Page Eighteen

THE MICHIGAN DAILY MAGAZINE

Runt4nv Wnvaml-tar 171 1 CAT

CPU: Help for Youth } zf ,. J

f

(Continued froin Page 10)
extent their disorder interferes
with the learning process. In some
cases, a psychological disorder has
no effect on the child's ability to
learn, in other cases the reverse
may be true. "How else can you
explain it when a kid wilth an IQ
of 120 isn't able to read?" says the
school's principal, Nick Long.
ACCORDING to Long, most of
the children who find it diffi-
cult to larn also have found it
difficult to adjust to society and
its demands, or they have painted
pictures of teachers as authori-
tarian symbols whom they are in-
clined to resist, or they learn only
with difficulty due to their own
conceptions of themselves as
learners.
The main problem in allsthree
blocks to learning is that the pa-
tient has no motivation to learn,
according to Long. What Long
and his staff try to do is to give
the child this motivation through
what he referred to as "project
learning."
This is a theory of education in
which the learner is made to be a
part of the learning experience.
"If the class is studying wheat,
then we try to arrange a trip to
Battle Creek to see how wheat is
grown." Thus the student is made
a part of the educational experi-
ence; he is immersed in it.
Another stumbling block to

learning is the tendency of some
students to imagine the teacher
as an authoritative figure exist-
ing only to torment the learner,
In the hospital's school this no-
tion is dispelled, primarily as a
result of the teacher's training in
the instruction of psychologically
disturbed children. She is not
completely devoid of authority,
since, if this were the case, she
could not demand and expect to
hold the respect of her pupils.
WHAT happens when the child
rebels against the authority
of teacher or against nurses,
aides, and other hospital person-
nel?
According to Long, in many
cases disciplinary action must be
taken, but it is very lenient. If for
some reason, the child should be-
come rebellious, he is removed
from the situation which initiated
the trouble. He is told why his
behavior is not acceptable, why
it is out of context with the pre-
cepts of an orderly society. And
in some cases some of the child's
privileges are suspended until he
learns to control himself better,
a thing which he will have to do
in the adult society,
Occupational therapy, as de-
fined by the hospital's occupa-
tional and recreational therapist,
Phyllis A. Doyle, is an activity
prescribed for a patient and car-
ried out by a therap ist. The pur-

t
r,
t
a
t
r

TIME TO READ-An important part of individual adjustment is participation in group activity under
the guidance of a CPH staff member.
Pose of this activity depends upon child and his mother. He didn't In all sporting events, individu-
the condition of the child. make the second dish, al competition is as limited as
Miss Doyle adds that there are When he does start to make the possible, The reason behind this?
many uses to which occupational second dish, the therapist will Dr. Elenon explains, 'There are
therapy can be adapted. It may know that the situation at home
be used to observe the child so has been mended, and the child, children who aren't ready for in-
as to gain further information as therefore, will feel much better. dividual competition. Of course,
to his problem or it may be a This information is gained with- it is a thing which is needed
means for satisfyirw the child. out verbal communication be- through life, but if it is pushed on
tween the patient and his psychi- someone who isn't ready for it, it
PSYCHOLOGISTS say that atrist. may result in things we don't
there is a relationship between , In the occupational therapy want."

I'
What's
the
Visibiity?
manMannequins ew
Femmie Falale
collection of dres.
open shoes
BLACK
SUELL.

I
f
i
.

how a child expresses himself in
play and real situations. The way
a child reacts to a doll house or
a doll may be an indication of
how he feels toward his home life
or some feminine figure in his life.
This is one of the primary values
of occupational therapy. Not only
does it prompt social relations but
it also is a means by which the
psychiatrist better understands
his patient's problem, thanks to
the observations of the occupa-
tional therapist and her aides.
For instance, a patient in one
of the hospital's handicraft class-
es made a hand-tooled aluminum
dish for his mother. He had
planned to make a second dish
to match the first. Then some-
thing went wrong between the
Gerald Landy is a forcmer
Daily staff tuemtiber atid a jan-
ior tajaring in 1journalis t.

work groups, children have a
number of means to express
themselves artistically,. They may
make wood, leather, paper, cloth
or metal objects; a wide variety
of tools and materials is at their
disposal.
In making such articles, it is
not the concern of the therapist
that the patient attain perfection
unless this is what satisfies him.

Therefore, in those activities
where there is apt to be competi- 4
tion on an individual level, the
events are so designed that groups
or teams are the competing units.
In such an arrangement no one
child can proclaim himself win-
ner nor any one blame himself as
a loser. The group is the entity
which will win or lose.

His satisfaction is of primary im- IN ADDITION to sports, other
portance; this is a major goal of activities are designed for the
the hospital's occupational thera- children's recreation. In the sum-
py program. mer months there are picnics and
The hospital's second means of field trips which help to bring
caring for the physical well-being the group together into an inter-
of its patients is through recrea- dependent social unit, where the
tional therapy. This program does child depends on others to afford
not differ essentially from the oc- himself the most complete measure
cupational therapy program, of happiness. Additional recreation
includes trips to local movie thea-
ACCORDING to Miss Doyle, ters and points of interest and
"Recreational and occupation- playground activities.
al therapy are alike in that they The Childrens' Psychiatric Hos-
are divergent means to a common pital is a society promoting mean-
end" - the satisfaction of the ingful associations between adults
hild. and youngsters as a first step in
This end is attained in part the adaptation of a disturbed
through such group activities as child to his social environment. It
team games. In the spacious CPH is a society which encouragesV0
gymnasium there are facilities for pricced .relations between chil-
skating, ba tball. shuffleboard, dren in work and play. These are
wrestling and a host of other its accomplishments; these are
sports. Then too, the hospital ils the things which all individuals
a 26-foot indoor swimmin pol must posess to live a normal life
designed for patient use. in society.


rv
-
'
r
:,.., .,

CAMPUS DOW'OWN
E.9 LE121
E, Liberty 2 STORES South Moin

ORANGE BLOSSOMA RINGS
N 'S
117 Noi tit tUniv eritm
W I tof Hill At ,I'tot is

T. 'N t)LISH-An inptent at 11 ,tk care of his wn1
belongings,even to tame polihing of shoo.