‘Very Special Children’ is an extension of me. It has the intention to grow and to develop by continuing to be open-minded and without judgment allowing new ideas to form and to improve my practice.
Hello, I’m Agi Palinkas. I call myself a Hungarian born humanist and Special Education Teaching Specialist-Enthusiast. I graduated from the world-wide reputable Peto Andras-Conductive Education Teacher Training College, Budapest in 2003. Since I worked with SEN children in Spain, Ireland, USA (New York, Dallas), Thailand and have changed my work and home six times in the UK over the last 15 years. I learnt from the different educational approaches, teaching styles, curriculum theories that different countries and schools applied and provided for their very special students with different diagnosed or not-diagnosed conditions.
When I met a new challenge I felt excited to research and to gain better understanding of the problem; I took on additional professional training to improve my SEN teaching practice for all ability groups. I taught deaf, blind, deaf-blind children, those with Cerebral Palsy, Down syndrome, many different genetic syndromes that caused physical, social-emotional and cognitive development delay.
After years of going around in a loop, trying to build on the crumbling, fragile learning foundation of SEN school-aged children I decided to go back to the roots and help them set a solid base for learning by improving movement in and outside their body. Challenges and learning new things keep me motivated to this day..
Standing up for and offering learning opportunities for vulnerable children is a personal matter to me.
As a child I experienced my parents breaking marriage and divorce that separated me from my dad and sister. I felt rejected, not heard, and excluded. I turned to learning in the hope of a happier future and made a promise to myself to help and stand for all those vulnerable children whose voice can not be heard.
Special children need special attention; this changes their entire world.
My passion for teaching goes back to the time when I felt lost. Teachers helped me to gain confidence, find my sparks and gift. Their loving support and encouragement helped to thrive at school and to be accepted at age 14 to a well- respected boarded grammar school that specialised on theatre and drama. During a Christmas show that we presented to a Special Need Day-care, a young around 6-7 years old little girl with Down Syndrome chosen me to be her special friend for the afternoon. The feel of her small, puffy little hand, smile, kindness and the feeling I had that moment made me realise that teaching vulnerable children is the career I want to pursue to fulfil my vision for a better world.
We have different ideas about how the world works, based on our experiences. New experiences can change the way we think, we are.
At age 19. I came to England to experience the Western world and to study English. I met all kinds of people from all around the world. I was able to travel to different countries and experience different cultures, exchange my ideas with other young people who came from very different background than I did. I saw wealth and poverty. I learnt, that the people are the same everywhere and my inclusive world vision was still developing even in the Western world.
Conscious parenting means being open to new ideas that may bring positive changes to the life of children and their families.
During my studies and working practice, I met extraordinary families fighting for their children’s future by investing time, effort, and money in their education and habitation and re-habilitation. Many times, they had to sacrifice some of their assets, move away from home, give up on something they worked for many years. I respected and admired their strength and dedication, which multiplied when I became a parent. It is an essential part of my job to help parents to become more aware of the root cause of their children’s disability and to understand the symptoms. This will make them become more empowered to support their own child.
The idea of ‘Very Special Children’ was born when my very special Godson suffered from Meningitis at the age of six months in 2015. I personally witnessed the trauma and emotional battle of his family for his survival and recovery. What I knew and learnt in 12 years wasn’t enough. I traveled to Chile to meet and learn from Ramon Cuevas, the creator of CME to help James to get back on his feet. Being part of his successful rehabilitation as a therapist inspired me to create ‘Very Special Children’ and allow other and more children to benefit from interventions that freed hundreds, thousands of children from disability.
“I’m still learning.”
Michelangelo
Having the skill set in my hand that allows me to help so many children inspired me to search and find the science that proves these these special CME principles creating such positive changes .
Just when I thought I’ve started to find the answer, I’ve also started to face new challenges and questions.. during the lockdown of 2020 I met another extraordinary teacher: Michelle Turner and her multi-planetary movement theory .
….so here I am still learning,thinking, changing … My intention never changes: with my growing knowledge I hope that I can improve my practice and help you to find the best solution for your family.
