Karate Kids My Life


Karate Kids

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When you think of martial arts training, you'd not associate that

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with disabled children.

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Sanjuro Martial Arts Group has been working on a special needs version

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for the past three years. It was created by Sanjuro Master Glenn,

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who has been working in martial arts for over 30 years.

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The new children at the Vale School

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are about to experience it for the first time.

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-Explain to me what Sanjuro class is.

-Sanjuro means kicking

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and punching. You punch and then you...

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..you hear the music and do this.

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Once you learn these movements and techniques,

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they are so powerful that you never have to use them.

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Francis and Tim are best friends,

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but unlike most friendships, Francis, 12, does all the talking.

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Tim has been unable to talk since he was born.

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-Were you not a bit scared that Tim couldn't talk?

-No.

-Why not?

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Cos he's a human being

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so it doesn't matter if he can't talk or not.

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Francis and Tim go to a school where everyone is disabled.

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Twice a week they do martial arts called Sanjuro.

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Has the Sanjuro changed you, Tim?

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Has it?

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Yeah.

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-How do you know that's a yes?

-Cos he moved, he nodded.

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Many children here have trouble walking, others barely move at all

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and have been told they will not gain much movement.

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However, already the Sanjuro is breaking new ground here.

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But for some of the children in wheelchairs, it is a long struggle

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with maybe few lasting results.

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It's not the things that you can do in Sanjuro class that counts.

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It's the things that you try to do.

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'I hope that I can find some way

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'to present the information and the teaching in a way

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'that helps them push themselves.'

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-This one. Come on.

-For pupils like 12-year-old Tim,

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it takes all of his concentration to get even the smallest of results.

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Excellent! Fantastic. That was great knee raises.

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You're getting your knees up higher. Fantastic!

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Tim was born with cerebral palsy due to lack of oxygen to the brain.

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In Tim's case, it means using a wheelchair to get around

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and a communication book.

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He also has very little control of his movements,

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something the Sanjuro master is fully aware of.

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Even if it's just moving

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one finger for Tim or lifting an arm or lifting his knees up,

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that's enough for me.

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The effort required to move that one finger or to lift that knee

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is so much more than for anybody else to do anything else.

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That's a massive achievement.

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As well as being best friends,

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Francis and Tim are known as the classroom jokers.

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They always sit together and it's, "Francis, Tim, what are you doing?"

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They're always best friends.

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-Some people call us the Double Trouble.

-Why do they call you that?

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Cos...

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I don't know, really, but they call us that.

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Some people might feel worried having a friend who can't talk back,

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but not Francis.

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Is it hard having conversations? You have to do a lot of the work.

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But we find it funny sometimes when I'm struggling.

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Francis uses a book of symbols and pictures to communicate with Tim.

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People?

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People.

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Mummy.

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Mummy? Mummy. She's come back, isn't it?

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From Canada.

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You want me to say it?

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His mum came back from Canada yesterday.

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Daddy? Daddy's been looking after you? Yeah.

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For Tim, school is a big part of his life and he doesn't like to miss it.

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When Tim first started school, he started crying at seven o'clock.

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And then I woke up and asked him why he was crying

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and looking out the window. He thought he went on Saturday.

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When I told him, "No school today," he just went back to sleep.

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Remember? The first week of school.

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At home, Tim might need help with every physical part of his life,

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but his brain works the same as any 12-year-old.

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Mornings involve a crane-like mechanism to get to his chair.

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He's so big, Mum cannot risk lifting him on her own,

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so they've had their house adapted to fit Tim's special needs.

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OK? So we'll get ready...

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..to go to...

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..watch some TV.

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Do you want to see it from here?

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No? OK.

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This room can be used as part of the living room as well.

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Tim always likes to watch TV here.

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-OK. I can turn the TV on.

-Tim is starting to get a voice of his own

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by using the Electronic Liberator machine.

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It's like a keyboard and the mouse controls are in Tim's headrest.

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He moves his head from side to side to operate it.

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-Sanjuro has helped Tim better control the computer.

-It's tiring.

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So the school are finding a new way

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to make the sensor easier for Tim.

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Tim's confidence is growing, too.

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He wants to stand for Student Council and has an election address.

