LCCS Journey With Sameer

How did my journey with Sameer begin?

Sameer*, 22, a youth offender serving his sentence in the Changi Prison, was sitting alone in the room. Tattoos covered almost his entire body. He was waiting to meet me, his ‘My Journey’ facilitator. Upon entering the room, I smiled and shook his hand. After ten minutes into our conversation, he suddenly asked, “What do you think of me?” He paused, concerned if I was affected by his tattoos.

Sensing his discomfort, I replied in a light-hearted tone, “Hey Sameer, I am fine with your tattoos. I am happy to see you today. I’d like to introduce to you this new program called My Journey.” He then nodded his head and began to feel more at ease with me. At that time, I had no inkling that his tattoos were not just merely modern decorative body art, but its designs and symbols were indicative of his past journey with a secret society indulging in drugs and perpetrating violence.

Why was Sameer incarcerated?

Sameer was incarcerated for about two years for drug offences and violence. Early in his life at the age of 17, he was hooked on drugs and soon became a drug addict. He also got himself involved in gang related activities. One day while he was at home, he became violent after consuming some drugs and ended up beating his mother, who later called the police. He also hit one of the police officers when he came to arrest him.

How did Sameer repair harm and restore relationships?

By participating in the My Journey program, Sameer was given the space to talk about his feelings of sadness, anger and shame for causing harm to his loved ones, particularly his mother. As the journey progressed, he began to reflect on how he could restore his relationship and to rebuild trust with them. After Sameer journeyed with me in this program for about two months, a restorative conference/support circle was convened inside the prison.

On this important day of restitution, Sameer had the opportunity to have meaningful engagements with his family members and people who had cared for him over the years. They included his biological and adoptive families, a former school teacher, a befriender, a counsellor and prison staff. As Sameer knelt before his loved ones and apologised to them, participants began to tear as they could feel the sincerity expressed by Sameer to repair harm and restore relationships. The sight of both mothers, biological and adoptive, hugging their son, forgiving and loving one other brought so much comfort and encouragement to the group.

He then began to talk about how he would like to rebuild trust with those affected by his behaviours. He listed some goals to achieve for the next six months, which included getting a job to support his family, having a strategy to remain drug-free, taking up a hobby and volunteering in community work. To help Sameer achieved his goals, participants would act as his community of care and started to express their support by listing the kind of help they would like to provide him to ensure that he would succeed in achieving his goals.

What made the My Journey program a meaningful outcome?

The My Journey program allowed a series of engagements between Sameer and people in his community of care to process their feelings, provide closure on the past and provide their support for Sameer to keep him on track. At LCCS, we advocate administering Restorative Practices (RP) among inmates through the My Journey program. The program aims to break the cycle of hurt, restore relationships and rebuild trust so that every inmate can avoid reoffending and be reintegrated into the community as a responsible citizen who contributes to society and the nation.

Note: Client has given consent to this article. The name has been changed to protect the confidentiality of the client and family. 

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Adult education

Visual Learning: The New Way to Teach

The Power of Visual Learning for Children

Reading is one of the most critical areas that any child must learn. But what if your young child struggles to read? They may be a visual learner. This video will uncover how augmented reality mixed with visual learning can make reading simpler and more enjoyable for your son or daughter.

It's time to get excited because we're exploring augmented reality and visual learning for children.

The power of visual learning for young children is something that has been proven time after time. Studies have revealed that visual learning results in better retention of information and higher grades and better test scores.

But how do you know if your child is a visual learner?

If your boy or girl has difficulty reading, then they may be a visual learner. Visual children tend to learn best by watching someone else do something.

Now, here are five things to look for:

- They have a colorful imagination

- They have an interest in drawing, painting, or crafts.

- They have a memory that relays visual information.

- They have curiosity about the world around them

So what is the solution?

Augmented reality is a way to make learning more thrilling and entertaining for children with a visual learning style.

