Ya'En Autism Center

Ya'En Autism Centre is sort of a pre-school/kindergarten for ASD children. Ya'En does things from providing speech therapy, to helping them develop motor skills and common social skills. In this Links location, CIS student's first assisted the teachers with their classes, then were able to lead classes after showing our passion and capability. We organized engaging activities for the children to develop their language and artistic skills. Each CIS student has the role of supporting one ASD child, or leading the class. Students leading the classes demonstrated a lot of patience and positivity with the children. The supporting students help out by calming their assigned child down if they get erratic, or supporting them to do an action or activity that they might not be familiar with. Overall, Ya'En is a fun and unique Links location, and the children are adorable.

Links Leader: 

Lilly Larard & Charlotte Xiong (HZ11)

Sharine Wong (HZ10)

Jodie Fei (HZ9)

Amanda Wang (HZ8)

Susan Lee (HZ7)

Hangzhou 11

April 17, 2024

[coming]

- Student

March 20, 2024

Today was a nice visit to the Ya’en autism center. The first assignment that we had was to sit in on their classes and observe as the teacher taught them lessons about various objects and festivals. After that, we got to join and engage in a lesson with younger kids, and helped them do arts and crafts, as well as accompanying them on a walk outside the center. 

- Luca Lo

March 13, 2024

In today’s visit to Ya’En Autism Centre, we focused on strengthening relationships in order to build trust to invite them over for the end of year community service carnival I along with the Links Leaders are planning.

In order to gain their trust, such baby steps must be taken to reassure the staff and parents of the children that we know what we’re doing. For example, I joined a one-on-one lesson in which the teacher was getting the child to play a ball game to strengthen their coordination. I could tell that the teacher was incredibly tired from a day’s worth of this, and offered to take over. Perhaps the results displayed a sign of improvement, because he immediately agreed and gave me some advice before letting me take over the lesson for the remaining 30 minutes. I played with the child whilst simultaneously improving his social skills by calmly yet casually asking him about his favourite animal, show, game etc. He grew much more excited and eager, and at the same time I saw the teacher relaxing and he eventually left, reassured that I would take over the lesson well and he could have some rest.

I wanted to make all my other classmates’ experiences as memorable as mine, so we agreed on meeting up over the weekend to discuss things to bring to the table, more activities we had in mine, and how to, when taking over a class, handle these young children.

Overall, I gained insight from today’s session, as in the previous sessions I had thought we were only helping the children, yet after the session, I realised that we the tired parents and teachers there were also immensely grateful for our contribution, rest assured.


- Lilly Larard

March 6, 2024

Today, we spent the first half of our time in the centre making handicrafts for the school. These pieces of art would be displayed next week in their assembly in order to welcome Spring. Next, we split into groups to go into different classes for interactions with the children; we helped the children with their work, and supported them all the way throughout their class. Mr. Pollock and Ms. Utam also visited us during our trip to check what we were doing and I hope that we showed them the reason we are doing this is because we want to cultivate a safe environment for children with disabilities to learn whilst empowering them, nurturing their potential and introducing them to the many wonders in the world that they are yet to experience.

- Neo Chen

January 17, 2024

For links today, Charlotte split us into groups and my minigroup were doing some handcraft and cutting out paper for the kids. We spent a memorable afternoon immersed in handcrafts, where we cut out various shapes and images. Additionally, towards the end of links, we played the balloon with two kids, where we tossed balloons back and forth. The kids were really happy and we also enjoyed it. It was a meaningful afternoon and we all enjoyed spending time with the kids and doing handcrafts.

- Nicole Gao

January 10, 2024

Today's session turned out to be one of the most impactful experiences we've had thus far.

Despite being short-staffed, I refused to let that hinder our productivity. Before departing, I had a conversation with my team. I reminded them that the value of the experience is determined by our own efforts and what we made of it, and urged them to wholeheartedly engage and strive to make a genuine difference. I told them that they had two options - to either go to the centre for two hours and leave like mandated, or to try and make the experience as meaningful as possible.

Our team definitely settled on the second option. Ashley, Zoe and I sat in a classroom and grouped with two children each, sitting beside them and guiding them through their lesson tasks. Besides that, we also had some touching conversations. They learnt a lot from us, but we also learnt a lot from them.

