Other Special Needs Boys, 6-9

Christian is a handsome boy, calm and very adorable with his beautiful smile. He often falls asleep. He is sensitive to noise. He jumps and cries when he is picked up to change position. Nevertheless, he likes to listen to music, he likes to be rocked and he likes when people communicate with him.

At school, he progresses slowly with his sensory exercises which he likes and are helping him to stay awake longer than before. In therapy, he works on functional mobility, which helps him raise his hand to touch an object. He has consistently shown slight improvement in engagement with increased stimuli. He is responding more to toys and people by raising his head, laughing, smiling, and keeping his eyes open.

Christopher is a precious little boy waiting for a family of his own. Contact the agency to learn more about Christopher and his listed needs.

 

Christopher now has a $500 agency fee reduction for his adoption;  Additional agency fee reductions may be available based on the adoptive family’ circumstances!

Dawson is a 5 year old boy who is active and cheerful. He has been diagnosed with fetal hypotrophy, myopia, and nystagmus. He demonstrates curiosity and is very observant. His psychomotor development is good for his age. He moves independently, both walking and running. He struggles with maintaining balance, but he has improved in coordinating his movement. He hasn’t reached age-appropriate communication skills, but he has made significant progress in this area. He can imitate gestures and words and he understands basic commands. His emotions are becoming more complex. Dawson can remember the names of his peers and caregivers. He eats meals independently and is getting better at changing clothes without help. He is making steady progress and has demonstrated the ability to aquire new skills.

Ben is a determined and easy-going child despite his significant medical and developmental needs. He is described as having a gentle temperament and finds contentment in simple pleasures like listening to children’s songs, sleeping peacefully and engaging with his caregivers.

Ben has been diagnosed with Chromosome 2q deletion with developmental epileptic encephalopathy, and global developmental delay. His developmental age is estimated to be under 3 months. Ben also experiences visual impairment due to right eye congenital ptosis. While these conditions necessitate using a manual wheelchair and a gastrostomy feeding tube, they do not diminish his indomitable spirit. is a courageous fighter who has persistently strived for survival and shown constant improvement in his health. As of December 2023, he has successfully been weaned off oxygen therapy. Furthermore, the ward nurses report that Ben exhibits consistent progress in his motor development under the guidance of therapists. This highlights Ben’s progress in his development through appropriate stimulation. It is believed Ben will gain more opportunities to explore and develop his potential once he starts attending school. To learn more about Chromosome 2q deletion, here is one of many articles available online: GARD Rare Disease Information – Chromosome 2q deletion – National Organization for Rare Disorders (rarediseases.org)

With a loving, committed family who is open to acquiring the necessary medical knowledge, his care staff believes that Ben will receive the support he needs to continue flourishing. Ben’s gentle nature, resilience, and evident potential make him a truly special child deserving of a forever home filled with unconditional love. While some development is expected, Ben will need lifelong care from his loved ones.

A family with a home study for any country can submit for consideration of this child. If matched, the family would need to update their home study to this specific country.

Meet this cute fellow, Brent. Agency in-country staff met him in April of 2024 and made the following report:

Brent lives in a family environment. He eats pureed food and can drink from a cup. He can crawl very fast on his hands and knees although he does not walk without support. He can pull himself to standing when he desires to do so. He is frightened easily by loud sounds. He does not have a specific activity that he enjoys.

There are no manifestations of aggression, but there are manifestations of auto-aggression, most often expressed as hitting his head against the wall, the bed frame, but not with his hands. Brent loves to go outside and he is taken in a wheelchair to do so.

The in-country staff member made the following personal observations:

Brent is cared for at a basic level. Unfortunately, I don’t get the impression that the child is being worked with systematically and purposefully. There is no connection and exchange of information and guidelines between the Day Care Center and the Family-type Accommodation Center for children with disabilities. Brent needs a loving and caring family environment. He needs a family that would be willing to pay attention to him, play with him, and patiently and purposefully help and teach him.

AJ is a calm, loving, shy boy who came into the care when he was about a year old; he was found abandoned. He has favorably adapted to the institution where he is being cared for and he has made significant progress in his motor process.  The boy moves his upper and lower extremities, he can take his feet to his mouth, he crawls, and tries to stay standing with support. The report also states that AJ is a boy who explores the environment, he maintains attention and interacts with people, appropriately responding to the sensory stimuli that are presented to him. AJ likes children’s songs and dances imitating his peers, he likes colorful musical instrument toys.