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COMPUTER: 'I am Tim.

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'I'd like to be part of the Student Council because I am a happy person

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'and a good listener to help people.

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'I would also try to look for ways of solving problems

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'with the help of other members.

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'I hope to be given this opportunity so I can prove myself

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'and help my friends at school.'

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I think that interests him

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and makes him want to be part of the election.

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People can sometimes be uncaring. Francis knows what this is like.

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My disability is cerebral palsy.

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-And what does that mean?

-It means that I can't walk

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so I have to use a walker to walk.

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But I find it easy

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to do everything

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since I came to this school.

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Francis, like many children, has suffered from bullying in the past.

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When I was younger,

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there was this guy in the park.

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And he took my sticks

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and...

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..because I didn't have my walker, it was at school,

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so I couldn't walk to go and get my sticks from him.

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And he was swearing at my mum.

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But since then I've been OK.

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Being disabled means you can be bullied or ignored by others.

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It doesn't mean you never go out, but getting there can be a struggle.

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The care Tim gets from his mum is not what he gets on the street.

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Bye-bye, Tim! OK?

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I need to ask them to put down the ramp.

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Typical.

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-What happened? You asked him...?

-I asked him to put the ramp down.

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It happens a lot of times.

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Life can be tough for children with disabilities,

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but the Vale School has a range of classes to develop every child.

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Hello. My name is Henry.

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Change! One, two,

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three, four!

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One, two, three, four!

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One, two...

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This one now, Tim.

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One, two,

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three, four! Hands under! That's good, Tim! Go, go!

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Encourage him!

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Come on, Tim! Come on! Go, go, go!

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-THEY CHANT HIS NAME

-Come on, Tim!

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Up, up, up!

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'Tim, did you enjoy the Sanjuro session?'

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I'll take that smile as a yes!

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Do you like school, Tim? Yes?

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< Yes. Always yes.

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When Tim doesn't have his book or computer, he uses his hands to talk.

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Is that OK? Yes or no? No? Something's wrong?

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Your trousers? Yes or no?

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Yes? Your trousers.

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Tim might have difficulty controlling his arms,

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but he is as intelligent as you or I.

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Do you have any worries about being on TV?

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(Yes? No?)

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Yes?

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Yes.

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-Are you worried what people will think?

-Yes? No?

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No? No.

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The Vale is a mixed school, with an age range from 2 to 16 years.

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There are 80 pupils here from different countries and backgrounds.

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The school has won awards

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and is consistently rated as outstanding during inspections.

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Back fist.

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Hook.

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-Front punch. Can we hear you?

-Front punch!

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The school encourages the children to confront their problems.

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Sanjuro builds their confidence. Tim and Francis are not the only ones.

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My name is Suleyman.

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Er...I'm 12 years old.

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And I'm a student in the Vale school.

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Hello!

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'People used to tell me,'

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"Why do you have this disability? What's wrong with your legs?

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"Why can't you run properly?"

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I used to say, "Mind your own business.

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"It's my disability, so... It's not you."

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When I'm walking with my friends to the shops,

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and they look at me,

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I just don't look at them. I ignore them.

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When they say why can't I walk,

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I say I don't know why I can't walk.

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When somebody tells me about my disability,

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I have to say that it's my disability and I'm special

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because I am, really.

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I feel like I'm special because I'm in this school.

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If I didn't have this disability, it would be all different.

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Imagine.

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I can't even imagine it, being with other kids that I don't know.

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The school may appear different to many, but the lessons are familiar.

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Good morning, Hassan.

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Good morning, everyone.

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Recap the story so far. This is our story stick. Yeah?

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Whoever has this tells the next part of the story.

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-Who'll start from the beginning?

-From the beginning?

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The lessons I'm going to do is maths, news group

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and at 11 it's break time.

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So we go all for a break and I'll go football.

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BELL RINGS

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For Suleyman, Sanjuro has had a positive impact on his life.

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I started Sanjuro.

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In my first lesson, we just worked on punching.

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Then the second lesson,

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we just worked on kicking and stuff, just to build up movement and stuff.

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The class caters for all abilities.

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Suleyman has already benefited from Sanjuro.

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'Suleyman's doing very well.'

