Break The Cycle Of Poverty Through Education in GT

NDG students are still not allowed to go to school due to the risk of getting infected with COVID-19. This situation has pushed our team to keep education running even with the families limitations. 

What started as a program only for our oldest students, soon became a source of new ideas that spread within the primary schools. The staff has striven to find ways to connect with their students through the internet, and they have found ways through whatsapp and facebook groups, where they can upload content for their students to interact with.

Even if it has been pretty challenging we see this as an opportunity to provide our young students with digital education, therefore improving the long term impact on them. 

In other news, we continue with the food and supplies program at least once a month thanks to generous donations from some of our supporters. 

Guatemalan students cannot come to the schools yet to continue their education in a "normal" way due to the incresing COVID-19 cases. However, taking all the care possible and with permission from the education authorities we have had a few opportunities to have some of students at the schools for reinforcement in academic matters.

Just as before, we continue handing out worksheets of every subject to our students every two weeks. Teachers have found better ways to teach their own students through the worksheets and have found support from some of  their parents. However we still have parents who cannot read or write so they have the chance to ask the teachers for any help if needed.

Our students from highschool have been using their new tablets for quite some time now and they get content updates every two weeks as well! 

In other news, in the last three months 788 bags of food have been distributed within the NDG families that need them the most. We have found a new supplier who provides us with bigger bags that include fresh veggies or fruits. 

We want to thank every one of you who has donated for making this possible! 

This year we are happy to be welcoming 40 new students that will begin Pre-k! This means that 40 children will have the opportunity to create a great future for themselves and their families!

Even though we are not allowed yet to have our students in the schools, our teachers are putting a lot of effort to create worksheets that will actually be useful for them to learn new things.

Our 2 primary schools will only be using worksheets for as long as the restrictions continue, meanwhile our secondary/high school will be using both worksheets and tablets for digital literacy! We are excited about the advances that are taking place within the educational scope at NDG. 

On the other hand, we will continue providing NDG families with food and supplies for as long as we possibly can! We will be giving the first bags of food in the first week of February.  

The COVID-19 pandemic physically separated us but helped us connect on a deeper level. Even though we miss our students at school, we find reasons to be happy and feel proud.

As you know since the pandemic hit Guatemala, schools were closed indefinitely. Providing education has become a challenge. Since our 544 students come from very low-income families, most of them cannot afford to have a stable internet connection or technological devices they can use to receive online education. That is why our teachers have been working hard to make worksheets, for our students to learn and enjoy the process. We continue handing out these worksheets every 15 days.

Despite this all, we feel that the new system has allowed us to bond with our student's parents and family members, and it has also allowed parents to become more involved in their children's education, strengthening their interest in supporting them through the educational process. 

We feel fulfilled to see how the parents come to the schools with a positive attitude and willing to listen, understand and help their children with the assigned tasks. We have also been witnesses of the excitement and pride that they feel, knowing their kids are progressing and will be able to become professionals one day. 

We will continue supporting our students and their families in every way we can. 

Dear Friends,

The past months have been challenging for all members of the NDG Team, the current situation regarding the COVID-19 crisis has forced us to find new ways to keep on with our mission of providing education to our students. Also we found ourselves with the responsibility of keeping NDG families safe. 

Starting in april, NDG staff members have joined efforts to achieve these two things. We came up with a plan that has been working pretty well. With the help of donors and Friends of Niños de Guatemala we have raised money to buy NDG most vulnerable families a bag of supplies that lasts for 15 days. These bags include rice, beans, oil, ncaparina, pasta, tomato sauce, maseca, protemas, and other things like bleach and protection masks. 

During the handout of supplies, teachers are also giving NDG parents worksheets for each and every one of our students. Our teachers have put a lot of effort making and printing these worksheets so that our students can work on them from the comfort of their homes. 

Links:

• Ninos de Guatemala web