I learnt that one of the children I was catering for’s mother is working full-time in Hong Kong, and spends little time with him even though he’s only 6. I learnt that he knows a lot more about Chinese literature than I do. I learnt that he cares so much about his grandfather and his little brother who he lives with deeply, to the extent that he saved half the gummy bear he received in class as a reward for completing the designated tasks, for them. I held his hand and listened closely, not because that was my job, but because I really wanted to listen, and to be there for him. I was both inspired and humbled and moved by the fact that he had matured at such a young age and fully trusted me to share these things with.

In Briar and Leo’s room, they were busy forming real bonds too. They had made new friends who they conversed with without an issue, and they were proud to admit that they helped these little children step out of their comfort zones and engage in conversations with them.

When we had left the session, we sat on the bus and it struck that there aren't many Links trips left for the year. However, far from dampening our spirits, this realisation ignited an unwavering determination within us. I promised myself to seize every remaining moment, and be as engaged in my future visits as possible. Today’s experience was so meaningful, and it left me with a warm feeling I couldn’t describe in words.

Yet, in this beautiful symbiosis, we have also been transformed. Through their stories, their resilience, their trust and their bravery, we have learned valuable life lessons that stretched far behind the school curriculum itself.

- Lilly Larard

December 6, 2023

The final Links before christmas break was a huge success. My group left on time with everyone here, and we headed towards the center with a high spirit. Once we arrived, I decided to switch up our mini groups a bit so each group can experience different classes with the kids. I joined a small class with two kids that were full of energy, and we made arts and crafts with them, played games, and even listened to them read stories. One of the kids didn’t know how to read but he's creativity was very astonishing as he explained what he thought was going on in his story “monster of many different colors”, his concept of the story was so interesting and we were all impressed by how he could navigate his way through the story with his own unique thoughts and ideas. We then proceeded to play a very popular game with kids, “reaction game”, where we had to find a card with an animal and a specific color and number on it that matched all the criteria of the one card they picked. I was quite embarrassed when one of the kids noticed a card that I skipped over, giving him the opportunity to win the game. We ended this visit with distributing our Christmas gifts that me and some of my groupmates wrapped the day before, receiving warm hugs and big smiles from all the kids from the autism center, filling us all with the festive mood. It was overall a very successful and exciting trip, and all my groupmates look forward to going back after break. 

- Charlotte Xiong

November 29, 2023

Today’s visit was a truly heartwarming, wholesome and unforgettable experience.

We started off the visit by splitting into groups of 2-3 of us. Alyssa and I were once again paired with a more private class of two 5-year-old boys. During the majority of the lesson, we stuck with one child each and guided them through their lesson. We found that our guidance was very helpful to them as they seemed to be more confident in carrying out their tasks alongside us. When we had to depart, the two boys were evidently yearning and we left reluctantly.

Also, shoutout to Briar for all the high-quality photos and videos she has been taking for us during our sessions. Thank you!!


- Lilly Larard

November 22, 2023

​​Today we left for the autism center at around 12.30 and we stayed there for about 3 hours. Once we got there, the staff led us to an empty classroom so that we could put our stuff down there and wait for the first class of children to arrive. The first class that I went into was a PE class with tons of toys and obstacles for the children to play with. The class was very small; it only consisted of two people. We watched the children play for a while and also tried to assist the teachers with the activities. The games that they played often required them to use sensory information and aimed to train their physical and sensory ability. That class lasted about 40 minutes, and after that, I was brought into another classroom with two other children. This classroom was set in more of a school setting where students had 4-5 different subjects. Once again, we sat next to the children and tried to support them through the different activities. We played different board games with them and also read stories to them. This was such a great experience especially since we made more connections with the children there and when we left, they hugged us and told us to come back next week.

- Charlotte Xiong & Sheryl Wan

November 15, 2023

​​Today, we arrived at the centre with an optimistic and ready-to-observe attitude. I had communicated with the leaders of Ya’En in my own time and we were given permission to later on teach groups of children ourselves rather than learn alongside them, but in order to do that we had to use this session to really observe them and gain experience so that we can effectively communicate them when we begin our own lessons. We split into many groups again to cater different classes. Alyssa and I were put into a group with a 4-year-old boy on the social interaction and executive functioning side of the autism spectrum. During this focused period of time with him, Alyssa and I paid close attention to his emotional control, task initiation, social interaction and cognitive abilities.

