Vamos a Leer: Bringing Books to Life

Nola Godbert and Jamie Ensey
England and USA

It´s an exciting time at VE to see so many of the children we work with enthusiastic about ¡Vamos a Leer! and reading. Many of the children run up to us asking for new books and cannot wait to post their achievement stickers once they have completed a book. All of the kids ask us about Carnaval and if they  have read enough books to attend.

Truth be told though, even with the thrills the ¡Vamos a Leer! Carnaval holds, it can be difficult to get the children to settle down and focus on reading. Many have trouble with pronunciation, or tell us they don't enjoy reading as a cover up for not being able to read well. To try and combat these issues, we use diverse methods to capture kids ´attention, make books accessible and fun.

Through drama and games, the children have fun acting out the story or pretending to be certain characters, expanding on what they read through play. Reading can also be combined with art, letting the tales they hear inspire the children to draw, paint or model from clay their favorite scenes or characters.

Cooking can also be incorporated, whether it´s preparing a meal described in the story or simply making a themed snack to enjoy whilst reading together. ¡Vamos a Leer! reading workshops can also take children to different parts of the city: the library, the park or a trip that fits with a particular story. Reading can transport the kids to new places they wouldn’t normally visit, not only in their mind, but also in real life.

And finally, the tried and true method of simply taking the time and reading with the kids out loud. Helping them sound out the words. Asking them questions. Sharing in their excitement and wonderment about what might happen next. Giving them a chance to read, without red marks, but just love and encouragement.

That's how most of us learned to read in the end anyway.  

VE in Pictures: Our Favourite Photos from 2011

Nine more photos after the jump

Click to read more ...

The Rollercoaster Ride of a Volunteer

Jarrod Bastin,
Perth, Australia

As I sit in my apartment and glance at the slowly deflating balloon animals (that I have been trying to teach myself how to tie) piled up in the corner, I wonder how I could ever go back to what’s considered a normal life? How can I wake up and not look forward to a day of colouring in, making funny faces, swinging the kids around as they yell “levante me”, hugs, kisses, and a daily smack from 5 year old Camila that I still am not quite sure what I did to deserve?

Volunteering has definitely been a rollercoaster of events. From the first steep incline of fear and anticipation when arriving here and not having a clue what to expect. To flying down the other side with a big smile on my face, hands in the air, just letting go and waiting to see where the ride takes me. I can now say I have been through the loops, twists and sometimes sharp turns of day to day life as a volunteer and it’s without a doubt one of the best rides I have been on.

The Sharp Turn - Getting an annoyed look from a child or Tío as they try to explain something important to me and I respond with what looks like an elaborate game of charades while attempting to use a horribly butchered version of Spanglish. Eventually they give up and say to me " Tío, tu no entiende nada," which is ironic because I understand that sentence perfectly, "you don't understand anything". Maybe that’s what the daily smack is for?

The Loop - When one of the kids, who for some reason or another has been opposed to your very presence/existence since day one, finally has a change of heart. Some amazing moment when the universe aligns, the sun shines through the clouds and you are there for them when they need you and from that point forward you both have been changed from arch rivals to the best of friends, wondering how it was ever the other way around?

The Twist - It was a little while ago now but we were helping plant vegetables in the garden out the front. There were limited gardening tools, and one of the boys was hogging the use of the shovel. Barbara whose turn it was next grew impatient at Diego’s reluctance to give her the shovel. A small fight started and as Barbara tried to take the shovel by force, she unfortunately ended up with a hit to the back with it. Previous to this day every time a child was upset they would go to the long term Tío’s, often running straight past me in the process. As the tears started to well in Barbara’s eyes she ran straight to me and I picked her up and comforted her. This was definitely a highlight considering the long term Tío was only a metre or so further away. I never thought I would be so happy that a child would be hit with a shovel (luckily she wasn’t badly hurt!)

After pulling up in a taxi yesterday morning for an 18 hour day (Christmas Party), the kids screaming our names out from behind the fence, I realized the months have flown by and everyday has been filled with countless moments like the ones above, bringing me closer to the children and staff here, but also bringing me closer to finishing here too. Even though I still “no entiendo nada” I know that as soon as I get off this ride, I will be lining back up for the next one.

Christmas in Chile

Nola Godbert
Hereford, UK 

At the beginning of December I was finding it hard to get into the Christmas spirit in Chile. One reason is the fact that it is so hot and sunny, nothing like the English winters I always associate with the festive season. It also felt strange being away from my family and our normal traditions, as well as the craziness surrounding Christmas you get at home, with all the adverts, TV shows and shops obsessing over how to achieve the perfect Christmas day.

Here in Chile it is a lot more relaxed but I am loving doing Christmas in a simpler way. Last week we made decorations and Christmas cookies with the boys. The cooking taller especially was pretty stressful, we had no cookie cutters so jess and I were desperately trying to draw shapes on the dough for all the boys as they argued over who got to cut out what and whose Christmas tree was better. It was worth the effort though because they enjoyed doing it and were proud of their creations.

On Saturday we went shopping and bought small gifts for the boys, which I cannot wait to give them on Christmas Eve. In contrast to children at home, the boys do not seem overly excited about Christmas and they certainly have not written long letters to Santa about all the presents they want. On Christmas Eve some of the volunteers are cooking a meal together so Jess and I have a choice between that or going to the Christmas party at our hogar. It was an easy decision for both of us. I feel lucky that I get to spend Christmas with the boys I have grown so close to over the last four months and hopefully, by showing them how much I love and care about them, make it a special time for them.

A Thanksgiving Visit

Elisabeth Hill
New York, USA 

Every day at the Hogar is completely different – some days are seemingly long, while some fly by.  Some days the kids understand every word of my broken Spanish, and others they look at me like I’m crazy and roll their eyes at each simple phrase I try to utter.  With all these ups and downs, I had no idea what to expect when I brought my family for a visit.  I was lucky enough to have my family – Mom, Dad, and big brother, make the trip to Santiago to celebrate Thanksgiving.  They wanted to see the Hogar, about which I had spoken so much, and I wanted to show it to them.

As we walked up to the gated home, I said a silent prayer, “please let them behave somewhat well today.”  As we entered the house, all the kids were uncharacteristically shy, and my parents were uncharacteristically quiet.  “Uh-oh” I thought.  Within 5 minutes, I knew I had nothing to be worried about – my brother was playing soccer with one of the older boys, my Mom was entertaining giggling younger kids with her “pull off her finger” trick (something that made me cry and scream “Mom, stop!” when I was little).  My dad had just about everyone laughing with his typical antics.  It was a strange moment for me – having the group of kids and Tias that had become my ‘Santiago family’ mingling so flawlessly with my real family, despite speaking different languages and coming from very different places. 

 For the rest of the trip, my family talked about the kids – “Oh, so and so was so sweet.”  My brother went on a mission to buy new sports equipment for the boy with whom he was playing soccer.  It was clear these kids had managed to burrow their way into my family’s heart in one short afternoon.  As I wrap up my time volunteering, and look back on all the fun, the good, the bad, and the ugly days I’ve had with the kids, this is one day I will always remember.