Circus In Motion, set up in 2006, is a social enterprise that empowers youth-at-risk and children with special needs through workshops that teach them circus acts.
About 12 years ago, Mr Benjamin Teo was on the receiving end of the programme. Today, he is a full-time instructor.
Through the programme, Mr Teo developed a deep interest in circus art – and practising the various tricks kept him out of trouble in school. Even after the school programme ended, he continued training outside of school with several other schoolmates at a void deck in Kallang. Through the training sessions, they developed self-confidence and qualities such as patience and focus.
Currently, schools such as Hua Yi and Peicai Secondary engage the organisation to conduct circus workshops under the Ministry of Education’s Time-out Programme, which aims to reduce the attrition rate of students-at-risk dropping out of school.
The social enterprise also conducts workshops for children with special needs from schools such as Metta School, which caters to students with mild intellectual disabilities or mild autism spectrum disorders, and Pathlight School, an autism-focused school.
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Source: The Straits Times, 10 August 2017