We observed how he responded to different stimuli, how he engaged with his surroundings, and how he interacted with other children and adults. By gaining this insight into his individual learning style, we identified strategies that could effectively support his development and potentially the development of other children at the centre that we can utilise when we start catering our own groups.

For example, we observed that the boy sometimes found it challenging to start a task independently. He required clear instructions and prompts to initiate an activity. To address this, we planned to provide step-by-step instructions, breaking tasks down into smaller, manageable parts. We also considered using visual prompts or timers to help him understand the sequence of activities and encourage task initiation.

We observed that even the smallest nod or positive change in body language or any means of encouragement can have a significant positive impact on the boy's emotional control and engagement. Therefore, we made a note to provide positive reinforcement and encouragement consistently throughout the learning process. We planned to use verbal praise, high-fives, or small rewards to acknowledge his efforts and motivate him to stay engaged.

We observed, in fact, HIS OWN observational skills. The boy had a keen eye for detail, seeming to notice small changes in his environment (both emotionally and literally) and was particularly attuned to visual stimuli. This observation led us to consider incorporating activities that would capitalise on his strengths in visual perception and attention to detail. To foster his observational skills further, we planned to introduce activities such as scavenger hunts or "I Spy" games. Activities like this would encourage him to actively observe his surroundings, identify objects or specific details, and communicate his observations. We believed that by engaging him in these activities, we could promote his social interaction skills

We also connected with him on a more emotional level, forming a connection far beyond volunteer-and-child.


- Lilly Larard

September 27, 2023

​​Today was our first lLnks trip to  Ya'An autism center where we had the opportunity to interact with young kids that had learning disabilities. It was an enlightening experience from the moment we entered as we were led to a room to discuss and understand more about how we should act around them. After that, prior to meeting the kids, our group split up into 2 to create fun activities for them. We were excited to meet them but also nervous as to how they would act and if they would like our activities. This immediately disappeared as we saw some quiet sweet kids come into the room with their polite hello’s and smiles on their faces. We laughed when they crawled under the tables in class and gently prompted them to join in group discussions and activities. We premade autumn festival cards for them to stuck and make, and they could stick rabbits, moons, mooncakes onto their sheet of paper. Not only was it really interesting to utilize our Chinese speaking abilities, but it was also a great chance for everybody to practice key skills such as patience and communication. After all the activities were finished, everybody went into a separate room to bond more with the children by playing games with them, like monkey on the tree and truck man. We could definitely see their potential and creativity, and under the teacher’s small tips, we guided them to talk and respond more to their surroundings. Overall, everybody gained experience in some sense, and after getting a taste of what future links trips will be like, everybody is excited to come back and educate both themselves and the children.

- Charlotte Xiong and Elaine Shiao

September 20, 2023

​​Our first visit to Ya’En Autism Center didn’t go as forseen yet remained eye-opening and incredibly enriching. The goal of our first visit was to understand the way children at the center communicate and from that infer what ways should we use to give them a better experience. Before we left, we came up with a plan as to how we were going to that, through games such as icebreakers, Simon Says, picture storytelling, colouring and 1-on-1 chats etc. We also prepared a bag full of essentials - comics, colouring sheets, colouring pens, treats, stickers, notebooks etc. However, when we arrived there, we realised that situations turned out to be very different  from what we expected - instead of leading the children through various activities, we were split into small groups to assist the teacher in conducting lessons. This minor setback, though unexpected, turned out to be a blessing in disguise. By observing and assisting the teachers, we learnt firsthand about how experienced professionals there communicated with children through adapting to the childrens’ communication methods. I noticed that the most children there, particularly younger ones, communicated through non-verbal cues such as body language and facial expressions, so it may not have been most effective if we actually came in with all sorts of verbal activities. We quickly realised that our preconceived notions and activities might not have been as “simple” as we initially thought. However, this provided as an amazing and eye-opening learning opportunity, as for the first time we learnt about children with Autism and how profoundly they are still able to communicate through non-verbal cues.

- Lilly Larard

Hangzhou 10

March 22, 2023

​​Today is the last visit to Ya’en for us HZ10 students, and during today’s visit to the Ya’en Autism centre, we had a total of 11 students as there were a lot of people interested in our community service location, but unfortunately, once again, there were only 2 classes available, so we took turns to go supervise the class.

