LAHORE, March 19: The special children will have an oasis of recreation and education in the city in two months. Work is going on round-the-clock at the new block of the Children Library Complex to give hearing and visually impaired, physically disabled and mentally retarded children a chance to nourish their natural faculties during leisure time.

The two-storey structure at a portion of the complex will be the first of its kind in Punjab. The special children will not require membership to participate in any activity at the new block which will be their second home.

At present, the complex has facilities only for children with no or low vision. The text accessibility and legibility centre is helping such children to improve their access to text and information technology for their educational needs as well.

There are computers with the Job Access With Speech (Jaws) software, printers, scanners, closed-circuit televisions, CD players and other audio equipment, talking books, Braille and fitness edge.

The Jaws is a software that makes personal computers accessible to blind and visually impaired users by providing them access to the information displayed on the screen via text-to-speech or by means of a Braille display and allows for more comprehensive keyboard interaction with the computer.

The new block will have separate facilities for all special children — an auditorium with rehearsal rooms, a library with Braille, besides computers, soft toys, music, art and crafts, speech therapy and balls sections.

Debates, singing competitions and other extra curricular activities would enable the special children to supplement their formal education besides developing their confidence.

“Furniture for the new block has been purchased while other equipment will be procured within a month or so,” says Children Library Complex project director Rubina Tariq Jilani.

“There is and there will be no restriction on the special children to visit the existing facilities at the complex. We encourage and continue to do so their interaction with the normal children as it helps a lot in minimising their sense of deprivation and neglect besides promoting self-confidence and self-respect among them.

But keeping in view their special needs, separate specialised facilities are inevitable,” argues Ms Jilani.

Regarding the existing facilities, she says the complex library has the largest collection of encyclopedias and dictionaries in the city in addition to a stock of more than 20,000 books on literature, history, language, computers, etc.

The audio-visual section has more than 700 video and 200 audiocassettes. Cartoons, documentaries and films on history, culture and geography could be watched on TV and multi-media projector. The Sunday film show is a salient feature of the section.

Frequently visited room of the complex is the computer section where children love to sit, play games and learn various skills.

Basically meant for children up to eight years of age, the toys section is another area of interest for girls and boys alike as it has a doll house, Barbi dolls, stuffed, electronic and educational toys, a jumping castle, puzzles and Montessori equipment.

Carom board, table tennis and billiard tables are the indoor activities at the hobby section while lawn tennis, badminton, basketball, Taekwondo, judo and karate are played outdoors.

Several gadgets and a natural history museum constitute the science section while fish of various species in the aquarium are an additional charm besides the mini zoo that houses pigeons, pheasants, ducks and parrots.

Presently, the complex has over 24,000 members and a majority of them frequently visit the complex during summer vacation. However, a good number of members and their mothers also attend several short courses being offered here round the year.

The gym exercises, yoga, judo and karate, beautician, stain glass and fabric painting, origami, dress designing, cutting and stitching, computer, spoken English and basic calligraphy courses are still under way for member children and their mothers.

A student of any public sector educational institution between four to 14 years of age can become a member of the complex after providing photocopy of his or her birth certificate and two recent 1X1 inches recent photographs.

Other children of the same age group will pay Rs100 annual fee and the like amount refundable security. Except for Mondays, the complex remains open from 1pm to 7pm on Tuesdays to Thursdays and from 3pm to 7pm on Fridays. —Zaheer Mahmood Siddiqui