‘Game’ of creating awareness of sexual abuse

With most adults finding it awkward to address such sensitive issues with their wards, there exists a vacuum in the knowledge children possess on the topics, said founder of AWARE, Sandiyan Thilagavathy. “We have conducted workshops and activities on the issue for a long time now, but we have always seen parents feeling uncomfortable. 

How will they then educate children? That’s when the idea of ‘Save The Smiles’ came about, a sensitised carnival with a gamified learning process to spread awareness on how to prevent child sexual abuse,” he explained. The three-day affair, scheduled for January 26, 27 and 28, will see several schools and families participating in a series of interactive activities in simulated environments, designed to teach kids several things, like the difference between a safe and  unsafe touch. 

“Just like we have drills for fire and road safety, we want to make this one for body safety. We will also have electronic toys and robots which are used to educate the children. Games like hopscotch, snakes and ladders, a puppet and storytelling session and so on will be held to teach parents how to take the topic forward with their kids,” Sandiyan added. 

Theatre and roleplay activity, movie screenings and a counseling session by experts are some of the other programs planned. The children will be split into different age groups and given slots accordingly. Medical professionals, law enforcers and other volunteers have also been invited to be a part of the initiative.