“I'm just...a failure”“No one understands me”
“I’m always too afraid to raise my hand at school”
“I really wish I could be smart”
“I don’t do anything right”
Can you guess what all of these statements have in common?
They’re popular self-descriptions voiced by kids with learning disabilities.
When children can’t keep up at school, the first thing that starts to plummet is their grades.
The second (and perhaps more important thing) is their self esteem.
Learning disabilities aren’t always easy to spot, especially at a very young age. Many kids who are eventually diagnosed with one,
have been struggling at school for years, before teachers or parents were even aware there was an issue. And by the time the diagnosis is made, significant damage to self esteem and self confidence has already been done.
The circumstances are even worse for children who come from impoverished families; unlike their peers from financially stable homes,
if or when a learning disability is diagnosed, who has funds to pay for a tutor or supplemental educational resources
when there’s no money to pay for food, clothes or dentist bills?
Yad Eliezer’s Shalhevet Early Learning Initiative was established to provide help for kids in this precarious situation.
With early childhood intervention a priority, our program places educational diagnosticians and other professionals in Israeli schools who work specifically with struggling students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds- identifying their needs and working on improving their skills.
By doing so, we’re able to give them the help they require-thereby improving their grades, their self esteem, and hopefully, their chances at a more successful future.
There are many kids in need, and the waiting list is long. Your donation will make a difference.
About 750 students are helped through this program.
