North Tipperary autism support group to receive back-to-school packs
Aviva Ireland (Aviva) has announced it is giving away 1,000 back-to-school packs to autistic children throughout Ireland as part of its partnership with AsIAm, Ireland’s national autism charity & advocacy organisation. The packs are specially designed to keep children stimulated and active in line with their sensory needs, and act as a lifeline for parents, who have been home schooling since March.
Since the onset of Covid-19 and closure of schools, children with sensory needs and autism have missed their daily school routines which is so important for their wellbeing. There has also been a bigger issue, in that children with additional needs have not had the ongoing support and attention they usually receive at school. To help with their transition back into the classroom, each Friday for the month of August, Aviva will, alongside experts from AsIAm, release an online article geared towards helping them prepare for their return.
In Ireland, as many as one in 20 people have sensory issues such as ADHD, dyspraxia and SPD, while one in 50 have been diagnosed with autism. As autism is a spectrum, it means that no two people diagnosed will have the same experiences. One person may appear fairly able and only feel anxious when their routine is disrupted, while another may seriously struggle with day-to-day interactions and need full-time care. The Aviva back-to-school packs and weekly online content is aimed at supporting parents by providing the tools and information they need to keep their autistic children active while also preparing them for their return to school.
Adam Harris, AsIAm Founder & Chief Executive Officer said: “Over the past few months we’ve seen the complete removal of structure within each day, which I have found very difficult as an autistic person and know many children are the same. There has also been a huge loss for support on children who rely on additional teaching time and SNA input, so it has been extremely difficult for families. The next big hurdle will now be going back to school and getting children used to routine and social interaction again, which is a huge challenge in itself. We’re delighted to have Aviva on board to provide back-to-school packs and weekly online content which will be a huge support for children and their families in preparing for this next phase of school.”
The content series will focus on different area of sensory needs which can be worked on or developed over the summer months and will be important for the return to school. There will also be recommendations on how you can make homemade kits for children so everyone across the country is able to be engage with the content.
Below is an overview of the core topics which will be covered through the content series in August.
There are four separate back-to-school packs including: ‘My activity pack’, ‘My calm pack’, ‘My social pack’, and ‘My construction pack’ – which correspond with various core developmental skills. All items in each pack have been specially chosen by an occupational therapist to help to keep children with additional sensory needs active. Some of the items within the back-to-school packs include: Playdoh, jumbo tennis set, Jenga, hula hoop, skipping rope, chalk, Connect 4, dominoes and cards
The 1,000 back-to-school packs will be delivered across the nation including to Aviva’s two regional charity partners, Shine Centre for Autism in Cork and Temple Street Children’s hospital in Dublin. The sensory content series and 1,000 packs follows on from the launch of the Aviva sensory hub in Aviva Stadium in January and its continued commitment to promoting diversity and inclusivity across all areas of its business, including its sponsorships.
For more information follow Aviva on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook using #SafeToDream or visit www.aviva.ie/onlinesensoryhub