During today’s lessons, there were a variety of activities, in one of the classes, the students practiced their drawing and writing skills to improve their basic motor skills, they each had a notebook to themselves and they practiced drawing shapes, numbers, and objects together as a class. The kids followed the teacher’s instructions and we helped each child when they were not focusing or when they were misbehaving. In the other class, it was mostly fun time and we played some games with the kids. We danced with the kids, and we even played with them and their chosen toys. It was an eventful visit and it was fun to spend time with younger students!

We also worked with a group of students that hosted a book drive and we got a few beginner-level Chinese books to give to the centre. Before we got to the centre, I sent one of the teachers a message about the books and they were so thrilled and grateful. We observed that they kept reusing the same books and it was really repetitive for the kids. We donated a series of books about "Peppa pig", we really hope that it would help the center and provide them with extra resources. 

Throughout all these links trips to the center, my group and I learnt a lot about Autism disorders and we learnt a lot about helping a community in need. This was a great experience and we really hope that we made an impact on the Ya’en Links center. 

- Sharine Wong

March 15, 2023

​​Today during our links visit, we had a total of 9 people but unfortunately there were only 2 classes available, so we took turns to go supervise the class. In one class, a group of 2 swapped with another group of 2. In the other class, a group of 3 swapped with another group of 2. Even though it may have been a bit complicated and it would have been better for everyone to be participating at the same time, it might have been better for the children as they might be frightened by too many older students.

For the first class, they had their usual music lessons, book time and individual cognitive classes. For the other class, they sat down in individual tables (maybe to help them focus?) and watched a teacher teach a lesson about colours, other than that, they were able to do some physical exercises such as throwing a hoop onto a toy they want. There were a lot less children today in comparison to the last few visits.

We were able to help the children and the staff, every child at the center was well taken care of by CIS students and the caregivers. We are looking forward to the last links visit!

- Sharine Wong

March 1, 2023

​​During today’s visit to the Ya’en Autism centre, we had a total of 9 students and we split into 3 different classes. Each class was different and had a different set of things to do. Each class was also split by which disorder each student had. For example, in one class, almost every student had ADHD. By doing this, the teachers could easily handle the students in the same way. 

The students from each class followed their usual schedules, one class had a reading session where the teachers read a book to all the students in the class. One thing we all noticed was that they keep reusing the same few books and all the students in the class already know what the book is about. Another class followed their typical schedule of dancing and then playing with toys such as the barbecue toy machine, cooking toys and more. After play time, each student has their own assignments, some practice writing words, letters, numbers, other work on strengthening basic motor skills. 

Third visit of the year was successful and we look forward to the next visit!

- Sharine Wong

February 22, 2023

​​We started off a bit later today at the centre. Taking the public transport was more efficient this time and we managed to make it to the destination on time, but we were only allocated to different classes around 20 minutes after we got there.

As we stepped into class there was a variety of activities the students were doing. One class was trying something new, training their motor skills with an activity that encouraged them to screw and unscrew the top off of a toy. Some students were playing with a slinky and interacting with the different toys as well. Students also engaged in a music class, with some of our students helping with activities and to help follow directions. In another class, students played with dry sand and interacted with the activity where you dip powder in water, pulling it out after and then the powder turned out dry. There was also an added element of free play with the children where our students were allowed to have more hands on time with the students there.

We also noticed that there was a chart that documented each student's likes and dislikes, their favourite foods, education level, and other details about their personality, tendencies, and behaviours. Another thing we noticed was that one of the students that we frequently interacted with had left to attend primary school.

Overall it was a pretty standard Links outing and we had a fun time interacting with the children.

- Cassandra Cheung

February 15, 2023

​​This being the first day of Links in semester two, all of us were high-spirited and excited to go back to Ya'En and interact with the kids. Additionally, it was our first time using public transport to get to the centre, which was an added experience and allowed us to become more familiar with the city around us. 

We started off with a small planning session and an overview of our plan for the day. We went through the metro route and talked about our past experiences with the kids. Something else we talked about was that for future sessions, we are planning to mirror our previous coloring page activity that we introduced to the kids. We could redo the coloring activity or try some other event for the kids to add into the playtime. This was one of the ideas we played around with during the morning planning preparation.

