A few weeks ago I was supporting Edward. Edward rarely uses verbal communication and does not use sign language. He has a huge personality that shines through when you support him. Edward will smile and laugh with you; if you drop something or stub your toe for example, then he really chuckles! He will dance as soon as he hears music, even if it’s a young lad blaring out drum and base from his car whilst stuck in traffic.
I was supporting Edward in the library doing ICT, when the women next to us got her keys out and placed them on the table. She had a pompom on her key ring and Edward stared at it intently. It was a small moment and it could have been insignificant but it planted a seed. On the way back to the bus station, I took Edward into a fabric shop intrigued by that small moment in the library I wanted to explore it more. We spent some time looking at different fabrics, feeling different textures but Edward wasn’t really interested and when I suggested we left he did so quickly. On the bus on the way home, I reflected about that pompom in the library and the disinterest in the fabric shop. I was a girl on a mission! The next time I supported Edward we went into Wilkinson and we looked at the curtain tassels, he immediately picked them up and started to run his fingers through them, then bunched them up to make a pompom and shook it around vigorously.
I was so excited, it was a rare moment! Edward had let me into his thoughts and it couldn’t be ignored. I went home and created a session plan. The next day, Edward and I went back to Wilkinson only this time we found ourselves in front of the wool. I asked Edward to pick a colour, he chose bright pink and I supported him to make a purchase. Armed with our resources, we went to the library to carry out our creative session as I supported Edward to start making his own pompom.
To begin with, Edward needed support with threading the wool, I would position myself and hold the cardboard template and he would thread the wool through but as he gained confidence he began to thread the wool quicker and after just twenty minutes took the cardboard off me and he was away, smiling and laughing only relying on me for help when he needed more wool cutting.
Half way through the session I asked Edward if he was enjoying himself, he smiled and said "yes". It was the first time I had ever heard Edward speak and for once I was lost for words. The pompom project now lives in his bag and will probably take a few weeks to complete. We work on it when waiting for busses or during lunch and I cannot wait for Edward to have his finished pompom.
It was a small moment when Edward saw the pompom but hearing him speak as a result of noticing it was a huge reminder of just how rewarding and amazing my job can really be.
Georgie Moore
Community Learning Facilitator, No-Limits Milton Keynes