The service group I’m a part of and a service leader for is called SOS Village. We work with kids who are from the orphanage called SOS Village. It isn’t just a normal orphanage, it’s more of a homely space where the kids are a part of a “family”. Just like the name they live in a small village which is made up of homes which has a “mother” and then the children, there is also a school in the village where the kids attend. We work with them to teach them English and overall just have a good time with them. Recently we have been trying to create a fun and safe learning space for the kids. They see English as a school subject where they get grades which causes them to get worried and nervous. We would like to help break down that barrier and get rid of the expectations that they hold for themselves. So far this is going well and the kids seem to be having fun.
We have done things like creating stories with them, playing games, going to the playground and going to the library to read books together. We also try to get into the pool every other week. This helps them to build confidence in the water and gives them an experience that they wouldn’t usually get. They always get super excited and love messing around in the pool. We start every session off with a 25-minute English lesson in order to build stronger bonds with the kids and build their confidence and knowledge of the language. Then we always spend the rest of the time doing a fun activity. Sometimes we go to the playground and some of the kids play football and on the climbing frame. Then like I said before we also try to go to the pool as much as we can. In the future, we hope to add things like sports (cricket, volleyball and football), baking and some kind of creative activity like building lego or things with clay (maybe things to do with the season).