Give Children Wings to their Dreams

We have kick started our core programmes for this year and there is excitement all around; and it is raining highlights.  Special thanks to each one of you for being a tremendous support in helping us continue to empower and transform lives of young people from vulnerable backgrounds.

With this update we would want to share with you story of Shekar (name changed), who is part of Dream Life Skills through Sports Program.

Meet Shekar, a 16-year-old, who has been part of our Life skills through Football Programme since last 2 years.  His father is a driver and his mother works as a domestic help.  His hobbies include playing football and listening to music.

The Challenge:  Shekar was very shy in the beginning, not speaking with anyone. His parents are very supportive of him and want him to get involved in activities at school but he has never been able to. During the first few sessions at the Life Skills through Football programme, Shekar would never try new skills when the facilitator asked him to. Shekar explained that he was too afraid to make a mistake because he thought people would laugh at him. He narrated an incident from his life about when he was in the 8th grade, he was called on to answer a question, which he got wrong, and the entire class laughed at him. From that day onwards, he does his work properly on paper but is too afraid to speak in front of other students.

In one session, a volunteer came to join the young people. The volunteer noticed Shekar’s shy behaviour and proceeded to support him during the match. The volunteer told him how good he was in the match in terms of his efforts and scoring a goal. Shekar had never been acknowledged like that and it gave him a bit of confidence. The volunteer told him his own personal story about how he used to be shy but as he grew older, he began to learn more and obtain more skills to become an engineer. The volunteer explained that everyone goes through times of doubt and he shouldn’t be discouraged by his peers.

After this interaction with the volunteer, the facilitator noticed Shekar communicating and participating more actively during sessions.

The Change:  Once, when the facilitator was revisiting the team agreements (agreements are made by children themselves with the help of facilitator before start of the session every year which they follow during the sessions such as; being on time, no using bad language, etc. ), Shekar was first to raise his hand to explain the agreements. During the warm ups, Shekar started speaking and participating actively. The facilitator asked them to run five rounds around the grounds and Shekar raised his hand to suggest six rounds instead. His friends who lived near the grounds also participated in the sessions but did not attend regularly. Shekar decided to collect them before the sessions to ensure their attendance for that day’s session. Since he realized the importance of teamwork, Shekar would gather his friends to make sure everyone was accountable and part of the team.

When the facilitator spoke with Shekar’s teacher, she told him that he has started participating in school activities. He recently participated in a quiz competition and made it to the semi-finals. His teacher praised him for his academic efforts. Shekar’s parents are very happy that he has started taking an active part and has realized that he can achieve his goals. He discovered that he has the academic and extracurricular abilities and felt a renewed sense of confidence.

The Dream Power:  Shekar confidently shares, “I like the activities including the fun games and playing as a team. I want to continue this programme next year in the tenth standard. I have the confidence to take part in all of the activities in the programme. My dream is to be a football player.”

Dream Life Skills programme is aimed to help young men like Shekar find their inner strength and confidence through powerful experiences, consistent messaging and role-modelling.

Organization and Programme Updates and Highlights (April 2013 – July 2013):

1. 2016 young people are enrolled in our life skills programmes – 847 in Life skills through football and 1169 in Life skills through Arts.
2. 32 Life Skills facilitators are trained to deliver the curriculum based life skill sessions to help deepen the impact of the programs.
3. 70 young people and 15 volunteers were part of 2 Outdoor Experiential Camps for this year.
4. 336 young adults were benefited through our Life Skills for Career Development training at our Dream Connect Centre, which offers the tools and foundational life skills necessary for career development.  Teaching them Basic computer skills, English speaking, workplace readiness, career guidance, and career talks.  83% of them completed the course.  We are also happy to share with you that one of our young adult have successfully completed his training at Barathi Walmart and now works with Life Style.
5. 19 volunteers were trained to be Mentors and 12 have been matched with their mentee’s already.
6. 90 volunteers have been engaged clocking over 3165 volunteers hours.
7. Teacher Development Workshop was delivered to 58 teachers from 2 of our partner schools with focus on Life Skills Facilitation.  The programme aims to train teachers and community workers to facilitate the development of Life Skills amongst young people in their own schools and regions. The workshops in particular are focused on enabling adults to deepen the understanding of self and young people.  A teacher says "I have learnt to listen to others and respect what they have to say" and going forward when I am teaching "I would guide the child rather than preach or force them to follow right path by giving them options."
8. Vishal Talreja, Co-founder and Executive Director of Dream A Dream was on a 2-month learning and inspirational journey through the Eisenhower Fellowship programme, U.S.  Know more about his trip; visit his facebook page- Dreamer on the Go - Vishal Talreja 
9. Suchetha Bhat, COO and Bopanna Pattada, Lead Trainer from Dream A Dream are learning, sharing and Co-creating the Creative Community Model at the first ever global gathering of Social Artists and Facilitators hosted by our partners PYE Global - Partnership for Youth Empowerment at Whidbey Island, United States of America. They will also be co-facilitating and volunteering at a youth camp hosted by PYE. We are proud to be partners with PYE and look forward to excellent learnings coming back to us as we deepen our own Teacher Development & Life Skills Model.
10. Dream A Dream has been shortlisted in top 12 NGOs (medium category) in the India NGO Award 2013 and assessment process is to happen shortly to decide the winner.

We look forward to your continued support and enduring relationship!

Thank You!!