Family Care Cambodia is a non‐profit, volunteer organization. The goal of Family Care Cambodia is to enhance the quality of life and development in Cambodia, especially for those who are disadvantaged. We invest particularly in Cambodia’s children and youth of today, to help build the leaders of tomorrow. Below are some highlights from the first part of 2015.
Riding in Style
Thanks to a special fundraiser by Mira Scholars Foundation, we were able to welcome the new year with gifts of bicycles for 50 of the students in our various programs! At the CCPCR rescue shelter in Phnom Penh, each of the 20 resident children and teens got a new bike to help them
travel the somewhat longer distance to school from their new location. In Siem Reap, our teachers selected 20 of the most deserving students from Phum Thnal & Sandan schools, who received their new bikes during a special visit from Sara & Phil of Mira. At the Phum Tany Learning Center in Kampong Speu, a “lucky draw” was held in each of the classes. Small prizes were handed out, with the top prize being a new bicycle. Once we knew who the winners
were, the bikes were ordered to size and delivered. One of the parents mentioned that her child, who had won the top prize for his class, was so excited, he didn’t sleep that night! The kids are so happy to now be riding in style!
Celebrating Valentine’s Day– Celebrating Love!
During art therapy class at the shelter & Learning Center I explained that since Valentine’s day was a day to celebrate love, the children could design their own card & give it to someone they loved; a sibling, parent, friend or teacher. Because many families don’t verbally express love or openly show affection to their children, there was some hesitancy at first. But we put on some sweet music and they all got to work. In fact nobody wanted to stop when time was up! One child who has struggled with angry, violent tendencies, mistrust for adults, and serious trauma issues asked how he could spell “Happy Valentine’s Day” in English. After he’d tried his best, he gave his card to me! Knowing what it represents, it is the most beautiful Valentine I’ve ever received. At the Learning Center, the children began asking, “Teacher, how can I write I love Mommy & Daddy?” “How can I write I love Grandfather & Sister?” They created their own lovely
cards with very sweet messages of love for the important people in their lives!
Multiple Intelligence: 7 Pillars of Learning Fun
Different children absorb information best in different ways. Research confirms that there are 7 types of Intelligence or learning styles. These are the intelligence of...words; numbers & logic; pictures; music & rhythm; the hands & body; social interactions; and self knowledge. This is known as multiple intelligence. At our rural learning center, we try to give everyone a chance to excel in the learning style most suitable to them by presenting lessons in a variety of ways. This also provides great clinical training for the local teachers. This quarter we began working through the English alphabet with the younger children, ages 4-8. We played games making the letter shape with our bodies, holding hands & stretching to a BIG circle, then bunching up into a small circle while chanting an alphabet sound. We lined up on big chalk drawings of different letters. We did charades, acting out & guessing words that begin with certain sounds and made masks to add to the drama. We did art projects for each sound; cutting, pasting, coloring & drawing to create beautiful illustrations that were fun to look at & a source of pride and accomplishment to take home to mom & dad! We even got to see and taste a real Jar of Jellybeans for J! The children worked both in teams, and individually.