Lets Be Ready

Do not withhold good from those to whom you should give it If it is within your power to help. Do not say to your neighbor, "Go away; come back later! I will give it to you tomorrow," If you can give it now (Proverbs 3:27, 28).

A few months ago our dear founder Fred Zambroski sent a donation for the Magical Classroom and Lets Be Ready programs. With the aim of supporting the families most affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

Because the donation we received was not such a high amount, only one family from our group of children could be helped. That is why our Director Sara Tun asked us to carry out a case study on our children, in each of the 25 communities where we are; To select the family that needs it most. We had to be very observant and attentive, in order to determine who would benefit from the donation.

It was not easy, because "all" of us find ourselves in a difficult situation that has affected us in one way or another. So we used extreme cases in economic decline, that is, cases of families that we could see with our own eyes that they really needed it.

It is a pleasure for me to tell you that thanks to this donation, we were able to help 25 families from the 25 communities where we work. Q.3.00 quetzals ($ 39) were provided to each family. With this amount, some bought enough food to support their family and others used it for medicine; because in some families there were sick children and elderly people who needed it. We were able to support families where the mothers are single or recently widowed; and in others there are many children to feed. The truth is that these families are very worthy of admiration, because despite their problems and concerns, they are positive and are looking for ways to get ahead so that their children do not lack tortillas and beans to eat. EVERYONE was surprised because we had chosen them to be benefited, and they were very grateful. Some moms couldn't believe it that they even cried because of the joy they felt. It was such a generous and emotional act of love for all ...

That is why we want to deeply thank our Founder Fred for this beautiful act he did for these families and for the country. Thank you for doing wonderful things in the families of our students and communities in our country. May Jehovah God bless you!

This is what we wanted to share with all of you, giving proof that if we all work together we can overcome racial, political and disease barriers such as covid-19.

Thanks to all those who support us around the world as well, remember that without your donations we could not help our children in Guatemala.

Hi all!

Many of us perhaps thought that this disease was a fleeting thing, but seeing the past months we have realized that it is not. This shows us that nothing should be taken for granted, as we do not know what will happen in the future. Perhaps this is a way of realizing what really matters in life, what are our priorities, goals that we have left half or not fulfilled, failed projects or changes as a person that we think to fix but perhaps we never did.
But be that as it may, it is worrying to see how the current situation affects us every day that passes financially, mentally and emotionally. Which can lead us to have a pessimistic or negative attitude. But that should not discourage us, the important thing is to see how we succeed together. Without a doubt, it has not been easy because each country has taken different measures, some have worked, but others have not. Still we are working together to win this battle.

That is why the group of Teachers of the Lets be Ready program has made an effort to look for ideas on how to continue teaching their little ones. Each of us has adapted to the circumstances of each community, some have been successful but others unfortunately have not. We have experienced the anxiety, helplessness and frustration that this situation has led us to feel; But we still haven't given up. We have been in constant communication, sharing ideas on how to work and support the families of our children.

Thank God our children, their families and teachers are doing well, we have no case. Although in the central communities where they live, if there are some; but they are taking all the preventive measures. It is unfortunate that some of them have lost their jobs, which has made it difficult for them to support their family; but we are trying to help in that regard.

Despite our circumstances, we are using different methods to continue teaching and thus continue learning from them. Parents, without a doubt, have played a very important role in making this possible. Many of them have become their teachers at home and with patience and love just as we are teaching their children. Very few have shown no interest in this, but we are looking for new ideas to make this process easier for them. In the images you can see in more detail some ideas that we are implementing with our boys from home ...

They will be happy to know that they are taking the nutritious drink CHISPUDITOS, because we have organized ourselves to distribute it every month so that the boys do not miss it. Of course there are always those who are not responsible when giving them this drink, but we are working on it.

It occurred to me to have meetings through the Zoom app, to be in constant communication with our teachers and thus be able to support them, be aware of all the children in the program and their families. It was a success, personally it encouraged me a lot and I liked learning new strategies to teach that maybe I'm not applying, but that can work for me.

We hope that everyone is well, please always be alert and use all preventive measures, because only if we follow instructions will we be able to prevent the spread of this disease.

We love you and greetings to all.

“A joyful heart is good medicine, But a crushed spirit saps one’s strength”. (Proverbs 17:22)

Hello everyone, how are you?
I hope you and your families are well. It is a pleasure to greet you again, despite the world crisis we are going through; But leaving this aside, I am pleased to write good news to you about the accomplishments we have made with our children who have been with us in previous years. They are encouraging stories that show us the good result obtained, thanks to the support of all our sponsors, teachers, parents, and above all thanks to the love for our country and people, by our beloved founder Fred Zambroski.

In this report we chose a story that will make us think positively as the proverb described above shows. It is very important to maintain a positive attitude in any situation, because only by thinking like this will we succeed in facing any problem that may arise; otherwise we could lose the energy or the desire to continue fighting ...

This story is related by: Gloria Tun, one of the teachers who lives in Santo Domingo Xenacoj (the first community where the Lets Be Ready program started).

““ It is a real pleasure for me as a teacher to tell a story of a student like many who have left their marks both in my school and in my heart.

I would like to count all the students that I have had in all the promotions during the six years that I have been a teacher of the Lets Be Ready program; but it is not possible for me. So I will tell you a little bit about a girl named Imelda Saban. Who is now a teenager with many dreams and hopes for her future.
 
