Because of the seriousness of the work, in order to ensure sensible growth and learning measures, modest arts related activities were started in residencies of girls at risk (PIN Nepal) and children from the street (ROKPA) initially for three months. A five-person committee was formed to evaluate the learning process and in which twenty volunteers participated. Persons selected to take part in the committee and the volunteer team were individuals familiar to and specialised in social work, art, literature, music, and theatre.

After the three-month learning process, a two-day workshop combined with a series of meetings helped the program analyze the learning, locate strengths and errors, and prepare for expansion. At this time, Spiny Babbler is working with girls at risk, children from the street, those hospitalised with mental illness, children facing life-threatening conditions, and children whose parents are in prison. The objectives of this program have been identified as:

• Development of a sense of well-being among people at risk.
• Improvement of psychological conditions of people at risk, even if such change is temporary.
• Confidence building among people at risk.
• Improvement of arts related appreciation, analysis, critique, and the use of arts and the improvements they bring in all aspects of target group's lives.

Activities are designed so that volunteers use the arts to help those with life-threatening conditions and mental illnesses that need hospitalisation. Such interventions often bring only temporary changes. For example, children with terminal cases of cancer may only be able to enjoy the stories read out to them for the hour that the volunteers are with them. However, what is essential to Spiny Babbler is that it identifies the temporary changes as important.

Clients such as girls at risk, children from the street, and children whose parents are in prison undertake a longer term, syllabus driven course that hopes to have a further-reaching effect. Clients learn to value the arts as an integral part of human life and achieve emotional and spiritual fulfillment through different experiences related to the arts.

People at risk who are a part of the Spiny Babbler program receive an opportunity to participate in art projects that help them to develop original ideas on their own. They develop specific skills and talents and receive opportunities to showcase them and build confidence through performances, exhibitions, and competitions. They share and develop interactive skills through creations in the forms of paintings, poems, songs, drama, and discussions. They also learn to analyze and appreciate the different forms of the arts.

Individual memberships and contributions from national and international organizations, and Spiny Babbler communication services to international organizations working in Nepal help fund the programs. You can support our programs becoming a member. Because this area has being designated as the high-priority area of Spiny Babbler's programs it has been necessary to implement key steps to the learning process of both organization administrations and their target groups.

Process:

• Establish confidence in Spiny Babbler with administrations and the target group with which they work
• Educate institutions workshops as wholes over five to ten year programs enabling them to independently conduct art programs within their institution as well as educate others about what they have learned
• Establish lasting psychological benefits among underprivileged children resulting in more open expression and better overall health

Specific aid institutions will experience varying outputs depending on the target group they work with. Certain outputs will be more long-term whereas as are focused on short-term results and relief:

Outputs:

• Organizations, agencies, and institutions are capable and motivated to independently include art programs within themselves and continue to educate themselves about its benefits and developments.
• Target groups experience either short-term or long-term relief from continued involvement with the arts as a psychological and physical benefactor.
• They have greater self-confidence and sense of worth that they can influence onto others around them who are suffering or have.
• The family is involved with their child's artistic and expressive activities and supports their learning by participatory involvement in their learning process.