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| Archiana poses with her cards |
by Susan Palmes-Dennis
It's a special kind of love they give every Christmas Day. They send cards they signed personally to people that matter to them in school as a way of showing their gratitude.
The students of Hopewell High School Specialized Academic Curriculum (SAC) sign and send these 20 Christmas cards before the winter break supervised by their teachers Catherine Rice and Stephanie Davis- Barnes.
This SAC program at Hopewell is for students with moderate to severe disabilities.
There are 20 students and each of them signed the cards. I happen to be one of the teacher assistants for this class.
For some students like Archiana Fleming, it was an easy task they took seriously. Archiana had good penmanship while others like Isaac and Gabby would sign theirs with bold letters.
It doesn’t matter on what part they signed the card. Imani Palmer would sign her card by including the name of her imaginary friend Brianna, which Ma'am Barnes would caution her not to do so.
Some of the students can’t write and cut papers like other children. Cortez is one whose name was written by Archiana in the cards. Sophie’s Rouzeau-Sanders name was engraved by Ms. Elizabeth, the nurse.
“It is so much fun to let them sign the cards and they get such a kick out of it,” SAC teacher assistant Shelma Murray said.
This simple task helps the SAC students in developing skills and be thankful for simple things as well as learning the importance of giving back to others
The card giving started last year. The other teacher assistants who gladly helped the students were Carmen G Garland,Rosaline Nwigwe and Mrs.Hill who wrote the name of one of the students.
The 20 cards were sent to 11 people in the cafeteria, the media center, the technology department, coaches and curriculum in-charge and other teachers in other departments who helped them.
These children also visited Dollar Tree a day before the winter break to buy gifts to people that matter to them.
Most of them got gifts for their mom, dad, grandparents and friends but mostly for the family members. Ms. Carmen Garland reminded them to buy two gifts for people they would like to share their blessings with.
The activity motivated the students into asking and participating. Gabby, a Ninjago fan, had this bird that she gave to her grandmother. Jasmine bought a candle for her sister and would have spent her money if not for her teacher's advice to save it for the next field trip.
These and other activities are being prepared for these kids with special needs so they can make their own choices in life that's anchored on love and gratitude, qualities that are now vanishing in this increasingly hardened, cynical world.
(Susan Palmes-Dennis is a veteran journalist from Cagayan de Oro City, Misamis Oriental, Northern Mindanao in the Philippine is now employed as a teacher assistant in one of the school systems in the Carolinas.
Read her blogs on susanpalmesstraightfrom the Carolinas.com and at http://www.blogher.com/myprofile/spdennis54. These and other articles also appear at http://www.sunstar.com.ph/author/2582/susan-palmes-dennis.
You can also connect with her through her email susanap.dennis@yahoo.com as well as her Pinterest account at http://www.pinterest.com/pin/41025046580074350/) and https://www.facebook.com/pages/Straight-from-the-Carolinas-/494156950678063)
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