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I'd just like him to continue. He understands what we're trying to do.

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He understands it's not about fighting, it's self-development.

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For Suleyman, it's not just his physical state he hopes to improve.

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-He also wants better control of his temper.

-Sometimes...

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I feel, like, angry.

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And I just keep it on my, you know, inside.

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I think Sanjuro helps me get, like,

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to do something I don't know.

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Like, I didn't know I had that skill before,

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but it just comes through your head.

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And you just learn, practise. Practice makes perfect.

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That's what I say.

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That's better than mine!

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'I was...'

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normal, a bit normal, and had an anger.

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Now I can control my anger, really.

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Normally you see me telling Glenn, "I'm going to beat you up,"

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but I don't want to hurt them!

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Hey, be careful!

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'About the anger,'

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I'm now OK. I feel all right.

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Push! One! Back. Two!

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Hup, one! Hup, two! Hup...

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Focus! One, hup! Two, hup!

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One, hup! Two, hup! One, hup! Two, hup!

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Sanjuro not only builds physical skills, but their confidence, too.

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Come on! Yeah!

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Up, up, up, up! Yeah!

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Let's go!

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The friendships they are creating here give them the strength

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to achieve goals they never imagined possible.

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'My school is like my home,'

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but a bit different. I have new brother and sisters.

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I treat them as my brother.

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You really understand what it means to be a martial artist.

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It's all about what you can do. It's not the things you can do,

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it's the things you try to do. You all try some incredible things.

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As I say, I've been inspired as a martial artist training with you.

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You show me what can be achieved.

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-Come on, Tim!

-Come, on, Tim!

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When Tim started Sanjuro, he had very little control of his arms.

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He is now making great progress and is an example to the rest.

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Yeah!

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You've got him! Go, go!

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'Actually, he can do it if he wants to.'

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You just have to believe it, maybe.

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He can move both arms now, which he couldn't do that well when we met.

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And today we saw he can move both knees as well.

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'And also he's a lot more confident.

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'He looks me in the eye now when he's training. His focus is better.

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'And he just seems a lot happier. If he's happy, then I'm happy.'

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'I like Tim a lot. I tell you, he's fun.'

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In Chinese... What is it, Chinese or Japanese?

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There's a word called sibu. You know what that means? Master.

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I think he's going to be... You know those wheelchair instructors?

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He's going to be one of them that instructs Sanjuro, really.

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Maybe. Maybe we'll open a business together!

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Tim has inspired the others, none more than his best friend, Francis,

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who has written a letter of support for an award for Tim.

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"Tim and I are best friends.

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"I will always run to Tim.

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"To him.

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"I go to Tim

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"because I am happy to be with him.

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"I don't want our friendship to die.

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"At school, Tim is always happy and I am happy with Tim as well."

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Sanjuro has given Tim more control over his movements.

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Come on, Tim! Reach up! Push him!

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And now he's getting a visit from Dr Mick Donegan

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who helped develop the My Tobii computer, operated with your eyes.

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I'm Mick. It's nice to meet you.

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I'm just here to try and see

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if we can get this system working

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so that you can make things happen by moving your eyes around.

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It's just a bit of fun. If it works, great.

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If it doesn't, I'll come back again until it does. OK?

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Mum is excited. If this works, Tim will get an instant voice

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for the very first time.

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He'll need to be more or less here

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with his eyes about this distance.

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Not all children like Tim will be able to make use of this.

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It's very sensitive. A lot relies on Tim's eye control.

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Dad is excited, too.

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Tim is a natural and in no time Dr Mick has him playing the guitar.

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-GUITAR NOTE

-D Minor.

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I think we're doing a composition.

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Excellent! Goodness me.

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I like it.

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Dr Mick is impressed at how quickly Tim has mastered the machine.

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Where you look you will see a butterfly appear.

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Hold your eye on that flower, if you can. Hold it right there.

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-COMPUTER BLEEPS

-Excellent! Wow!

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You're doing really well.

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Speaking is suddenly made quick and easy.

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-'I'd like some more, please.'

-You'd like more?

-'I think I like it.'

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'Basically, what I did was see if eye control

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'had any potential at all for Tim. And we found out that it did.'

