Mauri! My name is Emaima and I would like to tell you about my school - the Kiribati School and Centre for Children with Special Needs.
My school is in The Republic of Kiribati (pronounced Kiribuss). Kiribati is in the Pacific Ocean at number 7 on the map below. We live on an island called Tarawa.
My school is very important to my friends and I because its the only place we can go to learn in Kiribati. Because we have disabilities, we can't go to other schools. I have Down Syndrome but I still love to learn and be with my friends!
Let me introduce you to some of my other friends at school.
Some of my friends have visual impairments which means they are blind or have difficulty seeing. Some of my friends are learning to use sign language because they can't hear anyone talking. Other children in the school have Autism or an intellectual impairment which means that they have difficulty thinking and understanding, and they need help to learn how to play with other children and how to take care of their toys and themselves. Many of my friends are unable to walk. There are about 70 students at my school. I have lots of friends at school and they are all very special and they all enjoy learning.
This is one of our school buildings. Our school has two buildings. They used to be part of a hospital! They don't look like a hospital now though. They have been changed to look more like a school. The Government gave the buildings to us because they knew we needed a school.
Our school used to be a Red Cross school and we had red and white uniforms. But now our school is looked after by our very special parents here in Kiribati, AusAid in Australia and special supporters from Kiribati and other countries. We have a new green and gold uniform.
We still need some more help though. Our country is a Developing Country which means that we don't have much money to buy paper, pencils and toys to learn with. Some children cannot come to school because they have no money for food. Would you like to help us?
Tia bo! (pronounced sarbo - goodbye until we meet again)