Back-to-School, But for Special Needs. Here’s How You Can Help

For most families, back-to-school shopping means exercise books, pencils, and a backpack full of more classroom essentials. For children with special needs, however, the list often looks a bit different.

The Belize Brain Awareness Society is back with its back-to-school initiative, this time looking to support at least five children living with special needs before classes resume.

Founder and Ambassador Kaylia Nunez told News 5 the organisation already has five children identified. What it needs now are donations of specialised school supplies, and if the opportunity arises, help more than just five kids.

“When it comes to special needs in Belize, you do need all hands on deck,” Nunez said. “We don’t want to give them a little bit of something, we want to make sure everything we give them is special needs-based. Things to help them with their behavioural skills in the class and things to help them with their motor skills, right, when they’re writing.”

Requested items include pencil grips and fatter pencils for motor skill support, large-print books, braille materials, and stress relief balls for children with behavioural needs.

Nunez said even small donations make a difference. “Sometimes we rarely get a lot of assistance from the public… but the public can assist, even anything small, even if it’s $5, even if it’s $2,” she said.

She said the organisation assists families anywhere in Belize. Anyone wishing to donate or sponsor a child can contact the society at 614-5055.

“We really want the items to just start to come in from now,” Nunez said. “So that we can start to make sure that they get something tangible and the family gets something worthwhile for them.”

Wondering what items you can donate? Here’s a quick list:

Sensory & behavioural support

• Stress balls or fidget toys
• Weighted lap pads or small weighted items
• Noise-cancelling headphones or ear defenders
• Chewable pencil toppers (for sensory chewing needs)

Motor skill support

• Fatter, wider-grip pencils and crayons
• Pencil grips (for standard pencils)
• Adapted scissors (easy-grip, spring-loaded)
• Triangular-grip markers

Visual & learning aids

• Large-print exercise books and readers
• Braille materials or slates, where applicable
• Visual schedule cards or picture communication boards
• Highlighter strips or coloured overlays for reading

Standard basics (still needed, just special-needs-aware)

• School bags with sturdy, easy-open zips
• Water bottles with easy-grip handles
• Lunch kits
• Basic stationery: notebooks, rulers, erasers

Communication & tech

• Tablets pre-loaded with special-needs-specific apps (Nunez mentioned this depends on the child’s specific disability)
• Simple picture-based communication cards for non-verbal children