Photo available from agency!

When the medical report was first performed when he was about one year old, AJ was not walking and a level of delay is reported in the cognitive, language and motor areas that are related to the state of severe malnutrition with which he was found as an infant.

His Grade I Osteogenesis Imperfecta is the mildest form of the condition. Osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) is a genetic disorder characterized by bones that break easily. OI is highly variable. Its signs and symptoms range from mild to severe. In addition to fractures (broken bones), people with OI sometimes have muscle weakness, loose joints (joint laxity), curvature of the spine (scoliosis), brittle teeth (dentinogenesis imperfecta), and hearing loss. A classification system dividing OI into several types is commonly used to help describe how severely a person is affected. Type I is the mildest and most common form of OI.

Sven walks independently with a slow gait. His fine motor skills are developed. He plays with toys, but not with their intended purpose. He does not initiate contact with other children and does not participate in cooperative play. He responds positively to familiar adults. He does not have any verbal communication and does not follow verbal directions. He is currently fed with a bottle. He cannot chew and will not accept the staff’s efforts to teach him to eat with a spoon. He requires full assistance for all care tasks.

Owen has established self-care skills: He can dress/undress himself, feed himself and is toilet trained. He talks in sentences using 3 or more words. His gross motor skills are well-developed. He can walk, run, go up and down stairs and climb. He participates in conversations, understands everything said to him, and answers questions. He has issues with articulation. He attends a day program where he is receiving academic instruction and therapies. He is interested in everything happening around him. He enjoys Montessori toys. He can string beads, nest items, sort by color, and manipulate items of different sizes. His memory skills are developed. He can recall and reproduce information.

Finn is a beautiful boy who will need a special family to care for his medical needs. Agency staff met Finn in July of 2022; they can provide more info on Finn and his medical needs!

VIDEO:
https://vimeo.com/maaspecialkids/maa-finn1
Password: Adoptmaa

Now that Finn is 8, he has a $500 agency fee reduction for his adoption; Additional agency fee reductions may be available based on the adoptive family’s circumstances!

Dorie: The girl has a poor vocabulary, and therefore difficulties with understanding. She is active in words, conducts a dialogue, makes a simple description, but her statements are simplified and not always logical. Speech defect (interdental). She is an active child, shows great curiosity and wants to attract attention. She is willing to play and imitate but is less fond of organized games and has difficulty concentrating, as well as controlling and planning his activities.  She shows a bond with her siblings, especially her brother Nathan.

Nathan: Strong motor skills – correct for age. Walks, runs, overcomes obstacles. He participates in games, wants to attract attention and is upper active. Perception and hand-eye coordination – within the normal range for age. The boy notices details, differentiates shapes and colors. Recognizes pictures, selects pairs. He connects the pictures. He places the blocks in the holes of the puzzle. Builds block structures – simple and complex at the age level. Slight speech delay. Social behavior and emotional zone – age appropriate. There is a great need for a relationship, attention and contact. Sometimes he is too impulsive and reacts hypersensitive.

Iggie: Low birth weight,  FAS
Strong motor skills – the boy walks independently, runs, overcomes obstacles with a slightly lower fluency. He imitates simple, single body movements, claps his hands, raises his hands up, stomps his feet, enjoys simple games with adults, keeps up with the group. He puts circles on the pyramid, builds a tower from blocks, creates a row (“trains”). He scribbles with a crayon without imitating the direction and shapes, but he likes to draw with adults.
Speech shaping – reacts to sounds from the environment, looks for the source of the sound, reacts to musical sounds. Active speech at the word stage – repeats many one and two-syllable words on command. Points to parts of the face, says the correct words (ear, eye, etc.). Social behavior and the emotional sphere – visible improvement of contact and relationships, establishing contact without difficulty. He is cheerful, establishes basic relations with children, reacts positively to games, and imitates. Develops the basics of independence in everyday activities. Eats by himself.

The children experienced neglect and abuse before coming to the orphanage.

