Karthikeya’s under performance academically was bothering and despairing and our family was already in the Covid crisis and was befallen by medical exigencies. Amidst this turmoil, Karthikeya lost 1 full academic year and forgot the little he learnt in yesteryears. Loss to an extent that my 4th standard child was unable to read / write 3 letter English words and Hindi वर्णमाला. He was suffering. It was emotional chaos for him and for us.

We were live witnessing ‘ईशान अवस्थी’ from the Aamir Khan starrer ‘तारे ज़मीन पर’ movie.

It was then that the Dept. of Support Education (D.S.E.) of St. Andrews School (SAS) introduced us to Akira and it seemed like a ray of hope. We were introduced to the passionate & friendly Akira Team lead by Alana Ma’am and explained the details of the pull out remediation programme. In spite of reluctance from grandparents for switching from SAS Mainstream, Karthikeya was admitted into Akira. The unique teaching techniques, curriculum prescribed by Madras Dyslexia Association (MDA), one to one personal attention, Occupational Therapy (OT), MI Sessions and the empathy of the Akira Team have helped him to unleash his true potential. The child who once wanted to quit education today says: Math is my favourite subject, Akira is the best School and I’ll miss my Akira

With proficient guidance of Akira, Karthikeya completed i) Computer Project titled Night Theme - 1st Prize, ii) Computer Course A from Studio Code & iii) Gold Medal of Excellence (School 7th Rank) from SOF International Mathematics Olympiad. Above all, he has learnt problem solving skills and has become independent.

Apart from academics, Karthikeya now shows interest in painting, playing, being friends with his peers and walks around with an improved self-confidence.

Akira has really turned around the child in all respects. I am deeply indebted to Akira and all the unsung management committee members, especially Alana ma’am. They did every possible bit from their end to help us. Thanks a ton!

An obliged parent with humble tears of joy and gratitude.

- Ms. P. Latha, Current Parent

Akira came in as a saviour for us. We were at cross roads not knowing what to do, how to proceed forward in case of Vasishtha. It was Vasishtha's and our great fortune that we came in touch with Akira and Alana Madam in particular. As parents we went into a solace once we got Vasishtha into Akira. Alana Madam & Team gave us spot on guidance, they spent more time and efforts in analysing Vasishtha and gave him a tailor made IEP, that had a humongous impact on his learning capabilities. Even today (it's been more than 2 years now since Vasishtha has been bridged to mainstream) Vasishtha's says his best days, best teachers, best environment is of Akira. Even today he misses Akira a lot. Given a chance he always wants to go back to Akira and Alana Madam

We saw a sea of changes in Vasishtha:

1. Confidence in talking to people
2. Clarity in expression
3. Fluency in communication
4. He became a joyful kid
5. The cognitive problems that were detected were almost cleared off when he left Akira to join mainstream

The best part is this, from day 1, the underlying focus was always to build the capabilities, skills, cognitive abilities in a scientific way so that the kid gets bridged to the mainstream as quickly as possible, but definitely not before he is completely ready. That great balance is a very rare find.

In one line, we always see Vasishtha's life as "Before Akira and after Akira". That's how impactful Akira was/is and how much indebted we are to Alana Madam & Akira.

- Mr. Amar & Ms. Purnima, Past Parents

From the bottom of my heart, I would like to thank each and every person in the Akira Team for the countless efforts taken for each child individually.

It's in no way easy, handling our kids. But the way you approach a parent or an individual child for their issue is something beyond words.

Being a parent of a slow learner child, I observed my child's low self esteem, highly introverted personality, low self confidence, no eye contact, poor communication skills, language issues, reading and writing difficulties and attention deficits. I am now seeing my child as an independent and confident child. He now has good skills in communication, improved reading and writing skills, observation skills and an excellent personality in and out in this magical three years. Most of all, my son is happy and ambitious. He loves his school, his teachers and the school environment. All the credit goes to Alana ma'am, her teachers and the entire team. As a parent, I will be forever thankful to this institution for showing me a ray of hope.

With gratitude.

