Article 2021 - 2022

PRO-LIFE DAY

On March 25th, 2022 on the Feast of the Annunciation, the Archdiocesan Commission for the Family Welfare in collaboration with the Commission for the Differently Abled, St. Vincent De Paul Society & Youth Commission celebrated PRO-LIFE DAY with the families of Differently Abled children. On this memorable day, the Bangalore Archdiocese recognized the Parents of Differently Abled children for their joyous appreciation and acceptance of life. The specially-abled children staged their God-given talents in order to motivate the youth who had gathered at Paalana Bhavan. The Archbishop Most Reverend Dr.Peter Machado, the priests, and the youth were so thrilled to see the performance of the Differently Abled children. God bless these children as they strive to live in a society with dignity.

GOLDEN JUBILEE CLOSING CEREMONY
SOPHIA OPPORTUNITY SCHOOL 2021-2022
LIFE IS ONE LONG JUBILEE!

The year 2021-2022, marks 50 years since Sophia Opportunity School first began, an important milestone in Her History.

The candlelit by the Sisters of Notre Dame 50 years ago, burn bright even today, paving the way to a brilliant future for all our dear Special Students.

Sophia Opportunity School let the golden hours slip by and they are golden only because She let them slip by.

The Special School began with just Four Students, now caters to 200+ Special Students, ranging from 5 to 20 years of age. Today, almost 3000 Students walk through her portals over the year.

Eucharistic Celebration

Appreciating the past, celebrating the present and inspiring the future the Golden Jubilee Closing Ceremony was meticulously organized by the Principal, Staff and Students of Sophia Opportunity School on February 2nd, 2022 with the Eucharistic Celebration, the Chief Celebrant being His Excellency Most Reverend Archbishop Dr. Peter Machado and Concelebrated by 12 other Priests. Keeping in mind the COVID Protocol, the crowd was restricted. The past Principals, Former Sisters Staff, Benefactors, and a few staff representatives from Sophia High School a few parents from the Special School were present along with their children.

Release of the Souvenir

The release of the Souvenir, " THE FOOTPRINTS LEFT BEHIND" was a very fact that the Special School has come to its 50 years of existence has had many milestones, many anecdotes and many generous souls who have made it what it is today. All of this went into the making of a Souvenir. Amidst the august gathering, His Excellency Most Reverend Archbishop Dr.Peter Machado, Sr. Chetana, the Provincial Superior of the Visitation Province, Sr. Kripa, the Superior and Secretary of our School, Sr. Madhuja, the Principal of Sophia Opportunity School, Sr. Alpana, the Principal of Sophia High School, Sr. Vishala, the Principal of Sophia Primary Section and Sr. Divya, the treasurer did the honours of releasing the Souvenir and thus unfolded a journey of 50 years.

Felicitation Ceremony

The Sisters of Notre Dame planted, others watered and God gave the growth by His power at work within. Now, as the Special School reaps the bountiful harvest of a 50 Golden Years of Gratitude, the Management had many to thank and appreciate for their generous service and contribution towards the growth and development of the school over the years. The Archbishop, the Provincial Superior, the Past and Present Dynamic Principals, the Former Sisters Staff and Benefactors were felicitated.

It was a moment for Sophia Opportunity School to express Her gratefulness to all, thus helping Her acknowledge Her achievements and blessings.

Integrated Entertainment

The integration offered by Sophia High School has always been a boon for our Special Students, allowing them to engage in relevant, meaningful activities that are connected to real life.

The Integrated Entertainment kicked off with an Invocation Dance followed by Integrated Harmony, Fusion Folk Dances and PowerPoint Presentation of the Special School at a glance.

Fellowship Meal

Memories of this beautiful day are sure to be etched in our hearts. A celebration in Sophia is always followed by a fellowship meal. The event ended as everyone relished the sumptuous spread laid out at the Sophia Sports Complex.

Martin Luther King, Junior, once said, ‘We are not makers of History. We are made by History!’ Sophia Opportunity School agrees with him, much more than the bricks and mortar, a school is its people. From the humblest to the highest functionary and the generation of the Sisters of Notre Dame, the Principals, Staff, Special Students, Parents, Well-wishers, Benefactors and Volunteers all of them made this Special School a thriving institution.

Synodal consultation at Palanna Bhavana (Archbishop’s House):

The Synodal consultation for the Differently Abled of Bengaluru Archdiocese was held at the Archbishop’s house. Sr. Madhuja along with the Catholic Staff, Students and Parents from our school participated in the event. Sr. Madhuja helped in organizing the meeting and arranged a meaningful prayer service. The meeting was realy inspiring and a fruitful one for our parents as some of them expressed their concerns regarding their children and their spiritual development.

Inter-School Competition- SPARDHA

Sophia Opportunity School has set a benchmark for participating in competitions in such a way that the Special students not only enjoy but also learn a great deal from it. With the same perspective in view, Eka Educational and Charitable Trust held Spardha, an open competition for Special Students from various Schools, Centres, Non-Governmental organisations etc. The competition was in a virtual mode. Our students participated in all the events and won prizes in the event.

TEACHERS' DAY

Teachers' Day was celebrated on 5th September to appreciate the teachers for having a tremendous impact on students' life. The most striking feature of the occasion was that the whole programme was organised and conducted by the student's council with guidance from our three dear principals – Sr.Alpana, Sr.Anjana and Sr, Madhuja. Our special children presented a fusion dance with zest and zeal.

