INSAAN presents An Eid Adventure 2016

The Thames Valley Adventure Playground (TVAP) has become a hugely popular and wonderful choice for holding INSAAN family events. This year was no different, as INSAAN hosted families from Reading, Slough, High Wycombe, Wokingham, Finchampstead and Basingstoke to celebrate Eid with their loved ones on a fun-filled day at a fantastic adventure park! The Playground boasts a number of amazing facilities, including sensory rooms, soft play halls, bikes, go karts, adventure castles, water pits, zip lines, King Kong and much much more!

It was particularly encouraging to see many hands-on fathers joining in and participating in the various activities at the specially adapted premises. There was a great family atmosphere and many parents commented on how relaxed they felt all afternoon while at the venue. The 3 course meal also went down a treat!!

It was humbling to be inundated with requests from families wanting to attend. We appreciate the enthusiasm and support of all our families, and regrettably had to exercise a strict first come-first served policy to ensure safety for those attending on the day. We hope to hold a similar function in the near future.

Please note we have only uploaded images where parents have given their consent.

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Alok Sharma MP visits Brookfields SEN School

INSAAN Patron Alok Sharma, the Member of Parliament for Reading West & Minister for Asia and the Pacific in the Foreign Office, visited Brookfields SEN School last week as part of the school’s ‘Careers Week 2016.’

Brookfields SEN School organise a Careers week for their Key Stage 4 and 6th Form students as part of their unique Careers Education programme, Pathway to Employment. The school has worked in partnership with a local Careers Development company, Talentino! since 2011 to develop a Careers Education programme for special schools and young people with learning difficulties and additional needs. The schools Pathway to Employment has been a huge success with the students, school and local employers.

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Pokémon Creator Draws Creativity from Autism by Susan Moffitt

“Whenever I feel nostalgic about my sons’ early years, Pokemon is always a large part of those memories. I can still see my one son, a vision of yellow, dressed as Pikachu for Halloween, or the excitement in his and his brother’s eyes when they each dug a pack of Pokemon cards from the toe of their Christmas stockings. The cards provided some of their few happy playground experiences interacting with their neurotypical peers due to the fact that all children shared the universal language of Pokemon.

I recently discovered that like my sons, the creator of Pokemon is on the high functioning end of the autism spectrum. Long thought to have Asperger’s Syndrome, Mr. Satoshi Tajiri has confirmed this information, yet does not speak of his condition in public. This reclusive and eccentric man, who is known to work twenty-four hours at a time, spawned the gaming phenomenon that took the world by storm through his special interest in insects.

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A Special Mother’s Day 2016

This year, we added a special twist to our famous Special Mother’s Day celebration to make it that much more of a wonderful family gathering. Naats, Nasheeds and some additional soft music set the scene for a really relaxing, chilled out atmosphere. There was a large inflatable assault course which the young ones loved!! Some of the dads also had a go but found it fairly challenging, with the children running rings around them! There were tonnes of prizes and gifts up for grabs for all the mums and children throughout the never-ending party games and races! We are so happy that the families found it so relieving to be in a bubble without any concerns, and to top it off, finish with a delicious 3-course meal. Thank you to all the Special families who supported this very Special Mother’s Day.

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