Once we arrived at the Center, we split up into two rooms (four students each) and observed their classes once again. It was a really interesting experience to note how each child had changed in the time we were away and whether their behaviours had changed or not.

As per normal, each student was paired up with a student from the Center and observed/helped them through the class. Similar to last semester, we mainly observed the class but also participated in activities with the kids, helped the teachers take care of them, guided them through activities, and helped out with the classwork when possible. The class structure stayed roughly the same — playtime, a brief storytime, a bathroom break, music class, a physical activity time, another bathroom break, a snacktime, and then another playtime which led to dismissal. 

- Cassandra Cheung

December 7, 2022

​​This is our last visit of the semester, it was probably the most productive visit we have had so far. As usual, the children followed their normal classes and the same schedule. And as usual, we supervised the children to make sure that they are doing the right thing for each subject. Today, 8 people attended this visit, so we split into 3 classes, one pair in a class of 3, one trio in a class of 4, and another trio in a class of 4. 

For my classroom, the hours went by so quickly because I was having a lot of fun. The teachers were all very kind today and we even did a physical activity with the kids. During the physical activity with the children, one of them threw a temper tantrum and kept hitting the teacher. I could tell the teacher got annoyed so he left the room, we were stuck in a room with an angry child without adult supervision. This shows that they put trust in us to help fix the issue, we had a small talk with the child and then he stopped crying, we even brought him to the bathroom ourselves. Even though this incident may have been problematic, but the teachers are proud of us and it's confirmed that they trust us completely. 

For other classrooms, they followed the same schedule, some had music lessons, some had reading lessons and some had Chinese listening practice. Each class focuses on different motor skills and learning skills which makes each class so unique and different. 

The autism center has a good impression of our CIS Ya'en links group, and I personally am very happy of how far our links group has come. For the first several visits, we basically did nothing, but now take a look at how far we've come. We are capable of caring for a child alone without adult supervision, demonstrating the teachers and children’s trust in us. Even though this is our last visit of the year, we are all really excited to come back to Hangzhou and reconnect with the children and teachers the next semester!

- Sharine Wong

November 23, 2022

This morning the Links group met at 10:30 in the library to go over our itinerary for the day, plan out individual activities that we could incorporate within the classes. This week we opted for more of a physical approach, whereas the last time we prepared something it was more passive and hobby-like as we prepared coloring papers. We tried to discuss physical activities like Line Tag, Simon Says, Duck Duck Goose, and other games of this nature. We then did our Covid tests individually and left campus at 1:25.

Today was an interesting day as we all switched the class groups. Since there were three classes going on at the time we were at the center and we had 9 people in total, we split evenly into three groups of three so that we could sit in and help each class with equal participation. 

In weeks prior to this visit I mostly stayed with one group that had children from 3-4 years old, but this week I switched to a bigger class with older boys. This group was a lot more talkative than the class I was with before and I noticed that there were many differences in the class structure. They had a longer “in-class” period and had two breaks total in the class duration, while the younger class had lighter activities with three breaks. Similarly, the lead teacher for this class was much harsher on the children and held them to a higher standard than the lead teacher for the younger students. This group of students also did not use the PECS-driven picture-oriented class structure that the younger class did, in which students would use stickers and images to communicate their wants and needs inside the class. Instead, this class was much more teacher-led and there was less that the students could do to spearhead or lead the class. 

Through the duration of time I spent this term helping out at the Ya’En Center, I realized that there were many differences that the center used to give each individual the most fitting coverage and content that they needed. They fit higher-functioning students in classes together that included more rigorous activities in a more traditional classroom setting, with clear boundaries between teacher-student relationships and dynamics. Contrastingly, students that functioned lower required more attention, sometimes with a 1:1 ratio of teacher to student in classes. These classes would be more relaxed and consisted of more breaks than others as well. 

We finally left the center at 4:20 with a short break between the ending of the classes and the bus ride back home. We had a short period of free time where we could just relax and I thought that this was very nice as we could share our experiences within the center today and sort of talk more about our observations and what we noticed. All in all, it was a wonderful day at the Autism Center.

- Cassandra Cheung

November 16, 2022

This Links trip, we had a pretty standard session with the kids, splitting up early on and observing different lessons. We had a total of 9 students today so we split up equally into 3 classes with 3 students each. 