Angel's Awesome Books offer a new way to teach young children to read by making use of visual learning techniques and computer animation to help them visualize the alphabet and related sound effects. When mixed with augmented reality, our publications are all the more powerful.

FAQ about Visual Learners

What is a visual learner?

Parents need to bear in mind that some little ones have distinct learning styles than others. It's important to find what works best for each youngster. As an example, a kid who is a visual learner is someone who learns best when they view something rather than read about it. This is because the information sticks with them better. Parents need to be mindful of this to include visual content when helping their visual children learn in the early years. While reading children's beginner books with your young child is vital, it is just as important to use visual memory aids such as videos and photos to help strengthen what they have learned.

What are some advantages of using an augmented reality book for children that need visual content:

Auditory Skill

Augmented reality assists visual learners with their auditory skills with voice narration that pronounces each letter of the alphabet.

Moreover, this new technology enables children to learn in their own way by scanning the page themselves. They can read along as they go through each letter or word on the page. This offers them more control over what they are reading than traditional picture books allow. It also enables them to develop fine motor skills while using their hands to turn the pages.

Mental Picture and Visual Memory

AR also assist with complicated concepts by providing a mental picture for your child with animated alphabet characters which help with their visual memory of the alphabet. Children can see letters as real objects thanks to the use of augmented reality. Those who struggle with learning to read can use it as a visual aid.

Augmented Reality Books For Toddlers Age 2 With Autism Spectrum Disorder

What's the most effective way to teach an autistic child to read?

In this video, I will go over what autism is, the numerous ways autistic children learn, and how augmented reality is bridging the gap for autistic children.

Many children with autism have a problem with learning to read and write. One of the best ways to teach an autistic child to read and recognize the alphabet is augmented reality. But let's first discuss what is autism.

What is Autism?

Autism is a disorder that causes uncommon behavior. It is typically found in children and not always quickly diagnosed based on the seriousness of the condition.

What are the different ways kids with autism learn?

Kids with autism learn in a different way than other youngsters. They learn best via visual cues, repetition, and physical activity.

That is where Augmented Reality Technology comes in. It helps to Bridge the gap in educating an autistic child to read.

Augmented reality is an exciting way to bridge the gap for children with autism because it helps both visual learners and auditory learners.

AR technology uses sound effects and animated characters, creating an entertaining learning experience for kids with autism, which aids with their reading skills and comprehension difficulties.

Augmented reality books can be used as an alternative therapy for helping youngsters diagnosed with autism spectrum and who have problem with reading and writing.

One such book is "Angel's Awesome Alphabet Book" by author Angelique Marshall. The book uses augmented reality to help children learn their alphabet letters.

The Alphabet book pages come alive with sound effects, voice narration, and animated characters when used with our AR app. This makes it possible for the user to see what they're saying while listening to them say it.

The Alphabet book has been created notably for those individuals who have difficulty understanding language or comprehending written words.

It gives a unique opportunity for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder to interact with the text and images using speech and visuals simultaneously.

FAQ about Teach an Autistic Child to Read

How Does Autism Affect a Child's Social Skills?

Children with autism often have a hard time with social skills for example, eye contact, understanding facial expressions, and making conversation. They may also be not able to recognize what people are stating, and they may have trouble conveying themselves. Therefore, youngsters with autism may find it challenging to connect socially with others.

How Does Autism Affect Communication?

Kids with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have difficulty comprehending other people's inflection and intentions. This makes it troublesome for them to interact effectively. They may also have trouble with direct instruction.

How do you teach an autistic child to focus?

Teaching autistic children to focus is challenging because they don't understand when others say "concentrate." They may also be unable to tell you how they feel about something. Nevertheless, teaching them to concentrate is crucial for their future development. But there is hope, with the help of new modern technology such as augmented reality. With AR, young children's books can help teach your child to focus and make learning more fun and exciting.

augmented reality children's books