Reminiscing 2018

With the year coming to an end, it's time to look back at the memories we shared together.

In 2018, both semesters of sessions ended with a bang and our volunteers had so much fun planning and doing activities with the children in the different classes. 

As our volunteers gather to brainstorm and plan an even more exciting semester ahead, let's look back and recap the previous semesters!

As with previous semesters, we collaborated with a group of devoted volunteers from Eunoia Junior College. In the midst of their busy schedules, they dedicated three weeks to volunteer with us. It was definitely a joyful experience and we hope that these students found it meaningful and fruitful too.

Here, we share the experiences of two volunteers from Eunoia Junior College.

“It has been an eye-opening experience to have been given a chance to be facilitators to the little ones. When it was decided that we would be volunteering in a children’s reading program for our Values in Action Project, most of us were pretty eager and looked forward to interacting with the children. Despite this, some of us were filled with slight apprehension as we did not know what to expect.

On our very first session, after a short briefing on the program outline and a rough guideline on our roles, we were set into motion as the children started streaming in. I remember myself being intrigued by their exuberance and liveliness as they rambled on animatedly about their day. Being relatively new to the job and having little to no experience with children, most of us found ourselves struggling to catch up during the sing-along sessions and were mostly unfamiliar with the games that they played. However, we managed to catch on pretty quickly as we tried our best to keep up with the help of the friendly volunteers who were leading the session.

By the second session, we were more or less familiarized with our roles as we helped out with the program with new found confidence. Most of us also felt more at ease with interacting with the children as we led them in the various activities. However, our third and last session saw us taking on a brand-new challenge as we were tasked to organize a whole session by ourselves! From the drawing up of the program outline to the cutting of paper crowns, the planning of the activities was relatively smooth sailing. Unfortunately, the execution of events met with a few hiccups. We found out on the day that we were not able to proceed with the reading activity as we had no story books. 

Luckily, with a little imagination and improvisation, one of us managed to weave a story right on the spot with a little help from the children. Another challenge we faced was the overwhelming excitement of the children which we found ourselves at a lost to handle as we struggled to raise our voices to calm them down. However, we are proud to say that we were able to keep to our plan and everything else went smoothly. Despite the many challenges faced, the smile on the children’s faces and their bubbliness left us brimming with joy and satisfaction.

It had indeed been a fun and enriching experience for all of us although it was short while it lasted. We are all very thankful for this opportunity to lead and I am sure that everyone of us had a little something to take away from these sessions. Thank you, children, for teaching us more than we have taught you and to the volunteers who have guided us throughout our mini journey! Our hearts are full.”

“Having taken part in the assisting and eventually the conducting of reading lessons for preschool children, we as a cca have grown not just in our nurturing skill but as well as strengthened our relationships. 

Teaching demands attention to detail. Young children are very observant, taking very interesting perspectives and observations. They will notice every character and colour on a page of the book, and become fascinated with any topic that comes to mind in class. As educators, we must first also be able to pick up such detail and help them shed light on whatever topic of their interest, while not forgetting our lesson objectives. I believe that every one of my CCA-mates would be more empathetic and thoughtful after the sessions, seeing their progress from a struggle on day one to being quite in full control on their last days.

Paying attention to them warrants their attention. In a class of 15, the task of keeping tabs on every student can be strenuous, but if you know the telltale signs about their energy levels and attentiveness, class control would be a breeze. However, giving them too much attention might encourage some to seek your attention.  

Lastly, this experience gave us a chance to work together. In planning and conducting lessons, no one could have done it on their own. When we struggle with a child, our friends and other teachers would be there to help us with the situation, and we got their backs as well. Coming up with ideas for lesson was fairly easy when planned in a community.

All in all, it was a fun and interesting experience that breathed exuberance back into my life.”

If you're inspired by their experiences and would like to join us a volunteer, don't hesitate! Click here to sign up and we hope to see you in sessions! ☺

And here's to an even more meaningful and fruitful experience in 2019. Cheers!