Corporate Area Special Needs Students Get Mental Wellness Support At Hope Zoo

Roughly 40 children from five special needs institutions across the Corporate Area recently took part in a wellness exercise designed to help them handle difficult emotions and everyday pressure.

The activity was staged at Hope Zoo in St. Andrew under the Ministry of Education, Skills, Youth and Information's 'Child Conversation - Special Edition', as part of Child Month activities. Organisers used the session to create a welcoming and protected setting where the students could speak openly, consider their mental health, share what was troubling them and learn more about their rights.

Participants included students who are blind, visually impaired, hearing impaired and deaf. They came from Danny Williams School for the Deaf, Salvation Army School for the Blind, Hope Valley Experimental School, Randolph Lopez School of Hope and Carberry Court Special School.

Hyacinth Blair, Senior Director in the Ministry's Child Affairs Policy Division, told JIS News the programme was centred on helping the children identify complicated emotions correctly and explain what they were feeling.

She said the session supported the children's safety and mental wellness while urging them to speak up when they were not emotionally okay. Blair noted that while mental wellness is already addressed through school counselling, the Hope Zoo activity placed special attention on helping students name their emotions, know trusted people they can approach, and understand practical steps they can take to cope.

The students took part in hands-on activities, including drawing, dancing and blowing bubbles. Blair said those simple activities were chosen because they do not require much money and can be used by the children on their own when they need to feel better.

The children were also given guidance on personal safety. The tips included avoiding conversations with strangers online, protecting personal information and not taking rides from people they do not know.