By Evelind Schecter | Program Director
The new school year starts in mid-May, just as the smokey haze is clearing and the hot temperatures are coming down. Finn has been running some classes in Phrao at a cafe with local shopkeepers and artists. We are gearing up to settle the schedule for classes in the community and at Warm Heart.
Finn, and our volunteer, Geoff (a retired English as a Second Language teacher from Canada) ran a workshop for Communications Skills and English in February that led to another one in March. Some of the students asked to continue English classes with Geoff and Finn. Geoff's teaching style adapts to the individual students and encourages them to have fun and lose their shyness when conversing in English.
Our Warm Heart Board member, Maisha, (visiting for a few weeks) helped to review the programs and joined the March workshop to meet the students. She was amazed at how well the students were speaking English and they proudly credited Geoff and Finn for their rapid progress. We are looking at leveraging their positive reviews and extending the offering.
We have teamed up with a Peace Corps volunteer, assigned to our neighboring Mae Wan sub-district. She teaches life skills and English in a neighboring middle school. We plan to join her in the after-school English club where she is teaching in Phrao. This will catch students just before high school and give them a head start on using their English.
This week our Warm Heart students return to start the new school year. We will run a two-day English camp to get them working together and ease them back into learning mode. We will continue weekly sessions with Finn and Geoff in the evenings, arranging them in groups according to age and ability. These classes get them to practice English and think about their personal goals and self-awareness.
Thank you for supporting this program as we make headway on various paths, aiming forward, but sometimes taking a step back to reassess.
Best wishes for a wonderful summer.
Dana, Evelind Michael and the Upskills team
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