When I first experienced this funny looking phone my immediate reaction was how it could assist the shy child in connecting to herself and discovering who she was and what she sounded like. I was struck by how it could help the hyperactive child focus and become engaged with a learning task and hearing himself talk about the pictures or count the numbers.
When I first brought the Sebezaphone into the nursery school setting, children couldn’t wait to use it. One exceptionally shy child appeared to be quite timid about picking it up. But it wasn’t long before she had one with her under a blanket, where she was talking to herself while paging through a picture book. Parents were delighted with its potential to assist their older learners who need to study out loud, without affecting everybody around them.
Having done volunteer work in one of our local underprivileged pre-school facilities, I realised how the Sebezaphone could assist teachers. In spite of limited resources and overcrowded classrooms, with the Sebezaphone every child could be seen, heard and affirmed. In addition, it could provide the neural stimulation and social affirmation that all children need to excel. A teacher’s dream: every child actively engaged in reading and learning, developing language and confidence in expressing themselves, while still maintaining a peaceful and productive classroom. The Sebezaphone just had to become available for all underprivileged children.
Our mutual enthusiasm and commitment to this common goal prompted us to invite the local community in a job-creation endeavour. The unemployed and people with disabilities have joined us in creating and producing the Sebezaphone. Through this fabulous, funky phone, job opportunities are now being created while contributing to the Foundations for Learning Campaign to assist all our people in discovering their reading, thinking, and speaking voices, through a whisper.
Sebezaphone Leaflet