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The essential things for Tim are that it could pick up his pupils.

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You need to have perfectly visible pupils, not hidden by the eyelid.

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So that was good. And you also need someone who is well motivated.

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As you saw, it was clear that Tim is very well motivated,

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even after an exhausting school day.

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If you go to this one...

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'I say cool, man.'

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-He's trying to be a joker!

-Great!

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'He wanted to do it, he was clued in,'

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and he was naughty. That was great.

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I was directing him and said, "Press this button now."

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And he didn't. He went where he wanted to go. He said a whole phrase

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and when he wanted to say, "It's cool, man,"

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that kind of thing indicates

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that you're talking about a bright young lad with lots to say.

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Is there anything you want to say now to finish off?

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-'I've finished.'

-Excellent!

-Amazing. He's finished.

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Mum and Dad are proud of Tim's achievement.

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'He's quite happy.'

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I think Tim kind of... He's quite cheeky about using the...

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..his eye to make some sentence that was out of our expectations.

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Like, "Cool, man,"

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or, "I'm hungry." That type of thing, to express himself.

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How he felt for this session. So, happy!

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I think he's practising Sanjuro.

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So how do you lift your legs?

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Yeah, one. Two.

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Mum has kept a video diary of Tim's Sanjuro practice at home.

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Four. Five.

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Six.

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The Sanjuro master is ready to give his verdict on the class.

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My assessment? Fantastic, mainly because

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of the way they help each other.

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With each term, the term who went before teaches those who come next.

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So great. I've learnt a lot and hopefully they have as well.

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One, hup!

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Tim has had a very successful term. He has more control of his movement

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and has found a new voice using the computer.

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CHEERING

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And now he's off to Wales

0:24:280:24:31

after being nominated for a Cerebra Award for disabled young people.

0:24:310:24:35

The long journey is starting and Tim has a friend along for the ride.

0:24:360:24:40

A bit excited!

0:24:400:24:43

Tim! Tim, here!

0:24:430:24:45

And Francis!

0:24:450:24:47

-Don't forget Mum!

-Let us in!

0:24:470:24:51

Tim and Francis are very excited, but there is a long drive ahead.

0:24:520:24:57

Tim, you want to go home now?

0:24:570:25:00

No way!

0:25:000:25:02

- Francis, do you want to go home? - No!

0:25:020:25:04

Tim is in line for the Funny Bones award

0:25:130:25:17

for children who handle their difficult lives by keeping cheerful.

0:25:170:25:22

For the very first time, he will speak in front of a large audience.

0:25:220:25:27

The awards take place every year for children from all over the country.

0:25:280:25:34

The next award

0:25:340:25:36

is for someone who makes everybody laugh.

0:25:360:25:42

The Funny Bones award. For someone with the gift to make others laugh.

0:25:420:25:47

Now the winner of this award standing here in front of me

0:25:480:25:52

is Tim Choi.

0:25:520:25:54

What kind of things do you guys get up to?

0:26:040:26:08

-We work together in class.

-Very good.

0:26:080:26:13

-Are you still at school together?

-Yeah.

-Very good.

0:26:130:26:17

I think that Tim has something that he wants to say.

0:26:170:26:21

'Thank you for awarding me. I feel happy to receive the award.

0:26:210:26:26

'Thank you for bringing us. I like to drive with my mum, dad and friends.

0:26:260:26:31

'I'd like to thank my best friend Francis.

0:26:310:26:34

'He helped me write this speech. Thanks to my mum,

0:26:340:26:39

'dad and grandma. They are here. They always love me and care for me.

0:26:390:26:44

'And to all my family and friends who support me and enjoy laughter.

0:26:440:26:49

'And thank you for listening to my speech. Ha! Ha! And goodbye!'

0:26:490:26:54

For Tim, this has been a busy and exciting year. He's achieved this

0:26:580:27:03

through his own hard work and determination.

0:27:030:27:07

In breaking news from Vale School,

0:27:090:27:12

Tim won the election in his class

0:27:120:27:15

and is now about to become part of the school's student council.

0:27:150:27:19

Subtitles by Subtext for Red Bee Media Ltd - 2010

0:27:260:27:30

Email [email protected]

0:27:300:27:32

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