As winter comes to a close the Darnell School Special Olympic team held its third special event as the culmination of our basketball season. The team traveled to Yawkey Sports Training Center in Marlborough, which is the home of Massachusetts Special Olympics. Staff there warmly greeted the team.

Special Olympics Award Competition

Our coaches, Carie Miele, PT and Mary Loughlin, OT had traveled ahead to prepare for the competition and to set up the gym area. Their careful preparation allowed for a smooth event where each student had the opportunity to compete in skill drills against an appropriate competitor. At the end of the competition an award ceremony was held and each student patiently waited to come forward and receive their award.
The Special Olympics program serves many purposes: it promotes self-confidence, teaches students how to participate in a group and promotes exercises. Carie and Mary first approached this as a way for students to enjoy the physical exercises that they are prescribing. Sports have been chosen and modified to assure that the skills students learn are attainable and that they promote physical fitness.
The end result is that we now have a fun and meaningful program of exercise that students participate in together and enjoy.