In this materialistic and artificial world, the poet has learnt many things especially wearing many faces like putting on many dress, one has to have ‘home face’, ‘office face’, ‘cocktail face’ and so on. All are fixed just like the portrait smile.

The Theme, Tone, and Central Idea of Once Upon A Time: The child in the poem is a symbol of innocence, purity, enthusiasm, happiness, and genuineness lacking in society. The child represents the group of people who have not been affected by Western Culture and abode by their own culture.

‘ONCE UPON A TIME’ is a poem consisting of seven stanzas each containing between four and eight lines. The title of this poem ‘Once upon a time’ straight away makes you feel as if you are going back in time, it also makes you feel as if what happened was a fairy tale and it will never happen again.

When the poet says now they only laugh with their teeth he means that people now when they do laugh they only laugh for the sake of laughing and not out of real happiness, and then he goes on to say ‘while their ice-block-cold eyes search behind my shadow’ , by using a metaphor the writer says that the person who is .. …

Summary. ‘Once Upon a Time’ by Gabriel Okara presents a conversation between a father and son. The father describes how the art of greeting one another has transformed into a mere give-and-take of fake smiles.

Sometimes the culprit is purely physical: damage to the brain and/or speech muscles can leave a person mute. Sometimes the culprit appears to be emotional or mental. Other times, you’ll run into some combination of the two.

If a mute person needs to contact 9–1–1, they can send a text message to 9–1–1 using their cell phone. If they are in an area where the service is not available, then an alternate service like those discussed in other answers would need to be used.

A person is considered to be deaf if they cannot hear the same range of sounds as a person with normal hearing ability. People that cannot hear any sounds are also deaf. People who are partially deaf may hear some sounds and may hear words. People who cannot hear and understand words well are ‘hard of hearing’.

In the early teenage years, selective mutism is very often compounded by social anxiety disorder. By young adulthood, or earlier, many people with selective mutism will also experience depression and other anxiety disorders, including agoraphobia.

There is no single known cause of selective mutism. Researchers are still learning about factors that can lead to selective mutism, such as: An anxiety disorder. Poor family relationships. Untreated psychological issues.

Selective mutism typically does not go away on its own, and in fact can lead to worsened anxiety and social difficulty if not addressed.

Selective Mutism is associated with functional impairments in educational, familial, social, or occupational settings. Left untreated, Selective Mutism may lead to increased stress within family units, decreased academic performance, and decreased socialization needed for appropriate development.

Background. It has been suggested that autism spectrum disorder (ASD) might be a “comorbid” condition in selective mutism (SM).

Signs of selective mutism

• nervous, uneasy or socially awkward.
• rude, disinterested or sulky.
• clingy.
• shy and withdrawn.
• stiff, tense or poorly co-ordinated.
• stubborn or aggressive, having temper tantrums when they get home from school, or getting angry when questioned by parents.

Behavioral strategies and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) are the most widely supported therapeutic treatments for selective mutism. Using a wide variety of strategies aimed at reducing the anxiety beneath the behavior, these therapeutic interventions help kids learn to gradually engage in more speaking behaviors.

When seeking treatment for selective mutism (SM), several types of professionals may be involved and able to provide treatment. Psychologists, speech language pathologists, counselors, behavior analysts, and social workers are common professionals that may provide treatment for SM.

Selective Mutism is a complex childhood anxiety disorder characterized by a child’s inability to speak and communicate effectively in select social settings, such as school.

Unlike fast-acting anti-anxiety medications, SSRIs take several weeks to work, and help children become less inhibited and more able to participate in therapy over the long-term. Kids may be required to take them for up to 9-12 months so that they experience the full benefit.

When interacting with a child with Selective Mutism, DO:

1. Allow for warm-up time.
2. Monitor the child’s body language.
3. Talk “around” the child at first with focus on parents or siblings.
4. Get down on the child’s level and focus on a prop.
5. Ask choice and direct questions to the child with focus on the prop.