Our students are getting more used to the center’s curriculum and activities for the children. Typically, they start off with a storytime, then a short playtime, a bathroom break, music class, another bathroom break, self-directed studies, then a short playtime until class is over. I noticed that the students would use small pictures/stickers to tell the teacher what they wanted, for example, a specific toy or to go out and use the bathroom. This was part of the center’s PECS learning program, and we began to notice these different activities or habits that the center had instilled in them using the system and curriculum.

This trip, we didn’t plan anything for the kids to do, but we will be brainstorming more simple activities for the kids to do next week.

- Cassandra Cheung

November 9, 2022

Today’s visit was amusing and we were able to accomplish many things. This links visit was quite different from the last. During our last visit, the manager of the center told us that we were able to plan short activities for the kids. So before we left to the center today, we met up in the library to discuss the itinerary for the day and discussed what kind of activity we have planned for the kids. In the end, we chose to create simple and cute designs for the kids to colour, it is an educational yet challenging activity for younger kids. 

3 new students joined our group today. They all said they enjoyed their time there and said that it was a great new experience. We had 11 students in total so we split into 3 classes, one class with 3 students and 2 children, and the other two classes with 4 students and 4 children. Each class did different activities. One class learnt about tomatoes and watched videos about it. Another class read a book, then had music class, and did our planned activity for half an hour, then individual cognitive work. The last class worked on storytelling through pictures and picked real leaves from bushes to create a piece of tree art with play dough. 

Even though most of us weren’t able to do our planned activity with the kids, we hope that during our next visit, we will be able to participate more in the lessons and add our own suggestions to the teachers in the class. 


- Sharine Wong

October 26, 2022

We started off this Links session in the library and discussed some problems that were happening in our location, and some solutions that we could possibly implement that could help us solve the problems. We disbanded for lunch and met together at 1:00 to go to the Centre together. 

10 students went to the Ya'En Autism Centre and participated in classes. We first split up students in two groups of five, each group going to a different collaborative class. After 10 minutes, the two classes merged and the children learned how to make popcorn using a pot and ingredients. The classes then split up for individual work and then a toy-playing session. Overall, it was a different experience from previous visits and it was exciting to see kids of different ages and abilities learning together.

At the end of the session, the manager of the Centre informed us that we could begin to plan out short segments or activities for the children to do for next time. This was very exciting as we had not been allowed to interact a lot with students or plan anything that would be used for actual lessons up until now, and I hope this can help us as a Links group improve our interactions and increase our knowledge. Some ideas that we can implement are bringing interactive activities for the children to play with during self-directed learning, such as colouring a drawing, doing a maze activity, or any other small cognitive activities. I think this can greatly help the kids with their learning and would be a good contribution to the current curriculum. We could also make use of the design lab and innovate something that can be more hands-on and become a cognitive activity for the kids.

- Cassandra Cheung

October 19, 2022

Today’s visit was much better than the previous one, we were able to be more interactive with the kids and we were able to help them with more activities. We divided into three groups once more to accommodate 3 separate group classes, each lasting about two to three hours.

A few of us had the opportunity to supervise some students as they listened to music, read books, and even engaged in some independent cognitive activities. Others assisted other kids with their educational tasks and engaged in more practical and physical activities, such as peeling corn (learning about popcorn, corn related foods).

Every single one of those kids had our support, for example, whenever they wanted to play with a toy, we pushed them to express it clearly rather than just take it. This improved their ability to communicate and helps them adapt to society. Overall, we had a great time and are excited to visit again!

- Sharine Wong

October 12, 2022

Today was our first day of going to the Ya’En autism center. We arrived at the center and were warmly greeted by the friendly staff and after eagerly waiting for the lunch break to end, we met the adorable children. 

At first, we were a bit timid and unsure of what to do, so we sat on the side and observed for a bit. Some of us watched a one-one session where a child worked with a teacher to improve cognitive skills and recognise commands. Meanwhile, others went to the playroom and played games like catch and helped support the kids on balancing boards and helped with their motor, physical and coordination skills.

Then came the highlight of the trip, sitting in on a group class that spanned 2 hours. Four students went and accompanied four children, ensuring that we could all help one-on-one and offer as much support as possible. Playing and encouraging the children was very fun, and we learned a lot about how to help children with these types of learning disabilities grow and become more accustomed for society. All of us thoroughly enjoyed our time at the Ya’En autism center and look forward to going back in the near future!

