IT TAKES A LOT OF HEART TO BUILD A FUTURE

There are four major elements of School for Life and we at PeopleStories Foundation believe they are crucial in building a culture of lifelong learning for the children of Siem Reap.
 
The first is the enablement to attend school including a bike for mobility as well as having sufficient school supplies.  Then, we focus on better learning environment both physically and in mind through more effective teaching. And lastly, the families support for these children. In our last volunteer trip to Siem Reap, our team of volunteers ensured to further develop these four important elements to help students complete school.

We engaged in a School Refresh project. Our volunteers and team members worked hard to clean and beautify the classrooms and libraries of Chea Smonn Primary and Secondary schools. They bonded with some of the students by putting together a few classroom furniture like tables and bookshelves.

Next, we worked directly with the teachers to enrich the curriculum of these schools by introducing new lessons. A successful example would be how our team conducted engaging music sessions that ended with children and teachers snapping their fingers to the beat of ​the melody. We also bonded with the teachers outside of school hours by doing house visits and touring around the village leisurely on bicycles.

Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, we made a conscientious effort to get to know the direct families of these children. We organised house visits to have face-to-face conversations with mothers to better understand the home dynamics that might affect the children’s willingness to learn. 

At the end of the volunteer trip, we left with our hands full of chalk and dust, our backs weighed by the many hours under the sun, but our hearts full of hope and pride for these children.
 
If you would like to join our cause and help these children lead a life fueled by education, contact us at [email protected].