A young person in a kurta and waistcoat bends over a sheet of paper, carefully drawing with a coloured pencil

Selective mutism support in Mumbai.

Shadow teachers, special educators and remedial tutors for children with selective mutism in Mumbai, working to the plans your child's clinicians set.

Start a brief

For Mumbai families

Special Minds works with families in Mumbai whose child has selective mutism, at school, at home and online. A shadow teacher or special educator for a child with selective mutism is often the first adult at school the child can relax with. They take away the pressure to speak, give the child other ways to answer and join in, and help teachers and classmates stop asking the child to talk. Working to the plan from the child's psychologist or psychiatrist, they carry out the small, graded steps towards speaking in new places and with new people, and record each one.

We work with ICSE, CBSE, IB and IGCSE schools from South Mumbai to Powai and the western suburbs, and with the developmental paediatricians, speech-language pathologists, occupational therapists and psychologists the family already trusts. Families in Bandra, Juhu, Powai and Worli, and across Maharashtra, start the same way: a private conversation, then a written child-support profile that every candidate is matched against.

What usually helps

No pressure to speak, and no rewards or punishments tied to talking
Other ways to take part in the meantime: pointing, nodding, writing, picture cards
Small, planned steps towards speech, set by the child's clinician
One trusted adult at school who understands the plan and keeps to it

We write these into your child's support profile before anyone is placed, so the professional arrives in Mumbai knowing the plan rather than guessing at it.

A special educator and a child at a home study table

How we help in Mumbai.

ABA therapy in Mumbai
Designed and supervised by a Board Certified Behavior Analyst, at home, at school or online, with parent coaching.
Shadow teachers in Mumbai
Inside the school day, with the school's agreement, so the strategies that work at home also work in class.
Special educators in Mumbai
Structured learning and routines at home, to a written plan reviewed every month.
Remedial tutors in Mumbai
Reading, writing and maths support at home or online, where school work has fallen behind.

Every one verified the same way, and every placement reviewed at one week, thirty days and ninety days.

How a placement works

Where our role ends

Selective mutism is an anxiety condition, not shyness or defiance. It is diagnosed and treated by a child psychologist or child psychiatrist, sometimes with a speech-language pathologist involved. Our professionals follow that treatment plan in the classroom and at home; they do not design it.

Questions from Mumbai families

Can a shadow teacher support a child with selective mutism in a Mumbai school?+

Yes, where the school agrees. We speak to the inclusion coordinator, the principal's office or the class teacher before anyone is placed, and agree how the shadow teacher will work in class, so the support fits the school's own way of teaching.

Is this therapy?+

Our shadow teachers, special educators and tutors are educators, not therapists, and they work to the plans your child's clinicians and school set. The one therapy Special Minds provides is ABA, designed and supervised by a Board Certified Behavior Analyst; we do not diagnose, prescribe, or provide speech or occupational therapy.

Which parts of Mumbai do you cover?+

Bandra, Juhu, Powai, Worli, Lower Parel, Andheri West, Malabar Hill, Navi Mumbai, and the neighbourhoods around them. We shortlist by where your child goes to school and where you live, so the same professional can stay for the year.

Do we need a diagnosis before we contact you?+

No. Many Mumbai families come to us before there is a diagnosis, with a note from the school or a worry of their own. We tell you plainly whether we can help now, or whether a developmental paediatrician or psychologist should see your child first.

Will the professional speak our language?+

English always, and Hindi or Marathi where the candidate pool allows. Tell us on the brief which language your child is most at ease in.

How soon can support start in Mumbai?+

Once the child-support profile is written, a shortlist usually follows within two to four weeks, and a trial period comes before either side commits.