When I first walked into the Virya Dewdrops Autism Foundation, I was greeted by a

whirlwind of sounds and a sense of organized chaos. My project revolved around carrying

out neuropsychological tests and implementing cognitive and motor activities with children

to improve their attention spans and therefore their grasping power in the classroom. This

project was not short of challenges and surprises but taught me more about leadership than

any other experience ever has.

The Work: Neuropsychological Tests and Cognitive Adventures

My role at Virya Dewdrops was firstly, to administer neuropsychological tests to assess the

children’s attention and simultaneously carry out other mentally and physical stimulating

activities that may help improve their attention span. I had the pleasure of working with

several children around the age group of 6-12, each with a different skill set and strengths.

While some children performed better at motor activities, others thrived during cognitive

tasks. One particular child that performed enthusiastically in the neuropsychological tasks

was Maya (name change).

Maya is a bright and spirited girl whose energy could power a small town. While all children

attempted the tasks and performed to their capabilities, Maya was the most excited to embark

upon the tasks every day and was motivated to complete them to a high standard. Maya and I

spent our days diving into these tests and finished off our sessions with an array of puzzles,

colouring and a few motor tasks. The goal was to improve her engagement and learning

outcomes, but honestly, it felt more like I was the one learning.

Maya had a knack for turning every activity into a game. During one memory test, she

decided she wasn’t going to recall the cards as instructed, and instead started drawing her

interpretation of each of these objects. She used a variety of coloured chalks and filled the

chalkboard entirely with pictures, creating a storyline for all the objects involved. I’d like to

say I was the teacher in these moments, but really, Maya was leading the charge, and I was

just trying to keep up.

The Achievements: Small Wins with Big Smiles

One of the most rewarding moments came when Maya successfully completed an attention

task that she had been working on for weeks. It was a fairly simple task, circling the number

3 as many times as she could from a large array of numbers (pictured below), within a certain

timeframe. While she understandably experienced frustration and drifting attention in the

beginning, she soon seemed to develop a liking to the task and approached the activity with

excitement and motivation. With every passing day, she became quicker and was able to

identify more numbers to the point where her face would light up every time I came to the

centre, in anticipation of carrying out this activity. That’s when I realized the true meaning of

success in this environment. It wasn’t about finishing tests or hitting benchmarks; it was

about those little moments of triumph that meant the world to the children. Significant

improvements were observed in her attention span and focus over those few weeks, which I

believe was a huge step forward.

Figure 1: Maya’s sustained attention task with the number 3

Leadership in Action: Themes of Empathy, Adaptability, and Empowerment

Working with the children also allowed me to explore different types of leadership—

exploring themes of empathy, adaptability, and empowerment.

Empathy was crucial. In an environment where verbal communication could falter, I had to

lead with my emotion and instinct, not just my words. Understanding how the children felt

during our activities, their frustrations, moments of joy, and tailoring my approach to match

their needs required a deep level of emotional connection. This helped me build trust and

allowed them to see me as a partner in their learning journey.

Adaptability was also key. If there’s one thing I learned, it’s that no two days are the same.

Plans are more of a loose guide than a strict blueprint. One day, the child might be excited to

work on the tasks and the next they may just get up and start working on a puzzle of their

own. I learned that in situations like this, it was important to let them be and not force a

particular activity on them. Any interest or enthusiasm in a task was already a big win.

The Experience: Embracing the Unfamiliar and Loving It

Being immersed in the environment at Virya Dewdrops was a challenging and rewarding

experience for me. Having no prior knowledge or experience in the field, it was exciting to

step into an educational role, especially one where basic verbal and physical gestures fell

short. It was unfamiliar and overwhelming at first, but I soon found myself looking forward

to the chaos each day.

Maya and the other children with their boundless energy and infectious laughter, taught me

more about resilience and determination than anyone ever could. They reminded me that

sometimes, the best way to reach someone is to simply meet them where they are—whether

that’s at a table full of puzzles or in an imaginary story.

The Impact: A Ripple Effect of Change

As I left Virya Dewdrops, I couldn’t help but think about the impact of my time there. I hope

that the work we did together continues to benefit all the children. More importantly, I hope

that the foundation’s approach—combining learning with play and flexibility—continues to

shape the way we think about education for children with autism. So, here’s to the small

wins, the big smiles, and the wonderful chaos that this work brings. It’s not always easy, but

it’s always, always worth it.

Figure 2: Maya creating an imaginary storyline from the memory cards provided