Inclusive Childcare 3 (Together For Children with and without Disabilities)
From “Kazenoko Letter” No.444 - January 2015
| It is meaningful to provide care for children with intellectual disabilities
together with children without disabilities, because a daycare center is
an environment for living. By receiving all kinds of stimulation from children without disabilities on a daily basis, the intellectual and emotional development of those with disabilities can be accelerated. Children are brought up within social relationships, so they can’t mature in an unstimulating and isolated environment. Young children mirror the language and behavior of the children around them and then make it their own. It becomes apparent that children with intellectual disabilities are actually watching others while pretending not to, even if they can’t do the same as the others in the class. For example, they will sometimes start imitating someone when they get home, from a safe distance. In psychology, this is called “Delayed Imitation”. An important factor in this attitude toward learning is providing this environment where they can interact with children without intellectual disabilities, but it’s also because there is a pertinent role for the adults who provide a point of contact with the other children. Here lies the expertise of childcare for children with intellectual disabilities. On top of that, childcare for children with intellectual disabilities affects children without intellectual disabilities in a significantly positive way. Children without intellectual disabilities naturally express their kindness through behavior such as teaching or providing help, etc. to children with intellectual disabilities who can’t do the same as them. This is really important for human beings as they develop mentally. It’s not so easy to acquire through teaching. As an individual, it is wonderful to acquire kindness towards others in everyday life. I believe to live and grow together is the most important part of inclusive childcare. |
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