- Sophia Swing

Hangzhou 9

March 9, 2022

Today, we visited the Ya’en Autism Center once more, and was pleasantly surprised to find out that the kids became slightly more welcoming.  Our day was pretty similar as to last time, so here is a recap from my teammate, Silvia:

“A pair of attentive brown eyes watched me as I gently pulled her small hand, guiding the child to take her pink water bottle for “喝水时间” (“drinking water time”). Today we visited and helped at the Ya’En Autism Center as teacher assistants. I joined the PECS (Picture Exchange Communication System) class with two classmates, where the kids owned binders full of picture cards, so they could pass cards to teachers or us to communicate their needs nonverbally. At the beginning of class, the three of us each “claimed” a child and watched over them specifically. For example, I helped the little girl In reading aloud the words in a storybook, while she examined each illustration carefully, sometimes excitedly pointing her finger at a ladybug or sea turtle. I really enjoyed the experience of helping the autistic kids and learning more about them. And I look forward to seeing them again next week!”

Here are some other favourite moments/highlights from my teammates:

Isabelle: “I liked it when mini Tom Tang put his face in my hands and let me squish him.”

Rea: “[I liked it] When the kid i was supervising [named] 可乐 tried to balance on my leg.”

Adele: “I liked when a kid called my clay pieces bad and imperfect.”

In general, we loved the entire experience as a whole and as individuals!

- Jodie Fei

March 2, 2022

In today’s Links trip, we visited the Ya’En Autism Center.  When we arrived, we split in small groups of 2-5 in order to join different classes and spread our support.  We were able to join either group classes with 3 or more autistic students to look after or individual classes with a single autistic student.  After lunch at DaYue City, we returned to the center and split into similar groupings of 1-4 students.  The kids that met each of us today were all very adorable, and I (Jodie Fei) even received two “presents” from a kid.  Before we left, one of the teachers even gave us a small session on why some children are born with autism.  Some of them positively surprised us with their speaking abilities, and quite a few of them were just as excited to see us as we were to see them.  Even though they are diagnosed with autism, they are kids, after all, and most of us really enjoyed taking care and looking after kids.  Therefore, it was a very enjoyable experience overall, but we did encounter a few challenges.  For one, it was difficult for some children to relax when seeing new faces like us.  We were also a distraction to some of the students, since some children with autism may be easily distracted/curious.  However, the situation did become increasingly better as we moved further into each session and became more familiar with the autistic students.  In our next session, we hope to take more charge in the classes we take part in, as we are growing and becoming more familiar with Ya’En’s teaching processes and preferences.  Quite a few of us can already communicate quite well with the autistic students, but some students have still yet to familiarize themselves with us and the same goes for some of us.

- Jodie Fei

Hangzhou 8

May 26, 2021

Our final day was both fulfilling and also sentimental. We were rejoiced to find out that we were in classes with the same kids from last time and some of them were even able to remember us. Upon arrival we immediately split into our designated classes and helped support the teachers and children in the classes. We were a lot more experienced this time with the children in the classrooms. We printed out paper templates to fold tables and chairs as our planned activity for the art class that we lead. The children really enjoyed this and we will never forget their joy when they found out they were able to, by folding, make a piece of paper become a table that can stand. Our arts classes were the last lesson and leaving the classroom for the last time was really quite a sad process for us since we knew we would never be able to see the children again. 

- Amanda Wang

May 19, 2021

Today we went to Ya’En prepared to lead the art classes. We were delighted when the teachers expressed a lot more trust in us, really allowing us to be more involved in the classes even when we were not the lead teachers. The teachers at Ya’En also showed us their full support and understanding when we were leading the classes since it was our first time and we didn’t know the exact protocols in the classrooms. There are quite a small number of students in each class, so everyone was assigned a student to support. This created strong bonds between the children at Ya’En and us. Overall today was a really gratifying experience since we created stronger connections with Ya’En staff as well as the students.

- Amanda Wang

April 21, 2021

What was supposed to be a 20 minute walk ended up being an hour on public transport plus more walking, but when we finally arrived, we were extremely excited to see all the kids. 

Although we took an extra route and went a couple more kilometers than expected, it was all worth it because we all had so much fun and learnt so much about these kids with disabilities. This day was extremely gratifying, we spent a lot of time helping the kids with basic tasks and seeing the difference in the kids in terms of their communication and motor skills. 

