Republic Polytechnic students organised a kayaking session at Kallang Basin for youth with special needs.
(Photos courtesy of Republic Polytechnic)
During the COVID-19 pandemic, safe management measures made it difficult for many people to engage in their favourite outdoor sports and activities. With restrictions eased, a team of 40 students, staff and alumni from Republic Polytechnic (RP) made it their mission to bring the great outdoors to youth with special needs.
The RP student volunteers, who are currently pursuing their Diploma in Outdoor and Adventure Learning (DOAL), organised and conducted kayaking sessions for around 24 students from MINDS Lee Kong Chian Gardens School, Metta School and Rainbow Centre Yishun Park. The participants were accompanied by their teachers or parents.
Titled Power Splash!, the kayaking sessions along Kallang Basin took place over three Saturdays in May and June this year, and was launched from the Water Sports Centre at Singapore Sports Hub.
According to DOAL lecturer Ms Lois Ser, children with special needs deeply benefit from being outdoors, as the natural environment helps to reduce stress, enhance emotional resilience and support cognitive functioning, as well as facilitates active and imaginative play. “Outdoor activities like kayaking can also promote communication, elevate additional performance and self-control, increase social interaction and reduce behavioural issues associated with conditions such as autistic sensitivity,” she adds.
An inclusive sport
Kayaking was a natural choice for the community service initiative with inclusivity at its heart, according to RP student leader Xavier Lim, 20. He says that kayaking was chosen because the water sport presented a new and fun learning experience for participants with special needs. “Kayaking provides a platform for them to take up new challenges and bring out their best potential,” he explains. “It is also an inclusive activity because there are many ways to mitigate and cater to the students’ specific needs, be they physical or a matter of needing a longer time or pace to learn.”
Power Splash! was funded by Temasek Trust, as part of the OSCAR@SG scheme, which supports ground-up initiatives aimed at answering urgent community needs that have arisen due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, the Water Sports Centre offered its support in ensuring participants were able to fully enjoy the kayaking sessions.
Republic Polytechnic students organised a kayaking session at Kallang Basin for youth with special needs.
Taking the lead
The RP student volunteers were led by a core team of five student leaders who put in hours of their own time into ensuring that the kayaking initiative would be a successful one. In the three months leading up to the first session, the student leaders prepared for and planned the kayaking sessions, while also recruiting other volunteers, surveying the locations and noting down areas of risk, and brainstorming suitable games. “We made sure that everyone was properly trained and ready for the event, to ensure the safety of our participants,” says Xavier.
He details the structure of each kayaking session: ice breaker games to start the day, followed by an introduction to kayaking skills and safety measures within small groups. A group – known as a fleet – consisted of two students with special needs and their corresponding caregivers, and a pair of RP student volunteers as kayaking buddies. Each fleet was staffed with another RP student volunteer and a lecturer, who acted as safety supervisor and mentor respectively.
Each session saw five fleets paddling out into the waters for around 90 to 120 minutes, engaging in games such as relay races and frisbee catching.
There was also time for hands-on learning and sightseeing, recounts Xavier. “We took the opportunity to share about caring for the environment and encouraged everyone to pick up any floating trash they came across when paddling. Of course, we did not miss the chance to take pictures of the iconic Indoor Stadium, Marina Bay Sands, Singapore Flyer and many other scenic views along with our radiant smiles.”
The kayak equipment was provided by Water Sports Centre at Singapore Sports Hub.
Seeding a love for water sports
Xavier notes that besides the occasional wet and windy weather, the main challenge of the kayaking sessions laid in learning how to engage the participants. This was the first time many of the RP student volunteers interacted with people with special needs. But the ice breaker games and the fun of kayaking soon won both sides over.
“The participants enjoyed themselves; you can see it on the smiles on their faces,” says Xavier. “The caregivers also shared with us that they observed the students getting excited, smiling and shouting with joy — actions and behaviours that they never or hardly see in class. The participants were all so encouraged to kayak and wanted us to be the same organisers to run this event for them again.”
Xavier and his fellow volunteers were deeply moved by the emotional impact the kayaking sessions had on the participants. “I learnt that it’s important to appreciate what we have, and to help others gain that same sense of joy and excitement,” he reflects. “Despite the hard work and challenging lead time in planning and preparation, everything was worth it. We are planting a seed that will hopefully motivate them to go outdoors more.”