WORKER'S DAY

On September 25th, Worker's Day was celebrated in appreciation to the maintenance staff who work behind the curtain and keep our school premises neat and tidy. Sr.Alpana, Sr.Anjana and Sr.Madhuja along with the staff and students of Sophia family expressed their love and gratitude by organizing a prayer service and cultural programme. Our special children mesmerized the audience with their fusion dance in Kannada, Telugu and Tamil songs.

CHERISH YOUR NATURE!

“Everything in Heavens, on the Earth and under the Earth is penetrated with connectedness, is penetrated with relatedness -Hildegarde of Bingen
We are part of a great Living, Whole that had a beginning some 13.8 billion years ago. We human beings are an integral part of this whole creation is not something separate from us. We are created in the form of Humans.
“A Human Being is part of the Whole. To experience ourselves as something separate from the rest of us is a kind of optical delusion. This delusion is a kind of prison for us” -Albert Einstein
Believing firmly in the principles of Notre Dame’s spirit of ensuring the dignity of every individual Sophia Opportunity School strives in providing opportunities to the vulnerable differently-abled children as its main concern of delivering education and various chances to the children that their individual identity is respected. Equal opportunities are provided to every individual to grow and nurture themselves as productive and dignified members of the community.
“If you truly love nature, you will find beauty everywhere” - Vincent Van Cogh
According to this saying the school enables the love for nature in the young minds and imprints the idea of conserving and preserving nature in their lives by conducting various activities such as encouraging children to grow and maintain small gardens, planting saplings in their respective houses, making homemade compost for the plants by using biodegradable wastes.
The school instructs cleanliness of the environment in the minds of the students, educating them to reduce the use of Plastic by teaching the children to make paper bags, wire baskets. It really made a great awareness of avoiding plastic bags in their homes and surroundings.
Cleanliness is next to Godliness. This always echoes in the minds of our children as we teach them how to keep their environment clean and avoid littering in public places. Children themselves engaged in cleaning the house, lawn, and garden, etc.
We suffer the pain of our People, with them, and from this depth, we enter into the Open Heart of Christ, the wellspring that satisfies our thirst. During this time of pandemic and uncertainty, the school reached out to the students through online classes ensuring that there is no break for their development.
We extended our support to the underprivileged students of our school with the help of the Archdiocese of Bangalore supplied the food kits. Adequate awareness about the Covid-19 is given to every student during the online class. From the contemplation of the pierced Heart of Jesus in the heart of wounded humanity flows the desire to commit ourselves with greater passion and compassion to Justice, Peace and Integration of Creation.

STAFF WEBINAR 2021-2022

"Education is not the learning of facts, but the training of the mind to think!"- Albert Einstein

A virtual seminar series was conducted by the staff of Sophia Opportunity School from 11th to 23rd June 2021 under the support and guidance of Sr. Madhuja, the Principal of Sophia Opportunity School. Sister proposed various engrossing and intriguing topics on special education such as various teaching strategies, higher-order thinking skills, time management, use of art, color, music, and storytelling for learning, current trends in technology to aid school education, etc.

VIRTUAL EDUCATION

The COVID-19 has resulted in schools shutting all across the world. As a result, education has changed dramatically, with the distinctive rise of E-learning, whereby teaching is undertaken remotely and on digital platforms.

With this abrupt shift from conventional classroom teaching, Sophia Opportunity School initiated online classes for special students on the 30th of June, 2021. Each student has his/her unique set of gifts, skills, and educational needs which collectively play a role in their individual learning process. Their parents naturally want to ensure that their child receives accurate attention depending on their respective needs. Hence, based on the student's Individualized Education Program (IEPs), students receive an education that is tailored to their individual needs. Special Educators conduct online classes for 40 minutes and both Physiotherapy and Speech Therapy classes are conducted for 30 minutes. These classes are taken every alternative day.

As many students have challenges with independent learning, the Special Educators and Therapists are ardent about helping both parents and students feel comfortable and having tasks broken down for them into more manageable ones, so as to ensure that they are on the right track. They encourage the students to become active in their learning processes. The teachers take ample time with each student to identify their strengths, interests and needs to help pursue their future endeavors.

KALANGANA – INTERSCHOOL COMPETITION

“All of us do not have equal talent, but all of us have an equal opportunity to develop our talents” - APJ Abdul Kalam

In accordance with the above statement, Sophia Opportunity School has always provided the widest range of opportunities to children with special needs in various areas of development. We have always been a part of Inter-School competitions held in various fields throughout the year. Competitions such as these go a long way in boosting and raising confidence and overall development in our special students.

Information and Resource Centre (IRC), Bangalore is one such centre that provides a platform to showcase the talents of children with special needs every year. They conducted the cultural fest called “KALANGANA” in the month of January 2022, and our special students participated in competitions such as Fancy Dress, Dance, Yoga, Music Vocal/Instrumental and Art which were held virtually and received prizes for the same.

Mrs.Ancy Joseph who served this great institution for 32 years was awarded for her dedication and service in the field of Special Education and Mrs.Rita Fabi, our Maintenance Staff also was felicitated for her dedicated service.