Sharjah Museums Department receives 40 students from Al Amal School for Deaf as part of Arab Deaf Child Week

As part of its initiative Sharjah Museums Are Accessible for All, Sharjah Museums Department (SMD) organised a special programme, as well as various educational workshops for students from Al Amal School for the Deaf, at the Sharjah Art Museum and Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization, to mark ‘Arab Deaf Child Week’.

The workshops come as part of the educational programme designed by SMD's Department of Interpretation and Education. Forty hearing impaired students from Al Amal School, part of the Sharjah City for Humanitarian Services, participated in the workshops designed for deaf children, as part of the country's celebrations of ‘Arab Deaf Child Week’.

The first group of the students was hosted by the Sharjah Art Museum where they engaged in a workshop titled "Make Your Own African Mask" inspired by Sudanese artist Ibrahim El Salahi: A Visionary Modernist. 

The participating children were taken on a tour of the Ibrahim El Salahi exhibition to get to know the artist's styles and the artistic elements he uses in decoration and when drawing faces in his paintings, before they engaged in making their African masks. 

At the Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization, the students participated in a workshop titled "Royal Carpet" inspired by the exhibition of British artist Owen Jones: “Islamic Design, Discovery and Vision”, where the participants viewed treasures from the Victoria and Albert Museum's (V&A) collections of rare 19^th century watercolours and design drawings. The participants concluded their tour of the exhibition with making their own carpet inspired by the Al Hambra Palace in Granada, during the "Royal Carpet" workshop.

Noteworthy, the Interpretation and Education Department has, since the beginning of this year, started to organize educational workshops specifically designed for children with special needs from the Sharjah City for Humanitarian Services, and the Almashaer Centre for Children with Special Needs, among other centres.

SMD said that the department would continue to participate in such events dedicated to people with special needs with the aim of promoting museum culture and giving the chance to all categories of the community to engage and participate effectively in the Sharjah museums.

Alya Burhaima, Director of the Interpretation and Education Department at Sharjah Museums Department, said, "Through its initiative "Sharjah Museums are Accessible for All", SMD aims to enhance the sense of responsibility of the importance of engaging this category in community programmes, raising the awareness about their rights and providing all aspects of support, in order to develop their skills, care for them, and provide opportunities for rehabilitation to ultimately allow for further integration into the mainstream of the community."

The department said that the workshop "Decorate Your Notebook" will be organized next Saturday, 28 April, at the Sharjah Art Museum as part of their monthly family programme which aims to offer a rich family atmosphere and allow children with disabilities to discover and develop their talents and to integrate them into community activities. The family programme aims to give all people a chance to visit Sharjah Museums and enjoy their precious collections.