Bodie has a diagnosis of moderately impaired general condition which requires constant adult attention and supervision. He was born prematurely. He has congenital hydronephrosis grade 3 of both kidneys with congenital mega-ureters and is underdeveloped in his neurological and mental development.  He does not make eye contact and does not have developed speech — although he does not use words, he hums and shouts to express himself. He is interested in toys but without creative play. He began sitting independently at 2 years 9 months. He stands but cannot walk independently, and uses diapers day and night due to kidney condition, and requires constant adult supervision for his daily needs.   Additional photos and a brief video are available upon request.

Bodie responds to his name with a smile, to sounds and noise. He keeps an eye on the movement of people and objects in the room. He is described as a calm and pleasant child. He is well attached to his caregivers and responds well to them. When given attention, he reacts positively and with a smile. Most of the time, the child is energetic and physically active. It is difficult for him to stay in one place, constantly moving and exploring.

The child expresses his joy by erratically clapping his hands and by making noises. When held by the hand he makes several steps.  (was previously also listed as Barron).

Reggie is cheerful, affectionate and eager to socialize. He enjoys construction, playing with toys, and tries to join in
games with other children. His speech is undeveloped and difficult to understand. Reggie is unable to concentrate or
understand abstract problem solving. He needs help learning appropriate skills to regulate his emotions. He is currently attending a preparatory kindergarten group and attends a football club because he is very mobile and inquisitive. Reggie receives speech therapy and special education support (at least 5 times a week). He speaks with slurred speech and has a developmental delay. Irregular speech speaking in 2-3 word sentences with a poor vocabulary. He follows instructions, completes a 9-piece jigsaw puzzle correctly, knows colors, builds a tower of 10 blocks. He asks the name of an unknown object, can jump on one leg (both right and left). His fine and gross motor skills are insufficiently developed, self-regulation is impaired, impulse control is weak, attention span is short, he is interested in toys and names them, but does not play with them for long periods.

Alfie is a young boy boy who shows interest in sounds and stimulation with mechanical objects. He is responsive and turns and looks towards the person who is talking to him. He engages in vocal exchanges emitting cooing. He responds with a smile when his name is called. He acquires strength through painting workshops for motor stimulation. Contact the agency to learn more about Alfie and his medical needs!

https://vimeo.com/maaspecialkids/maa-alfie
Password: Adoptmaa

Agency fee reductions may be available based on the adoptive family’s circumstances.

Silvio is a Roma boy who was born extremely premature (22 weeks), with a very low birth weight. He spends 6 months at the hospital and fought for his life! He had a tracheotomy procedure and eye Lasik surgery in October 2017.

Last update 2020: Delayed psychomotor development. Visible improvement after rehabilitation. Feeding the by the bottle, playing with toys, rolls out of the back on the stomach and vice versa. He tries to crawl. A very active child who initiates contact. He makes eye contact, focuses his attention on the human face, and smiles back. Video is available from the adoption agency.

Myles was just starting to wake up at the beginning of our Zoom call and as his caregivers slowly nudged and tickled him, he showed us the biggest smile and sweetest little giggle. Four-year-old Myles is not speaking, but we learned from his caregivers that he is a quite boy who prefers not to be disturbed. His favorite toy is his teether, he likes being tickled, and dislikes being moved around.

Myles diet consists of mashed foods, his favorite being fruits.  Myles spends most of his time in his bed or in a support chair. Because he is only allotted one therapeutic device per year, he doesn’t currently have a child walker. With more opportunities to put weight on his legs, he may possibly have the potential for assisted walking in the future.

Myles was born prematurely and has been diagnosed with global developmental delays, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, hydrocephalus and hearing impairment. Myles resides in a nursing home and receives 30 minutes of occupational and physical therapy at a local hospital each week. The agency has much more information on Myles! Could your family be the one he needs?

Monte has a bright and warm smile. He is described as a social young boy who likes to play with his friends. He also gets along well with adults and is very affectionate with his caretakers. Sometimes he is timid, but he warms up quickly. Monte loves to build things. He follows instructions well and enjoys spending time with his foster family. Contact the agency to learn more about Monte and his special needs!

VIDEO: https://vimeo.com/maaspecialkids/maa-monte
Password: Adoptmaa

Daniel is a boy whose cognitive and physical development is close to his expected age. He is described as very curious, sweet, gentle, outgoing and has good relationships with other children. He makes good eye contact, speaks in words and sentences, implements instructions and has a sweet personality. Diagnosed with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and mixed development disorder. Pictures are available from the agency.