Programs and Services
Now on its 13th year, the Down Syndrome Association of the Philippines, Inc., celebrated its Happy Walk with the theme All for Down on February 22, 2015 at Skydome, SM North EDSA. The parade of persons with Down Syndrome and SPED advocates inside the mall raised awareness about the condition. The showcase of talents happened inside the Sky Dome where our very own dance group, ILLC Hunks and Babes was invited to perform an intermission number to the tune of Uptown Funk by Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars. They danced their hearts out in their 70s retro fashion as the dance theme.
ILLC started the year right with the Autism Society of the Philippines (ASP) Angels Walk, held at the Mall of Asia Arena on January 25, 2015. For this year, the theme of the Philippine National Autism Consciousness Week was, "Autism Inclusive Philippines: Aim High! Fly High!" The theme revolved around inclusion of individuals with autism in the community and most especially in the corporate world. The President of the Autism Society of The Philippines, Mrs. Mona Veluz, mother of ILLC alumnus, Carl Veluz, gave wise words to support and promote the inclusion of these exceptional individuals in the society.
March 6, 2015 is certainly a day to remember. ILLC’s post-Valentine Ball entitled “Le Amour Magnifique” was held at the grounds of Bulwagang Tejeros in Camp Aguinaldo which was beautifully decorated by Mr. Victor Meteoro, a very talented ILLC parent. The program started with a parade letting each student showcase his or her best outfit as well as their personalized masks. Each student was also given a special award by their class advisers. Everybody enjoyed the day with song numbers presented by numerous students. Not only were the students given a chance to perform but the crowd was also treated to a special surprise dance performance from our very own Teacher Archie and Teacher Nina which totally swept the crowd off their feet. Afterwards, the students, together with their teachers, danced to Ed Sheeran’s Thinking Out Loud, showing everyone a beautifully choreographed cotillion.
As one ILLC family, parents, students, teachers and school staff once again joined hands in the annual fundraising Bingo event which coincided with the other much awaited affair, the post-Valentine’s Ball. It was held last March 6 at the AFPCOC Tejeros Hall in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City. The day was filled with excitement and pure fun. Also, many raffle prizes were awarded to lucky players all throughout the afternoon! Nina Bantoto from Class Amethyst won this year’s major bingo prize of P20,000! Congratulations to all the winners of raffle and bingo prizes!
One Meralco Foundation (OMF) took the opportunity to honor and thank our teachers, our modern-day heroes, during the culmination of the celebration of National Teachers’ Month in October 2014. OMF, through the efforts of Mrs. Apple Lim, a former ILLC parent, honored the teachers and therapists by distributing postcards as a sign of appreciation and gratitude. Each postcard contains a prayer wishing for the well – being of the teachers. Impressed by the dedication and desire of ILLC faculty members to help the children achieve more, OMF President Jeffrey O. Tarayao said, “Meralco strongly believes that teachers play a key role in empowering Filipinos to face the future that is full of challenges.”
Employment opportunities for people with special needs is one of the more relevant issues we are facing today. In his report for The World Tonight, the ABS-CBN News Channel (ANC) reporter Jekki Pascual sought to raise awareness and bring this to the attention of mainstream society. The news feature focused on ILLC’s Job Readiness and Work Placement Program and how these prepare individuals with various exceptionalities for eventual employment. With this media mileage, it is our fervent hope that more organizations and companies would open their doors to our students and graduates!
Once a year, before the summer heat fades, ILLC holds its annual Rest and Recreation (R and R) activity for its teachers and staff. This year’s R and R was held at the Fontana Leisure Park and Casino in Clark, Pampanga from May 29 – 30, 2014. The teambuilding activity was interesting and exciting because many of the teachers were new. The activity fostered new friendships within the ILLC family. The heat of the sun drove the teachers and staff to be competitive, creative and united as they accepted each challenge as they engaged in an ‘Amazing Race.’ Inspired, the games brought out the best in them while showing team effort, presence of mind and artistry as they created their own cheers, solved puzzle pieces, and solved mathematical equations amidst the themed waterpark as the backdrop.
Before the S.Y. 2014 - 2015 started, the ILLC teachers underwent several trainings and seminars to better equip them for the coming school year. The teachers attended several in-house seminars with relevant topics such as Behavior Modification Techniques (BMT), Top-Down and Bottom-Up Approaches, Sensory Integration, Clinical Reasoning, Speech and Language Stimulation, and Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) among many others. Another topic that really helped the teachers was the RDI talk given by the mother of Tejus, Mrs. Chitra Sharathchandra. Relationship Development Intervention or RDI taught the teachers to let their students think critically and not just rely on the teacher’s prompts and cues. Dr. Vanessa Cainghug of The Medical City talked about psychiatric conditions which have a high comorbidity possibility with developmental conditions. The Mandaluyong Fire Department also conducted a lecture for the teachers on emergency evacuation in case of fires and other natural disasters.
