Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Say What? A gift from the heart!

Tis the season! Have you thought about what gift you might give to a child or adult with special needs? If not, I have some suggestions for you.


This can be a challenge depending on the type of disability involved. For starters, it is important to be informed and consider abilities, limitations and sensory needs. If you don’t know, ask. In the case of my granddaughter, anything auditory is something she enjoys; music, books, videos.
A safe bet, and a wonderful gift in my opinion, is an experience; one that requires your personal time. This can be a simple activity or an outing that you and your child (or grandchild, niece, nephew or friend) can enjoy together and one in which they can participate. These experiences could be an hour outing, an afternoon activity, a day trip or even a short vacation.

You might consider a museum, a concert, an appropriate movie, the park, the zoo or perhaps even the mall. You might share a meal, an ice cream, or a hot chocolate before or after the main activity. To enrich the experience even more, perhaps the activity could involve a new mode of transportation for the child as well. Consider a ride on rapid transit, a bus or train, airplane, boat or ferry, or even a cab or limousine ride. This could be enriched even more by preparing the child beforehand by providing a related book or CD. For example, you might plan a day which includes the Nutcracker Ballet; understanding the story and becoming familiar with the music involved before the event will enrich the experience for the child and be part of your gift as well.

If you cannot do an outing, don’t exclude the simple gift of spending time together to celebrate the current holiday (whatever it is). Perhaps a craft, baking, gardening or cooking; making and wrapping gifts, a visit to a holiday park event, an outdoor concern, or even a trip to see Santa.

Let’s not forget that we can also encourage the child, or adult, to consider what gifts they may have to give; a poem, artwork, something handmade. My granddaughter recently gave the gift of her hair and was delighted that she accomplished her goal of growing her hair and donating it to Locks of Love for a “little girl with no hair”.

Most of all, your gift can have a dual purpose. Not only will the child enjoy a special outing with you, but the parents will enjoy it as well. Think about what you might do and give a gift from the heart!

Julie

2 comments:

  1. I love this! So many great ideas...very thoughtful and thought-provoking. I am already getting ideas for my own gift this holiday. Thank you!!!

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  2. Wonderful...there is so much we all can do!

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