From 2024, Cap Enfants crèches will welcome young children with ASD identified or in the process of being diagnosed. Claudia Kespy-Yahi, founder and director of the Cap Enfants musical and multisensory crèches, tells us more about this project.
Today, one in 100 births is affected by ASD (autism spectrum disorder), 5 in 100 people by neurodevelopmental disorders (NDD), 4 times more boys than girls are diagnosed with autism according to the figures from Europe Autisme. To include these profiles from early childhood, Claudia Kespy-Yahi, founder and director of the Cap Enfants musical and multisensory crèches, and Professor Philippe Evrard (A4 Europe Autisme) have joined forces for a unique partnership called “L’envol des petits pas” .
Towards a more inclusive nursery?
From 2024, Cap Enfants crèches will welcome young children with ASD identified or in the process of being diagnosed. Accompanied by professionals trained in early intervention methods, they will benefit, until they enter kindergarten, from a collective welcome in a so-called “ordinary” environment, from the same early learning activities as other children, from musical pedagogy. and multisensory and unique interactive equipment, the Musical Bubble®, which have made Cap Enfants crèches famous. The objective of this pilot project is to welcome 10 children diagnosed with ASD or in the process of being diagnosed in a nursery, accompanied by 5 professionals (1 professional for 2 children) and 2 supervisors. “The idea is also to be able to accommodate a caregiver and to combine several health professionals such as a psychomotor therapist, a speech therapist, occupational therapist, etc.,” explains Claudia Kespy-Yahi. “We have several objectives:
- Welcoming children in the premises of the Cap Enfants Euclide crèche in Argenteuil, until they enter nursery school;
- Offer musical and sensory education in addition to the recommended methods;
- Provide a training venue for early childhood professionals.”
What is multi-sensory and multi-cultural pedagogy?
A pioneer in the implementation of a multi-sensory and multi-cultural pedagogy, Cap Enfants’ pedagogy was the subject of a scientific study published in the international journal “Music and Education Research”. The objective of this study was to answer the question “does listening to music and playing musical games have a positive impact on language acquisition, spatial cognition and socialization in toddlers? ”. The researchers studied 20 children (4 to 6 years old) who attended a Cap Enfant crèche for 2 years. The best part about these crèches? They benefit from two educational supports which are those tested in this research: the Musical Bubble ® and musical journeys ®. In practice, children in Cap Enfants crèches listen to sounds recorded in the Musical Bubble® and discover new sounds and words. This bubble allows the development of numerous neuronal connections, in particular by enriching understanding and improving spatial cognition and language. Moreover, the results of the study highlight very significant differences in favor of the musical crèches® group (compared to the control group) which obtain excellent scores for language and spatial cognition.
A pedagogy that would benefit children with ASD identified (or being diagnosed): “This partnership with A4 Europe Autisme is very important for us” declared Claudia Kespy-Yahi, before developing “for years we have been working through “s ‘enthusiastic Claudia Kespy-Yahi.
