From Child Labour to a Chance at School

Updates of last quarter.

The typical day at the center starts with morning prayers. Then the class is divided into three groups. Group one which is for the children who have no introduction to education, Group two where children learn basics like alphabets, words, numbers, shapes etc, Group three is where children learn how to form sentences, higher maths, English. Then for 2 hours each group do some studies. After that its snack time, everyday different snack is served as per the nutritional chart prepared by the experts to make sure proper nutrition is given to children. After snacks its play time, children play different indoor and outdoors games. This takes care of the physical activities in children.In last quarter along with Approach foundation, which is an Ahmedabad based organization, Saath has been conducting diverse activities for the psycho-social development of the children at CFS, who are getting exposure of the wider world, which will develop a broader perspective and awareness besides the classroom learning they are acquiring at the CFS set-ups.

 Activities conducted during the last quarter include-

1. Five mehndi making workshops were conducted during the months of August and September. Children from different centres participated in a huge number.
2. Children from          CFS classes took part in a session on how to operate camera. One such session was organized in a park and children learnt to use the techniques of clicking pictures. Even children from a regular school accompanied them with their own camera.
3. Navratri is one of the most colourful festivals of Gujarat and the Garbas are in the blood of Gujarati people. Resource persons from aProCh Foundation taught them Garba steps at Law Garden. Two such sessions were conducted, the other being at Vastrapur Lake.
4. End of October was the month of Diwali celebrations. During pre-Diwali period, diya decoration workshops were conducted twice at Parimal Garden. 25 children from three centres participated.
5. 78 children from five centres were taken to Cinepolis at AlphaOne Mall for an animated movie “Motu-Patlu” with support from aProCh Foundation. This brought an immense joy as they usually do not get a chance to visit multiplexes. Children from construction site classes and slum classes, who assist their parents in economic generation activities, participated.
6. Woollen work was taught to interested children. Twenty children from two classes participated.
7. Employees from the Novotel Hotel conducted a clothes donation drive for the students of slum class in the locality on 20th October.
8. Another paper craft activity was organized in Prahladnagar Garden.
9. As part of employee engagement activities, KPMG visited one of the centres and taught the children craft items. They also celebrated Diwali with children during pre-Diwali days. It was celebrated on the 28th October.
10. Yet at Godrej Garden City centres, children engaged in creative aspect and prepared Rangoli in the class.
11. On the 30th October, children from some of the centres were taken at a venue where they can have practical shopping experience. Donated clothes were piled up and new stationery items such as colours, compass box, lunch box, etc. were displayed. They were given false currencies through which they could buy whatever they wished. A few parents also participated in the event.
12. Through donor’s support, 20 shortlisted children have been enrolled to an art activity centre named Sky Blue. The short listed children are from the slum classes for a specific reason. They will be going to art classes for a year or two. Though there are good talents in children of construction worker, their stay for long term is not ensured. They go to the centre once a week for two hours. They learn innovative arts and crafts activities that would enhance their skills to greater heights. A van has been arranged by the centre to pick from and drop them to the class.
13. Interns from Nirma University conducted various activities across the centres. They taught children science concepts through innovative methods, painted walls of the classes, made cardboard desks for children for class work, showed them animated films, did art activities, etc.
14. A new centre at Savvy Swaraaj site was started towards the end of November. About 75 children from 0 to 12 years attend the class regularly.
15. The Marriott group organized a ride for the children on the occasion of ‘Joy of Giving Week’. They took the children out for a joy ride in a big car.

A new CFS centre at North One was set up and currently there are 15 children coming to the class.

1. Further exploration for setting up new sites is taking place.
2. Teachers’ monitoring meeting was conducted at Saath Head Office on December 8th. Teachers shared and discussed their class specific challenges and learnings. This becomes a platform for them to share the grievances as well.
3. Again in December on the 17th, 15 children were taken to Cinepolis at AlphaOne mall for the movie Jungle Book. Total 59 children from across the centres participated.
4. A medical check-up was organized at Savvy Swaraaj site.
5. A drawing competition was organized at Courtyard by Marriott for children on the 27th December. The selected paintings were then converted into New Year cards by the Marriott group as official greetings for their clients.
6. Another medical check-up was organized at the two Labour Colonies of Godrej Garden City in November. As per the need of children, supplements were provided.

SUCCESS STORY

Education Matters!

Here is one more instance where education among labourers has proven to be a differentiating factor for a smooth process of development. When there are many parents unwilling to send children to the centre on site, there are a few exceptions who can appreciate the set up and system and happily enroll their children to the centre. These are the parents having some, though limited, background of education. One such instance happened at one of our Centers. Khushbu Darji (name changed) a four-year-old child, whose parents have studied up to primary education. They visited the class and themselves approached teacher for their children’s enrolment.

The Darji family moved to Ahmedabad from Sultanpur of Uttar Pradesh in search of better livelihood. Back home, there was only the father who used to provide for the family through masonry work. But the frequency of work availability was inconsistent and the money earned was insufficient. The mother had to stay back home to take care of three children, Khushi and two younger children. After enrolling their children to our centers, mother also started working and the family income has increased.

