Most children are able to put on their own socks by 3 years old. Beatrice Kweh learnt that at 7, and it took her three months.

Beatrice was born with Down Syndrome. She comes from a single-parent family. Her mother, Ms Shirley Poh, is the sole breadwinner and has to work long hours to support the family.

Shirley said: “She was unable to express herself and would wet her pants. But now, she would let us know if she needs the toilet, she’ll go to the toilet by herself, and wash her hands after that.”

Due to the lack of necessary skills to teach a child with special needs, even teaching Beatrice simple life skills, like requesting for food, was a daunting task to Shirley initially.

Shirley said: “She would just grab food from the table when she was hungry. I used to get so frustrated that I’ll cry and lose my temper.”

After being in MINDS Towner Gardens School’s programme for about six months, Beatrice became more independent and learnt important social skills. She was able to use short phrases and sign language to indicate her feelings.

Shirley said: “When she’s hungry, she’ll say ‘me’ and pat her tummy. And she no longer grabs food from the table.”

The school also gave Shirley home teaching kits to help reinforce the skills Beatrice had learnt in school. Shirley was able to apply the simple techniques and has become less frustrated and helpless in helping Beatrice.

Shirley said: “The school’s programme has really made a positive difference to our lives. I hope she can learn to be more independent and take better care of herself.”