Kids Class
Every child deserves to have an education. Even displaced children.
One of the problems that refugees and asylum seekers face is limited access to education for their children. They go months or years without receiving proper schooling which makes adjusting to their third country difficult.
And it's not only children that struggle. Many refugees and asylum seekers do not know English or Thai; the two main languages that will help them to survive in this country and their third country. This keeps them extremely isolated.
When the third family moved into the Safe House with 4 small children in tow, continuing their education suddenly jumped onto our radar as a high priority. The children had been going to the BRC (Bangkok Refugee Center) for classes 1 day/week, but the new location was too far away to continue. Thankfully *Armon, one of the other refugees in the house had teaching experience and opted to hold classes for the children. At that point we didn't have any other volunteer teachers.
We also decided to host language classes for the adults!
So within days we were picking up supplies to start a school inside their new home. The total cost was $60 which was covered between Life Raft International and a donation that had been given to me through dear friends, Dave and Susie at Living Waters Church. That's crazy to me...a school for only $60!
Then I lugged over my printer/scanner/copier and let Armon run with it. He immediately started conducting assessments on everyone in the house so that we could develop multiple curriculums to fit their needs. Within a week the children's school was up and running and the adult classes had begun.
The children receive education on reading, writing and language skills (in English and Thai), math, and science. And the adults are learning both English and Thai.
Between Armon, his wife *Sharon, a new volunteer teacher Raquel, and Ben, one of the guys who has been involved with this house since the beginning, we have 4 teachers and over 20 students.
There are 29 people that currently call the Safe House their home; 11 of which are children under the age of 10, however not all of them are studying. Some of the adults find it quite difficult to learn langage at an older age, and some of the children are still too young.
I can't even keep track of who is all studying and who isn't. And I don't have to. I trust them to organize and facilitate their own learning. My piece of the whole puzzle was just providing a means and a framework. Now they are the ones taking ownership and carving their own destinies. And I must say, it is going very well.
It brings me a lot of peace of mind to know that regardless of whether I am here in Bangkok or overseas in America, they will all continue to get the education that they need. And it is the joy of my heart to see them thrive.
One of the problems that refugees and asylum seekers face is limited access to education for their children. They go months or years without receiving proper schooling which makes adjusting to their third country difficult.
And it's not only children that struggle. Many refugees and asylum seekers do not know English or Thai; the two main languages that will help them to survive in this country and their third country. This keeps them extremely isolated.
When the third family moved into the Safe House with 4 small children in tow, continuing their education suddenly jumped onto our radar as a high priority. The children had been going to the BRC (Bangkok Refugee Center) for classes 1 day/week, but the new location was too far away to continue. Thankfully *Armon, one of the other refugees in the house had teaching experience and opted to hold classes for the children. At that point we didn't have any other volunteer teachers.
We also decided to host language classes for the adults!
So within days we were picking up supplies to start a school inside their new home. The total cost was $60 which was covered between Life Raft International and a donation that had been given to me through dear friends, Dave and Susie at Living Waters Church. That's crazy to me...a school for only $60!
Then I lugged over my printer/scanner/copier and let Armon run with it. He immediately started conducting assessments on everyone in the house so that we could develop multiple curriculums to fit their needs. Within a week the children's school was up and running and the adult classes had begun.
The children receive education on reading, writing and language skills (in English and Thai), math, and science. And the adults are learning both English and Thai.
Between Armon, his wife *Sharon, a new volunteer teacher Raquel, and Ben, one of the guys who has been involved with this house since the beginning, we have 4 teachers and over 20 students.
There are 29 people that currently call the Safe House their home; 11 of which are children under the age of 10, however not all of them are studying. Some of the adults find it quite difficult to learn langage at an older age, and some of the children are still too young.
I can't even keep track of who is all studying and who isn't. And I don't have to. I trust them to organize and facilitate their own learning. My piece of the whole puzzle was just providing a means and a framework. Now they are the ones taking ownership and carving their own destinies. And I must say, it is going very well.
It brings me a lot of peace of mind to know that regardless of whether I am here in Bangkok or overseas in America, they will all continue to get the education that they need. And it is the joy of my heart to see them thrive.
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