Last week all our partner school students participated in Santiago’s Olympic School Games. Boys and girls competed against each other in team sports as well as track and field. It was great to see students from Pueblo a Pueblo’s programs competing and giving it 110%!
Sponsored children were seen all around town running in their physical education uniforms and new sneakers, donated by their sponsors through our Child Education Sponsorship program. These uniforms gave students the opportunity to participate and enjoy all of the Olympic activities as well as have appropriate gear during Physical Education Class.
This simple fact can seem insignificant for us but it is so meaningful in a child’s health and education: these gifts make it possible for students to fully participate in all of their school activities, which help strengthen their self-esteem, wellbeing, and their relationships with peers and teachers.
The Maternal Child Health Program is starting 2013 by reaching more women in the communities in and around Santiago Atitlan than ever before! This year, we are adding a new component to our education outreach strategy. In order to spread the importance of maternal and child health on a larger scale, we are selecting twenty mothers, dubbed our Family Planning Champions, within our sponsor program to become maternal & child health educators within the community. By appointing these women as community mentors, we can guarantee that the knowledge they continue to gain during Pueblo a Pueblo trainings can flourish and benefit other families beyond our doors.
The mothers we have selected to be our newest team of educators, our Family Planning Champions, have participated in our maternal health programs and trainings for at least three years, and have individually distinguished themselves for their strong participation in our trainings and their desire to be well educated on health related issues for themselves and their families. To prepare these women to become beneficial mentors in their communities, the Maternal Child Health program is preparing Family Planning Champion trainings based on effective peer to peer communication techniques, along with reviewing the importance of family planning and reproductive health issues.
Ultimately, our goal is to educate as many women and families as we can about the importance of maternal and child health. Knowledge is power, and thanks to the educational trainings our sponsored mothers have received, we can continue to spread women empowerment throughout Santiago Atitlan and beyond.
We are so excited to have our Maternal Child Health program progress and evolve, and we couldn’t be more thankful for our generous sponsors through GlobalGiving!
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The new school year is in full swing and students at the Chukmuk Elementary School continue to take advantage of all the resources available at the school library. Witnessing the pure joy and excitement that students have during their library visits is a reminder of how important libraries are in a child’s education and development.
The literacy activities continue to supplement classroom learning, which fosters a much-needed love for reading in innovative and fun ways. Students carry on with learning the library’s cataloging system to facilitate their use of its resources and they’re quickly learning the rules to properly care for this learning environment.
Our first teacher training was conducted last week and teachers were encouraged to express their desires for the future of the Chukmuk School Library. Their ideas along with our ongoing collection development means a busy year in the continued effort to build a library that is a comfortable and useful learning environment for the entire Chukmuk community.
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