"GIVE HOPE TO 40 CHILDREN TO HAVE A BETTER FUTURE"

This update is for the educational development, challenges, academic achievements and milestones the kids have achieved for the school year 2020-2021 (from October 2020 to Aug 2021).

Fifteen (15) children were able to pass last year’s grade level and are now enrolled in the next school level. Three (3) out of these fifteen (15) graduated from Kindergarten.

This school year 2021-2022, a total of twenty (20) children are enrolled under the Modular Distance Learning Program of the Department of Education. We have seven (7) kids in Kindergarten, three (3) kids in Grade 1, two (2) kids in Grade 2, six (6) kids in Grade 3 and two (2) kids in Grade 4. Classes started on September 13, 2021.

The past school year (2020-2021) as well as this current school year (2021-2022) were challenging because most of the kids were able to experience face to face, present physical teaching with teachers and engaged with their classmates socially and interpersonally through physical play and personally learning side by side with their peers in a classroom setting before the pandemic hit. Although the kids were given tablets to aid them in their modules and online classes, the house parents had to learn alongside the kids to strategize ways and means to keep the kids engaged in their online classes and to further clarify and explain the modules to the kids. These strategies had to be employed more in teaching the younger kids (that require extra attention) specifically those who are in the kindergarten level.

House parents who are not really equipped to teach professionally have to adapt and employ supplementary activities such as story telling sessions; arts and crafts (taught online, done in actual at Tahanan); and tutorials after classes. They utilized educational toys to ‘create’ play-based exercises to help the toddlers develop locomotors and psychomotor skills.

Projects for the development of the play areas and sleeping areas have been shelved indefinitely due to the strict protocols that had to be implemented since the children are unvaccinated and only in-house staff are allowed to be with the kids.

Crucial therapies have to be discontinued indefinitely as well. Speech, Occupational Therapies as well as Developmental Pediatrician and Psychological Assessments were the therapies that had to be halted due to this pandemic.

Undeniably, the lack of face-to-face interactions, the shortage of manpower and the lack of social interactions with other people are not just taking a toll on the kids but the staff of Tahanan as well.

Despite and in spite of these challenges, we are very grateful that through your help, we are still able toenroll the kids, and provide adjunctive activities to help them cope and learn during these pandemic school years.