Imelda was with me in 2013 and she was a very intelligent, humble girl and above all with a big heart. Her parents are poor and do not have any level of education, but they did everything possible to give their sons and daughters an academic preparation. They have simple jobs like: bricklayer's assistant and the mother works in the weaving. But that did not stop them from fighting for a better future for each of their children. Imelda is the third daughter of four brothers and two sisters, in total with Imelda there are seven children in the family.

Imelda was six years old when she entered the program. What she loved most was to share and learn in the Imaginary Game corner. I remember that she always said something like: "When I grow up, I want to be a doctor and teacher."
She loved doing homework and was a super applied girl. Her mother always said “teacher, with her I don't have to insist on saying: do your homework! She with her will and enthusiasm, alone took out her notebooks from her backpack and began to do the tasks ”.

It can be said that being in school was her world and still is, because thanks to her enthusiasm and her parents' desire for her to improve herself; they continued to support him to study at a community primary school; Called Official Rural School "El Calvario". During this phase, she continued to be a very intelligent, discreet and participative girl in workshops, cultural events and activities outside and inside the school. The six years he spent in elementary school passed without any problem.

Today she is an adolescent, she is thirteen years old and she is studying with a lot of effort First Basic at the National Institute of Basic Education, which is also in her community"”.

The example and determination of this girl gives me the assurance that we are working to help all those who have the desire to have a better future. And at the same time I want to thank our Sponsors since without their financial contribution, children like Imelda would not have the opportunity to have a good preparation.

"The True sign of Intelligence is not knowledge, but imagination" (Albert Einstein)

Hello everyone, how are you? I hope it's ok.
In this report I want to tell you a little about how we started our school activities in our different "Lets Be Ready" centers.

I have noticed that most of our teachers are putting into practice all the ideas and suggestions that we showed them in the training for the month of January; because they are very fun ideas. The children have loved it very much, as their facial expressions demonstrate it; as you can see in the images below.

We are working on fine motor skills, performing eye-hand exercises, using the clay to mold, the tweezers with the thumb and index finger, tearing paper, painting with the fingers and making strokes of the letters that make up its name. We also work with primary and secondary colors, making crafts with different types of recycled material.

In physical education we make games to work with balance, laterality and coordination; skills that are not yet fully mastered. Children love this class, as we try to make physical activities always fun and entertaining.

"I want to tell you something very particular that happens at the school of" Los Izotes "in San Juan Sacatepéquez. Our teacher Lidia, who works there, tells in her report that a mother named Astrid, who has her son Elvin in the program; After preparing the Atol, he goes to the Library corner to bring books to read. Take time to analyze them well and understand the stories. When he finishes, before going home he borrows some books to read there, this indicates that he wants to excel and foster a good desire for reading in his son ”.

On the other hand, we have already started with the size and weight that is done every year in our different schools to start the “Chispuditos” program with the nutritious drink, which has done so much for our children in Guatemala. Parents are very happy to have this program one more year; That is why we thank all our sponsors, who make it possible with their donations, that our children can consume this atol. Thank you so much…

Everyone in the program is very happy to have started this school year with great success; but as you know there are always challenges or difficult situations that we face. This year was not the exception, because we know that worldwide we are going through an unexpected situation, since due to the COVID-19 disease; We have suspended classes in our country for a week. The government is doing everything possible so that this disease does not spread too much. That is why we are following all the precautionary measures that have been given to us. We hope soon to resume our activities with the children so that we can share with you what we do. Thank God we are all doing well, both our children and their families, our teachers and supervisors.

We hope in God to get out of this situation soon, that is why we want to tell you that if we all collaborate and follow the instructions or precautionary measures, "together" we will succeed and fight against this virus that has affected the world so much. Please stay home if there is no need to go out and take good care of yourself.

I am writing to you soon ...

Hello everyone, it is a pleasure to write to you again in this new year, full of dreams and goals to fulfill. I hope you are well so that you can enjoy how we started the trainings and classes with our teachers, and children.

During the third week of January, we attended the training we have annually before starting the school year, it was very good. This focused on what children learn in Reading-Writing and how we can improve our teaching methods in the area of Communication and Language, so that children get better prepared for elementary school.

Something very important that we also learned was how to improve our tools when evaluating. The group of teachers in Santo Domingo Xenacoj took care of this part in the training; and let me tell you that they made a very good presentation. The preparation of the whole group was noted as they made a very summary of the national base curriculum used in our country to plan.

We had the pleasant visit of our dear founder Fred Zambroski; like all years. Fred expressed his excitement for starting the year, the hard work that our teachers do in different communities and the goal of expanding more this year to reach communities with more need for preschool education.

Liza also arrived, representative of the organization that gives us the atoll or the nutritious drink called “Chispuditos”. He showed us the progress that is being made with children thanks to this nutritious drink and new ideas on how to prepare it. We were encouraged to make this same presentation with our group of parents in the different communities where we are, because they will better understand the importance of having their children drink this drink.

We hope that, for the next training, in July; we can meet all the goals we have set as a group, both to improve our activities and our work; To make it more professional.

For this year we made contact with the organization of WINGS, an entity that is in charge of giving mothers, talks about Family Planning and accessibility to improve on it.

On January 20, we started classes at our different educational centers, with new children and places, eager to put into practice everything we learned in our training.

Greetings to all our Donors. Thank you, thank you very much for your support and collaboration. The truth is that without their contributions we could not help our children who need it so much. We hope that this year you can join more to support our cause, just click on the DONATE button ...

I will write soon.