After the 2 days of our workshop and the set-up and dedication of the library, the Teaching With Jamaica team spent a day and a half working at the Robin's Nest Children's Home up in the mountains of Montego Bay. Half of our team ran a Vacation Bible School for the children while the Pod Moms--the local women who worked at the home who are each in charge of a certain age group of kids--were trained in how to teach, play, and "manage" the behavior of the children in their care using the Conscious Discipline method. Honestly, the first day of VBS was pretty much a fiasco. We had had to make some last minute changes of personnel for VBS due to illness, so many of us had to change roles, which led to confusion of schedules and a lack of confidence in responsibilities that the kids picked up on quickly. As a result, kids were running everywhere, just leaving a rotation they were not interested in--usually to run to snack! By the end of the day, we were worn out and frustrated, and many did not want to return the next day. (Plus, we were already frustrated that all of our supplies for the home were still being held in customs!) But we went back to our guesthouse, revisited schedules and readjusted teams as well as discussed sticking to Conscious Discipline techniques in order to be able to handle the kids who felt like they had free reign with all of the Pod Moms in training.
On our second day at the Robin's Nest, our pod of supplies for the home was finally released from customs* so we were able to set up the learning and play centers. We unloaded the shipping pod with 2 bus trips up the mountain before VBS started at 9:30. So, that day, we ran VBS and trained Pod Moms from 9:30 until 12:00. VBS was very successful on the second day--kids and teachers were all smiling all morning long...having more structure and so more confident teachers helped the children to focus on the lessons and activities. When the Pod Moms were released from training and the kids were napping, all of our TWJ team went down in the play commons area to set up centers. We worked nonstop until 3:30 setting up the area for learning play centers. But as tired as we were, when we were able to show the centers to the Pod Moms and the children and see their excitement, all of the weariness and frustrations of the 2 days just melted away. Seeing the Pod Moms interact with the centers themselves as adults before the children were brought in was touching. Many of us realized at that point that many of them did not have access to toys and puzzles and games such as these when they were young. Then to see them interact in a playful, yet instructional manner with the children when they came in was fulfilling in that we got to see first-hand how much love and respect is between the children and the Pod Moms. While working 2 days at the children's home was a stretch of our group's mission statement, we made it fit with the instruction of the Pod Moms.
*(The supplies had been delayed in customs due to the fact that Robin's Nest had also purchased supplies to put in the shipment container, which included drills and other such tools that were being questioned--maybe for taxing purposes. We had decided to collect and fund raise for the purchase of toys and learning supplies because when we visited the home last year, many of the toys and books in the play and learning areas were missing parts or were totally broken.)
On our second day at the Robin's Nest, our pod of supplies for the home was finally released from customs* so we were able to set up the learning and play centers. We unloaded the shipping pod with 2 bus trips up the mountain before VBS started at 9:30. So, that day, we ran VBS and trained Pod Moms from 9:30 until 12:00. VBS was very successful on the second day--kids and teachers were all smiling all morning long...having more structure and so more confident teachers helped the children to focus on the lessons and activities. When the Pod Moms were released from training and the kids were napping, all of our TWJ team went down in the play commons area to set up centers. We worked nonstop until 3:30 setting up the area for learning play centers. But as tired as we were, when we were able to show the centers to the Pod Moms and the children and see their excitement, all of the weariness and frustrations of the 2 days just melted away. Seeing the Pod Moms interact with the centers themselves as adults before the children were brought in was touching. Many of us realized at that point that many of them did not have access to toys and puzzles and games such as these when they were young. Then to see them interact in a playful, yet instructional manner with the children when they came in was fulfilling in that we got to see first-hand how much love and respect is between the children and the Pod Moms. While working 2 days at the children's home was a stretch of our group's mission statement, we made it fit with the instruction of the Pod Moms.
*(The supplies had been delayed in customs due to the fact that Robin's Nest had also purchased supplies to put in the shipment container, which included drills and other such tools that were being questioned--maybe for taxing purposes. We had decided to collect and fund raise for the purchase of toys and learning supplies because when we visited the home last year, many of the toys and books in the play and learning areas were missing parts or were totally broken.)