Khushi used to study in class I back home and was good in grasping activities. After coming to our class, she has become more active and her siblings are learning a great deal from Khushi. She maintains discipline in class and is one of the cleverest children in class. She knows numbers by heart and teaches other classmates in free time. She is a super confident child. She maintains proper hygiene independently, pays attention to each and every activity, and mingles well with all with an ease. She is so likable that everyone enjoys her company. Her parents are very keen of sending children to school and are request the teachers to help them with admissions and all the other documentations.

She observes her teachers keenly and dreams of becoming one like them.

• Progress Report September - November, 2018 (PDF)
  

CHILD FRIENDLY SPACES

SAATH designed Child-Friendly Spaces- a unique, 4-hour informal education course with an aim to later enroll the child labourers, children of construction labourers in formal education. With a steady influx of migrating families to urban settlements and poor quality of education, creating alternative education spaces for quality education has become important.

  OBJECTIVE OF THE PROGRAMME

The main and objective of this programme is to reach the child labourers and children of labourers and help them gain formal education eventually and there after making them skilled and self-sufficient. Children from the slums, child labourers as well as children of labourers on construction sites all require a strong base in education and access to quality education. Dropouts from school need to be continuously counselled and encouraged to go back to school. The education programs designed at Saath recognize this need and aims to bridge this gap.

Interns and Volunteers:

• We had 9 interns in the month of June and July from Duke University, USA. They did various activities with the children. Taught them nursery  rhymes, alphabets in English, Dental Hygiene
• Employees from Tata Capital came and spend some time with kids at the center. They did some craft activities and played lots of games.

 Donations:

• Mrs. Chandani celebrated her birthday with these children. They cut cake and had yummy lunch with return gifts.
• Mrs. Kiran celebrated her birthday with these kids, she said this was one of the best birthday she has every celebrated. She donated food and school kits to the children at Godrej Center.
• Employees of Marriott, Ahmedabad took children  for movie screening. Children had fun at the screening and enjoyed popcorns
• Saath Charitable Trust in association with Approach foundation, conducted the workshop on pot painting in one of the park’s of Ahmedabd. There children were taught how to paint pots. .
• 20+ children were invited by Marriott Hotel Children relished upon cuisines, which would be rare for them. They learnt table etiquettes including how to use spoon and forks. They felt special for the day for the special treatment and attention they received from the staff.
• Children of Saath were invited to an event organized by the Traffic Department of the city. They were transported in the department’s bus to the venue, GMDC Ground. The aim was to make children aware of traffic rules. The demonstration was followed by painting activity. All the children were then awarded with a certificate for participation. It ended with tummy full of snacks.

Teachers – Parents Meeting:

• Parents’ meeting takes place every month. Parents were apprehensive at one of the centres about their children’s progress and had pessimist thoughts about education. The program coordinator then shared progress of all the children in parents meeting.

Health and Hygiene:

• Interns from Duke University took sessions on Dental Hygiene, they raised funds and distributed dental hygiene kits to 200 kids at various centers.
• Every quarter health check-ups are done and growth record is maintained. Their height and 0weight are measured and maintained on monthly basis.
• A health check-up was conducted in July, 2018 for the children of construction workers. The malnourished children are given supplements to bring their health to normal level.
• Hand washing is a practice that is stressed upon and followed daily. Teacher ensure that each and every child when enter the class and before eating wash his/her hands

Festival Celebration

• Indian Independence Day was celebrated on 15^th August, Children celebrated the day with flag hoisting in the morning at the centers and they say many patriotic songs.

•  Raksha-bandhan festival of bond between brothers and sisters was celebrated on 26^th August. The employees of Sew Services LLP came to celebrate the festival at our Bakeri Center. Girls from center tied rakhis to the male employees and in return they gave them gifts, sweet meats. All the children were tread with lunch and both employees and children played various games and danced.

 SUCCESS STORY

Ravi (Name Changed) a 4 year old child has migrated from Bihar with his parents and elder sister to Ahmedabad for better livelihood. His parents are working as construction laborers at Savvy Swaraj construction site in Ahmedabad for last eighteen months. When his parents moved to labour colony, they got to know about CFS center. At first his parents were very reluctant to send Ravi and his sister to center. They used to leave Ravi with his sister when they go for work and poor little girl would baby sit her brother. Ravi was an active kid but then he became very weak, he would get tired very often. Last year a medical camp was organized by Saath for all the children at labour colony, there Ravi had also come for check-up. There his parents found out that Ravi is malnourished so he is becoming very weak.

Our center’s teachers took this opportunity and convinced Ravi’s parents to send him and his sister to center and there they will take care of their nutrition.

When Ravi joined he was malnourished and special nutrition was given to him. Doctors prescribed him supplements. He was given one extra glass of milk in the evening, every day with his snack he would get one egg and gradually in 8 months he started becoming healthy and today he one happy, healthy child. He has become very active in physical activities.

• Progress Report June - August, 2018 (PDF)