The grounds at orphanage was beautiful. There was a play area (basketball court, a swing and a slide) with plenty of space for the children to run around and a shed area to sit. I had a room with an attached bathroom and a common sitting area. The area is safe. Though I wouldn’t go out by myself at night. There is a security guard at night.
1) What was a typical day like at the program?
Start helping in the kitchen around 6:30am (flip tortillas, fry the fry-jacks set the table for breakfast). After breakfast, wash the up the dishes, and help the cooks with lunch. When I was not needed in the kitchen, I would go and help in the Preschool and occasionally help with the laundry. I taught basic Math and English daily to three boys who were not in school. In the afternoon I helped the cooks prepare dinner and helped the children with homework. At 4:45pm– 5:00pm. The tables were set for dinner. (assisted the cooks to dish up meals and set the tables)
2) Please describe the project site, including living conditions and meals. Did you feel safe?
The grounds at orphanage was beautiful. There was a play area (basketball court, a swing and a slide) with plenty of space for the children to run around and a shed area to sit. I had a room with an attached bathroom and a common sitting area. The area is safe. Though I wouldn’t go out by myself at night. There is a security guard at night.
3) What was the most challenging thing you experienced as part of the program?
Preschool was the most challenging experience. I helped the teacher (around 10in total) who had a class of around 30 children (4-5 Years old). Whose attention span lasted no more than 3 minutes. A couple of them did not speak English which was even more challenging. Also there were three boys in the home who were not in school when I started volunteering. It was a challenge to get them to sit down and study. After being here for eight weeks, they got into a routine where they study with me for approximately two hours a day. Issac knows his times tables (2 – 12), addition subtraction, subtraction, multiplication and long division. He is keen to learn to learn. His brother Rygel is 6 and can write his numbers from 1-100 as well as 2 and 3 times tables.
4) Any tips or information volunteers should know before traveling to this program (from your personal experience)
The children are very well looked after. They were caregivers (which I wasn’t expecting) at first I wasn’t quite sure what I was supposed to do. I saw there was a need in the kitchen as the cook prepare three meals a day for the children. As I got to know the children (the younger ones), I noticed there was a lot of them that didn’t know basic math. Being here for eight weeks some now know their times tables but many don’t.
5) Would you recommend this program?
I highly recommend this program it was a very satisfying and rewarding experience. I will miss the