Inclusive society starts in school

Shuree likes to read and dreams of becoming an actress

 ©UNICEF Mongolia/2016/Enkhzul Altangerel

      From the pile of letters, Munkhshur picks letter “Р” to complete the word “САР” which means “moon” in English. “I know how to spell many words. Do you want to see the others?” smiles Shuree, as her friends call her, eager to show what she has learned at school.

Fulfilling dreams

Byambadorj (on the right holding pen) at school

©UNICEF Mongolia/2015/Ariunzaya Davaa

Fifteen-year-old Byambadorj is beaming, sitting at her desk at Ireedui school in Murun, Khuvsgul province, pen at the ready. This is where she is happiest, learning new things with her friends and dreaming of one day becoming a teacher.

Books on the move: reaching children with disabilities

Ochiroo with his younger sister outside his home

@UNICEF/2015/Enkhzul Altangerel

“This is a dog, and that one is a cat!” says 4-year-old Ochiroo, turning pages of a children’s book about animals. Ochiroo loves to read children’s books with his mother. He has learned many new words from the books, including names of animals and objects in the past few months. Learning is a special activity for Ochiroo, as he has not been able to attend kindergarten due to hip dysplasia, which made it very difficult for him to walk.

Хөгжлийн бэрхшээлтэй хүүхдүүд

©UNICEF Mongolia/2015/Andy Brown

Хөгжлийн бэрхшээлтэй хүүхдүүд бусад хүүхдийн адил сурч боловсрох, эрүүл мэндийн үйлчилгээ авах, хамгаалуулах, амьд явах эрхтэй. Гэвч тэдэнд эрхээ эдлэхэд нь нэмэлт дэмжлэг хэрэгтэй байдаг. НҮБ-ын Хүүхдийн сан Монгол улсын Засгийн Газар болон бусад байгуулагуудтай хамтран хөгжлийн бэрхшээлтэй хүүхдүүд болон тэдний гэр бүлийг дэмжин ажиллаж байна.

Welcome to School: Ensuring education for children with disabilities

Davkhar launches a paper plane he built outside the 

family home © UNICEF Mongolia/2014/Andy Brown

Outside a ger tent, Davkhar’s brow is furrowed in concentration. His nimble fingers fold the piece of paper in his hands, making a paper plane. He finishes, looks up and throws the plane.  It flies for a few seconds before floating to the ground. After a few more test runs, he squats down to the ground and starts making adjustments to the plane. On the next attempt it flies further.

Play for today: supporting children with disabilities

Zulbayar and Temuulen at a playgroup for children with disabilities
© UNICEF Mongolia/2013/Andy Brown

Temuulen is a nine-year-old boy with disabilities living in Nalaikh, a small town near Ulaanbaatar, capital of Mongolia. It is a coal mining district, with a mixed-ethnic community including Mongolians and Kazakhs. Temuulen has a rare genetic condition that causes muscle wasting. The symptoms started when he was three and have got progressively worse.

Once a week, Temuulen attends a playgroup for children with disabilities at the local hospital, run by the Association of Parents of Children with Disabilities. There is one room with toys and learning materials for the children, and another for the parents to meet and socialise.  “I like playing with toy cars,” he says. “My best friend is Zulbayar.”

Photos: children with disabilities in Nalaikh

Temuulen and Zulbayar are nine-year-old boys with disabilities living in Nalaikh, Mongolia. Both boys attend a playgroup for children with disabilities at their local hospital. UNICEF is supporting the local government and Parents’ Association to help these children and their families.

To view the full photo captions, expand the gallery and click 'show info' in the top right corner.

Rolling stone: helping herder families with a mobile kindergarten

Erka holds up her picture of raindrops in the ger kindergarten classroom
© UNICEF Mongolia/2012/Andy Brown

Six-year-old Erbenebayar, or ‘Erka’ for short, lives with a semi-nomadic herder family in the remote Khuvsgul province of Mongolia. They are based in a bagh (small district) around 20 kilometres from the nearest settlement, Tsagaan-Uur soum (village). There are no proper roads. Erka’s parents have to look after their livestock and cannot take her to the soum centre every day. Luckily, there is a mobile kindergarten nearby that she can attend.

Photos: mobile ger kindergarten

UNICEF Mongolia is providing mobile ger (tent) kindergartens for herder families living in remote areas of Khuvsgul province. They come equipped with toys, learning materials and furniture. This is a unique solution to the problem of providing education to a nomadic population.

To view the full photo captions, expand the gallery and click 'show info' in the top right corner.