- Rachel Leung

Hangzhou 7

January 14, 2020

We baked cookies and brownies for the staff this morning, it was really good and they loved it. This lesson was really successful and a huge accomplishment. Susan was leading the whole class today, while Erin and Hannah assisted a bit. The first activity was coloring water and pouring it into the fake snow powder to make fake snow that we could mold into different shapes. Erin’s kid, JunJun really enjoyed it and engaged really well. He was excited the entire time. Hannah took care of Susan’s kid XiaoYa. XiaoYa was very scared of everything and would whine whenever we held the snow in front of her or encourage her to join in. Rhea’s kid ChenChen would play with the snow or help out when we asked him to or supported him. However, there were a few times when he would run off his chair and cling on to rhea. We also did ring around the rose and sang baby shark. All the kids enjoyed this but needed some support when doing the baby shark hand motions. The teachers were really energetic and joined in our ring around the rosie game. They also took a lot of interest in our fake snow and other activities. The teachers and parents told us they were really happy with how engaging the activities were for the kids and teachers alike. They were also happy with how we were attentive the entire time, and we got very positive feedback. Everyone found today’s session really fun and accomplishing!

~Hannah Y

December 3, 2019

In this week’s class, we saw improvements in each child and learnt more about how to better lead a class from the teacher’s feedback. Jasmine and Hannah were in charge of leading this time. They decided on a balloon activity to begin with, before moving on to a more physical activity which tends to engage the children more. The highlights which they enjoyed were ring around the rosy and 拉個圓圈走走. The teacher continued the class from there before allowing us to end it with baby shark and twinkle twinkle little star. Overall, we saw more interest from the children in this week’s activities, with 袁前晨 acting up less and 林家俊’s improved concentration. Something that the teacher suggest we improve on is contacting and telling the teachers’ our plan prior to the lesson to avoid overlap.

~Erin L

November 26, 2019

This week, Susan and Erin played the role of the teacher for the class. We worked with the same 4 children as we did the previous classes. To begin with, the teacher made dough out of flour and water, rolled it out and made it into a cake, we then decorated it with toy fruits and candles, and have a lovely celebration as a class. Afterward, Susan and Erin led the dance “Baby Shark”, although the children were slightly confused at first, they began to understand and started to follow along. I think the children enjoyed this new dance as it was different to what they were used to doing. We also played a matching and saying fruits activity where we should show them a photo of a fruit and they would pick it out of the basket. It was really fun to interact with the kids and I think that for the first time as teachers, it was very successful.

~Jasmine E

November 19, 2019

This week we had two back to back classes led by the Ya’en teachers again. We were working with the same four kids. When we walked in,  the kids children were playing with balloons and trying to blow them up. Then the teachers brought out play dough for the kids to play with and blew bubbles with them. These activities were very engaging and the kids seemed to be enjoying them. We helped them participate and make food with the play dough, helping them with their fine motor skills. Once we were finished with those activities, we sang some songs with them and played some games. During the classes, all of the children were quite well behaved and improved a lot since the last time we went. 

~Rhea T

October 29, 2019

In the morning our group went into the links room and we took notes as we watched a movie about autism which would help us gain a better understanding on what to do later in the day. At 2:00pm our group left school and went to the autism centre to start working with the kids. When we first arrived, we were given a briefing on what the rules and expectations there were and what we should be aware of during the class. We were also given specifications on the 4 children we would be working with, and certain things we should do while assisting them. Such as helping them to do things the teacher tells them to do, and coaxing them when they start acting up.

We had 2 back to back classes with four children from 3:30-5:00pm. We were working with two boys and two girls. Two of us had to act as children and participate in the activities because we had too many people. The rest of the group were each assigned a child to look after. We alternated roles so everyone had an opportunity to experience different things throughout the classes. We played different games with the kids during the class. At some points it was a bit challenging to get some of the kids to respond to us and participate in the class activities but most of the children were very respondent and engaged a lot during the class.

~Anya H

October 8, 2019

Met up at headquarters to finalise some technicalities, next week will be our first session with the kids!

September 24, 2019

Another visit to discuss the scheduling. The centre is very sensitive for their children and privacy, so pictures of the children will be censored.

September 17, 2019

Site visit.