue to trust Him in all things, and learn humbly from our successes and also our mistakes!
Please pray for the Silvia Day Centre:
* That we will continue to develop our relationships with staff, based on a sense of love and mutual trust.
* That our work there will continue to develop and be increasingly effective.
* That the staff there will feel empowered and increasingly skilled.
* That we will continue to have opportunities to reach out to the local education community and surrounding areas.
* That plans to develop the day centre building will come to fruition - repairs to be roof, converting the upstairs area into a life skills room (for older pupils) - funds will need to be raised for this.
* That God will release the people He needs to be added to our team, to achieve all this.
Linda Edgell. April 2009.
