…have taken on the challenge to learn to read and write. From age 14 (she has
never attended school) to ? some older, these women attended classes since June and are writing their first grade exams to obtain an official 1st Grade certificate.
Who would have thought that learning to hold a pencil would be a new task.
I think it’s pretty darn wonderful. The least fortunate kids in Honduran society have a tremendous environment to be nurtured in. Their moms… in some of the worst of all possible life situations, have a safe and nurturing environment for their kids as well as providing programs for their own personal development.
I can remember when I was asking Emily how to describe the place. Day Care simply didn’t cover it. I still refer to it as the Day Care/Family support centre. I’ll have to ask her how she describes it.
Emily’s philosophy of caring for the whole family and providing an educationally rich and loving environment for the children is evident in their programs and space.
This is the daily schedule
The older kids play Monopoly, Sorry and Candyland. The little kids do puzzles.
And then there is lunch. The kids are provided with balanced, nutritional meals and snacks.
I tried to help a little by keeping these two little guys from “distracting” each other.
Thanks being given………for the food. But these families have much to be thankful for… Casita Copan, their staff, their programs and their caring.
For some, this is pretty much their food for the day.
The hallway has wonderful photos of the kids done by Carolina Sandoval.
The Centre’s rooms speak to their focus on providing a wealth of learning and play.
Much to my surprise… it was a successful meeting. Parents and students from El Chilar came to meet with me about the Jr Hi program we started in their community. Truthfully, I was skeptical about any involvement from these folks. It has a reputation of being a really tough community to deal with.
Students filling out the application forms that is one of my criteria for continuing this program. This year families were asked to contribute both financially (a monthly fee) and in participation. I will meet with students and families each time I visit here.