Helpings Hands

This week I planned and initiated a very exciting activity for Helpings Hands. New Year is a important part of the Sri Lankan culture. It is celebrated in April as opposed to January as it is in the West. During this time of the year families save their money for gifts which they distribute to each family member. Therefore, this is a time when money is tight for many families. I decided to gather different food products for the families of the Helpings Hands local students. In this bag I included flour , dhal, rice, and other basic ingredients. In order to gather enough products, I published a statement in the weekly school newsletter asking students to bring these different food items. Each students was asked to bring these items to their homeroom teachers. Once I gathered all the products, I put them together in red bags made from recycled materials.During this session I distributed these bags. The following is a picture of the bags.

We also had the children complete an activity to practice their knowledge of the names of the different body parts. The activity was a relay race. The students were put into teams and told to sing head should knees and toes at the course. I worked collaboratively with the other student leader to ensure that the activity was carried out effectively.  The following is a picture of this relay race.

RCCI

This week in RCCI the students came together and watched a Disney film. The local students greatly enjoyed this animated film and attentively watched throughout the entire session. In this session we indirectly were dealing with an issue of global importance; poverty. The local students are less fortunate and unable to afford items such as televisions. Therefore, this experience was one that was unique for them as they do not often have the opportunity to use electronics such as these.

This activity also exposed the students to English. Hearing the Disney characters speak could teach them new basic English vocabulary. The students currently have a very limited vocabulary in English.

I undertook a new challenge this session, as it was my first week being the official student leader of RCCI. The local group arrived 30 minutes late. This created difficulties as many kids decided to leave to their homes. Due to this, along with a small group of other students I had to ensure that the activity was carried out correctly. After watching the movie, we gathered the students to eat snack. The following is a picture of the students eating their snacks.

Food and Fun Fair

The SGA organized the Food and Fun Fair. This took place over the past weekend. It was a fair filled with a variety of fun family activities. As an SGA member we had to ensure that everything went smoothly and as planned. Each grade had their own activity. Grade eleven was in charge of the slip and slide. Kids absolutely loved this activity and paid to go up to twelve times.

The SGA was in charge of selling beverages. We had to work collaboratively when picking shifts, picking prices, and selling the drinks. Selling the drinks was an extremely stressful process because many people did not show up on time or at all for their shifts. Because of this, many of us had to work multiple shifts. The lines of people were very long. There had been a difficulty in communicating that we accepted cash only as opposed to fair tickets. This miscommunication wasted a lot of time. During this time I increased my awareness of my personal strengths and weaknesses. My strength in this situation was that I was able to work quickly and manage money well. However , my weakness was my frustration. When people did not show up for their shifts or I had to man the table by myself, I became extremely frustrated.

Soccer

During SAISA the OSC soccer team was not very successful. We placed second to last. Because of this , we have decided as a team to participate in a local tournament and continue having weekly practices. We believe that through doing this we will be able to identify our strengths and weaknesses both individually and as a team. This will allow us to be more successful in next years SAISA tournament.

 The team worked collaboratively to pick dates which work well for all of us to practice. I was surprised by the large amount of people who continued to come to practice. We have only had one practice so far but I already have seen the development of new skills in multiple players. The skill I recently developed was the ability to correctly place my corner kicks. I must kick the ball in the perfect position so that it travels directly to the strikers.

RCCI

This week in RCCI we focused on physical activity and communication with partners. Each OSC student paired up with a local student. We played basketball with them and tried to make conversation. Here we had to consider ethical implications. Though it was extremely difficult to communicate due to the language barrier and each  child's condition, we had to keep from becoming frustrated and impatient. During this time it was also important to collaborate with the other OSC students. If one student saw that a local student was responding well to certain questions or basketball activities, they could share these ideas with the rest of the student in order for the best results to be seen.

Helping Hands

This week in Helping Hands was by far my favorite. I planned and initiated an activity to help develop the children’s basic writing and speaking skills. In this activity they filled out a worksheet that I made. This worksheet asked them about what made them happiest, their favorite animal and color, where they were from, their age, etc.

 

 

 

 The most rewarding moment of my entire semester in this group occurred with this activity. A number of the students wrote that the times in their lives when they were happiest were when they were at OSC.

 

 

 

 

After filling out the sheet they each posed for an individual picture. To the upper and middle class having your picture taken may be something you do every day. However, to these kids it was something they had never done before. They had never had a picture of themselves. They lined up with excitement, each with huge smiles across their faces. We later printed the pictures and pasted them onto their worksheets. They decorated the sheets and brought them home.

 

 

Before the session ended, we had them get into groups and read aloud their sheets to each other.  I was able to see where they needed help and what vocabulary they struggled with most. In this group we deal with the global issue poverty. Through teaching these children English we are opening up doors for them. This base of English will serve as a stepping stone into mastering English which will help them in high school and to get a job when they are older.

SAISA SOCCER

We just came back from our soccer tournament in Nepal. Our trip was filled with hard work and fun! Despite our best efforts, we came in seventh place out of eight teams. However, we fought for our place until the end. We worked collaboratively each through each game as we passed, shot, and blocked. I worked especially well with Michaela and Athena.

 

After the first game we were able to identify our areas of strength and areas of weaknesses. We learned  that our greatest weakness was our finishing. We were able to dribble the ball through defenders and center the ball perfectly. However, once the ball arrived in the center of the field, it was thrown away. We worked on this game after game and still were never able to perform well enough. My strengths and weaknesses changed by the game. However, overall I believe I did extremely well in communicating with my other teammates and dribbling through defenders. I believe my biggest weakness was m y frustration.  My team had countless opportunities to score in which we threw the ball away. It was difficult to not become frustrated during these times of disappointment.

 

We each undertook the challenge of playing on a new field in a new country. The altitude and pollution caused us to have difficulties in breathing and caused us to become tired more quickly. Nepal was also much colder than what we are used to in Sri Lanka. The biggest challenge however was the field. It was extremely wide, creating a whole new way of playing. We had to adjust each play, learn to use the space, and learn to conserve our energy.