Staff Blog
I am pretty much amazed on a daily basis about the creative works made by our kids here. They have a knack for drawing, creating, writing, coloring and cutting---even folding letters into intricate patterns. I, myself, do not have such a creative gene so I admire them even more I suppose.
But, truth be told, not all of the kids are able to make such effortless works. Some struggle with the basics of writing and cutting longer than they should. These kids often receive therapy from our resident PTs to improve their fine motor skills. In class, they often work one-on-one with a teacher on projects and they also have Individualized Instruction, which is more one-on-one time with a teacher in addition to their regular classes to improve on the skills they are having difficulty mastering. It is a HUGE blessing that our school and shelter can offer all of these specialized services because these kids, our kids, would be lost in a public or even private school where class sizes are 30 or 35 to 1 teacher.
Below is a picture I took of a very special gift given to me. It was a class project, given to me on the day it was completed. It is, as the teacher described, "a labor of love." The child who gave this to me will be 7 in August, but he cannot yet write his name without hand-over-hand assistance from his teacher. He is a child who received therapy to learn how to put on his socks and shoes for several months before he had mastered it. He is a child who is still receiving therapy for cutting skills and other fine motor activities. He worked really hard on this for a long time. Cutting on the lines is a difficult task for him, following a curve or cutting irregular shapes, nearly impossible. But he did it.
He had ran up to me and excitedly given it before his class was about to start. The kids love to give letters, flowers and things like that so I accepted it with a smile. Later I realized it must have been a class project and I figured he needed it still. I approached his teacher to ask if he would need it to complete assignments. She said no, but she shared that it was a very hard work for him to complete. What a treasure it is to me!
I consider my work here to be a significant blessing to ME. Visitors often come here and thank me for what I do, but really, no thanks is needed. Every day I receive so many gifts that it is almost not right to call this work. God’s hand is on this place and I am blessed to be here, in His palm.
Thank you for supporting this ministry, for praying for all of us. When I look at this child’s work, I am humbled by his gift. I can see how hard he worked to make it, the painstaking care he took as he cut. But I also see his progress, how far he’s come and it is because of CSC. And it is because of all of you, who care, who get on your knees to pray, for these kids, for this work, so we can give them what they need.
The Sun
Every day at Cebu Children of Hope School (CCHS) we start our day with something called Morning Meeting. This is a "soft landing" time for our children which enables them to calm their bodies, practice social skills, and prepare for a great day of learning. Part of every Morning Meeting is a time for kids to share. Sometimes the question is about what they did over the weekend, sometimes the question is related to the day's lessons.
Teacher Chery and Teacher Mae lead the Morning Meeting for Level A1, our four energetic kindergarteners. Here is a conversation they recently had in their classroom, with the question relating to the day's science lesson.
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Teacher Mae asked, "Where do you think the sun will go during the night?"
Student 1: The sun goes under the sea at night because it goes under the line (he means the horizon).
Student 2: The sun is on the ground teacher.
Student 3: Hmmmmmm... the sun will go to bed and sleep.
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Even with their young minds, these children have great ideas that even surprise us adults at times. Each child at CCHS is surrounded by great teachers who have dedicated their lives to help enlighten and empower their students so they can understand everything from where the sun goes at night to understanding how the God who made the sun loves them unconditionally. Thank you for supporting the work that is happening every day at CCHS!
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Pag Ibig Award
Recently CSC received an award from the Pag-IBIG Fund, the Philippine government financial agency that is handling the mortgages for our 60 employees who are receiving Habitat for Humanity homes. The award recognizes the role of CSC in this project on behalf of our employees, who are all automatically members of Pag-Ibig.
This award is a testimony to the work of Paul Reasoner, who raised funds to help alieviate the financial burden for our workers and make their mortgages more affordable for them. We are an organization that values our employees and we have been concerned that they have decent housing. Many have lived in sub-standard houses prior to this project, and would not have had even the hope of having their own house and lot without the cooperative efforts of CSC, Pag-IBIG Fund and Habitat for Humanity. This award reflects that concern of CSC, and the partnership of the agencies who are all dedicated to getting deserving people into safe and affordable housing.
Pastor Fred Verdeflor, who is the husband of our CSC nurse Arlyn and President of the CSC Happy Homes homeowners association, went to Manila to accept the award on behalf of CSC.
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Life Cycles
All living things undergo different stages during their life. Some living things start as a seed, pollen, or spore. Other organisms such as animals start as a live young or an egg that sometimes needs to undergo the process of metamorphosis which completely changes their appearance.
In my Level B2 science class the students were able to witness the process of metamorphosis. We started in the caterpillar stage where the students saw how many leaves the caterpillar consumed. After several weeks it became a pupa. The students were very eager to look at the changes every day though it stunk when they opened the lid of the box. The day finally arrived when the caterpillar became a moth! We all went outside and set the moth free. The students were so excited to be a part of this process!
The whole activity took a lot of time and dedication but the result was very fulfilling. The students were able to learn not just how metamorphosis works but also about patience, perseverance, and having a love for nature.
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2018 Highlights
CSC Higlights of 2018
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Christmas 2018
Click to see pics of the different activities at CSC this Christmas. Our generous donors allow us to give lots of fun times to the children. God bless you all.
Junel's Box 2018 - Inayawan, Cebu City
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