Do you have a child with intellectual disabilities? Assuming that this is a child like any other, with his or her strengths and weaknesses, a child with functional diversity may present, among other things, a deficit in adaptive capacity, that is, he or she may have some deficiency in communication, in the academic field or in terms of social skills reading comprehension.
However, these children have many abilities and are a whole world to discover. Therefore, the objective is to strengthen those advantages they have and educate them for tomorrow.
Below we give you 6 tips on how to act in this situation.
6 Tips for parents or teachers of Children with Intellectual Disabilities
- Get informed. One of the most effective ways to break down the barriers that exist in society for people with disabilities is information. Know everything related to the topic, and this way you will understand the other person better.
- Patience. All young children need time and calm to deal with them. In this way, with children with special abilities, the same procedure must be followed, taking into account that their learning is a little slower than that of other children.
However, with effort and dedication they reach the goal. Let them help you at home, including them in daily tasks develops their abilities and their desire to learn increases.
- Independence. Mental deficiency is not an illness, so the child will have to learn to cope on his or her own.
Give him the freedom to do work on his own, without the need for everyone to do it for him. Depending on the degree of disability, you can achieve different independence goals.
- Sociability. Let him interact with other children in his environment, this contact benefits both the child with functional diversity and the other. Integration is essential for a healthy social life, you must learn that you are a valid person and do not have to be treated differently by others.
- Accompaniment. It is recommended that the child’s parents be in continuous contact with their teachers, in order to know the child’s development and have control of their progress.
- Contact. For immediate family members, it is advisable to get in touch with other parents or relatives of children in the same situation, share opinions, advice and recommendations, all of this helps to focus on reality from another perspective and find support.
The key for your child with an intellectual disability to develop a healthy life focuses mainly on information and not underestimating his or her relatives. In addition, we must keep in mind that overprotection does a lot of harm to the child when it comes to getting through the day. in the morning.
Patience is essential in the education of special children. It must also be taken into account that each person has a different character and that there are different levels and paces of learning, so there is no need to despair and treat these little ones with calm and love.