Teachers from the Building Bridges EIPIC Centre organised a field trip to the supermarket to give the 11 children a chance to apply what they had learnt in the classroom to daily activities.

Accompanied by their teachers and five caregivers, the students made their way to the bustling Jurong East using public transport on 28 January.

Their first stop was the supermarket at JEM shopping mall. There, the children put to practical use the skills that they acquired which included deciding what to buy, handling money and using appropriate social communication skills in situations such as making payments.

At the next stop, the playground at Westgate mall, they used socially-appropriate verbal and non-verbal strategies to engage in co-operative play activities.

EIPIC teacher Sha’dah Suib found the exposure to everyday situations a valuable learning experience for the children.

“The field trip provided opportunities for the children to apply and practice the skills that they learnt across all settings. They practised gross motor skill climbing up and down the staircase. They also showed appropriate social behaviour when saying ‘hello’ and ‘thank you’ and behaving in the bus by not running around.”

The trip was a success and more such trips will be planned to help the children become comfortable and at ease in social settings.