- Ms. Subha K., Current Parent

As a parent, I would like to share a few things - firstly, I would really thank Alana madam for making us understand and realize where our child was lagging and where we needed to bridge the gap. Secondly, she instructed our son to take up some therapies which helped him a lot to overcome his problem with learning and understanding. As a parent, I am happy with Akira as my child could overcome his problems in learning skills & cognitive skills.

My child really enjoyed Akira as it was all about developing motor skills and remedial and learning capabilities through practical essence. He loved it a lot and he could gain knowledge and truly Akira helped him to bridge the gap.

This was a very challenging task for us as well, for our child to overcome his inabilities in learning. Every month, there would be a certain task given to him and as a parent, we were instructed to notice and work along with him so that he can think, learn and analyze the concepts either in English, Math, EVS or language too. He loved his Occupational Therapy - one of his favorites in Akira. His two years in Akira made him understand the importance of education as well as build his confidence in sports and other activities too.

As a parent, we are very fortunate to have a place like Akira for our son which made him develop his learning skills, cognitive skills, fine motor skills, etc. This made our child join back to mainstream with two years of gap, but as parents, we could understand our child's ability and realize with the help of Akira to move forward with mainstream, at the beginning, as a parent, we were worried about mainstream with the gap of two years but later my child picked up in his studies, his learning skills & thinking skills were improved. Thank you, Akira, once again for your commitment and hard work in transforming the children who have learning disabilities.

- Ms. Devaki. K, Past Parent

Akira is the one stop solution for children with SLD in Hyderabad!

The teaching-learning process here is individualized and systematic that uses multi-sensory methods, harnessing the strengths of the children to work on their needs. This helps the child to learn and apply coping strategies to overcome learning difficulties.

Having been associated with the institution for a considerable period, the salient facets of this center are:

• Experienced and dedicated special educators
• Non-competitive and stress-free learning environment
• Bridging to mainstream schooling
• Teacher –student ratio of 1:5
• Individualized educational plan
• Multisensory approach
• Tapping Multiple Intelligences
• Holistic Approach for child development which includes co-curricular activities
• Counseling
• In-house Occupational Therapy

With a successful track record of running the centre for over 5 years, Akira has been instrumental in identifying the hidden potential of each of their students with difficulties enabling them evolve as confident individuals and more importantly getting them align with mainstream curriculum. This one of its kind initiative in Hyderabad is a much needed and welcome support to children with Specific Learning Disabilities (Dyslexia) who otherwise without the intervention would be unable to identify their abilities and, in many cases, become a burden to society. Akira in its unique way enables the Dyslexic children to be future successful citizens of this world!

- Ms. Lakshmi Hariharan, Head of Operations - Resource Room, Madras Dyslexia Association (M.D.A.)

My Son Krrishanth joined Akira in the year 2019. He was unable to read & write properly and his speech development & confidence levels were very low. Now, he has improved a lot with respect to the above said. We are thankful to the team of Akira for the help & support extended to us. We hope that team Akira will support similar children overcome their current difficulties.

- Mr. R.Ramesh & Ms. K.Deepapriya, Current Parents

We at Madras Dyslexia Association are proud to be associated with Akira by St.Andrews, a special school in Hyderabad for providing specialized education for children with Specific learning Disability popularly known as Dyslexia. The school has been instrumental in creating a supportive and inclusive environment for these children and has been following our guidelines and advice to cater to their needs effectively. The dedication and hard work of the teachers and staff at the school have been instrumental in bringing about positive changes in the lives of children. They have not only helped these children in developing their academic skills but have also fostered their self-esteem and confidence. The school has the best facilities available for children with Dyslexia. Their in house Occupational Therapy center is a boon to parents as it takes care of the requirements of the child within the school system. We highly recommend Akira by St.Andrews school to parents and educators looking for a specialized education for children with Dyslexia. The school is an excellent example of how with the right guidance and support, these children can achieve their full potential. We are grateful to have been a part of this journey and look forward to continuing our association with Akira in the future.

- Ms. Lata Vasanth, Head of Training, Madras Dyslexia Association (M.D.A.)