Staff Blog
Children are explorers. Curiosity often leads them to peek 
inside the doorknob's key hole; enthralls them to touch a squealing kettle; and ferry their feet into places where they are not allowed to be. Often, boundaries are broken.
Children are expressive. Emotions often steer their ship as they navigate their social world. They jump, giggle, grin, and laugh when happy. A frown, a downturned face, and a shoulder-drop paint their sadness. Talking back, kicking the wall, shutting down, spitting, throwing things, and crying are the easiest cards to pull out when they are angry. Often, adults' patience is challenged.
Children, most of the time, do not listen, nor take heed of instructions and reminders; they have a loose grip of morality that even memory verses fall short of reminding them to be good. But this does not mean we stop teaching them to be kind. This is to remind us that children are fallible and that they do not have the skill sets to fully self-manage; even adults have difficulty regulating themselves, too. And children who misbehave a lot are often painted with a different color palette, viewed as a problematic child.
At CSC, children do not only go through these developmental obstacles. They are also bringing with them their adverse experiences. For some children, this baggage magnifies their difficulty to self-regulate. Without a proper lens, dealing with these children might be quite challenging. As adults, the common response is to control these behaviors but with the aid of Trauma Informed Care, houseparents, caregivers, and other staff have a better understanding of the underlying factors of such behaviors. Rather than seeking control, comfort is offered. Rather than spending time preaching the rules and whatnots, cultivating a relationship is the focus. Rather than seeing the child as problematic, the child is seen as a work in progress, still growing to reach his/her full potential, and to give the child a chance to lead a more meaningful life. Through Trauma Informed Care, we are always reminded with how Khalil Gibran viewed how children should be guided. In his poem, he said:
"...You may give them your love but not your thoughts,
For they have their own thoughts.
You may house their bodies but not their souls,
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.
You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.
You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth.
The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite, and He bends you with His might that His arrows may go swift and far.
Let your bending in the archer's hand be for gladness;
For even as He loves the arrow that flies, so He loves also the bow that is stable."
Khalil Gibran, excerpt from On Children
40 Years of Fun
CSC will be celebrating 40 years of ministry on June 28 and 29 here in Cebu City. Plan to be with us for this exciting and meaningful look at how this ministry has grown and thrived since our inception in 1979. We will be celebrating the goodness of God and the contributions of the many people who have given of themselves to make many good things happen here. Check out our videos that give a taste of the celebration.
Video Trailer 40 Years of Performances
40 Years of Great Kids 40 Years of Twins
40 Years of Adoptions 40 Years of Fun
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Math and Science Day at CCHS
What an exciting event last Friday! CCHS hosted our annual Math and Science Day where students individually competed to show their skill and knowledge as well as worked together in small teams. CCHS students had a chance to participate in the following events: Math-Science Scholastic Bowl, Math-Science Dance contest, Games, Science Experiments, and Awarding.
CCHS is very grateful to the teachers who made this activity fun for our students, to the students who gave their best effort in all of the activities, to our judges on the dance contest, and our visitors. We give God the glory and honor for a successful event.
Here are some pictures showing this great event!
Math-Science Dance Contest
Math Science Scholastic Bowl – It was a great opportunity for our students to showcase what they have learned in the classroom. The students answered questions from easy to challenging.
Preschool Counting Activity – Match that Number
Go Preschoolers!
Level A Measuring Activity - Jumping Frog
Keep that frog jumping!
Level B Gravity - Cotton Blowing
Blow more! Keep blowing! Don't let it drop!
Level C Balancing – Bicycle Racing
The ultimate winner of this event was the contestant who had the longest time consumed to reach the finish line.
Volcano: Watch carefully for the volcano's eruption! Don't blink your eyes on this one.
Balloon: Shake, shake, shake until it inflates!
Egg: Wrap the egg well so that it does not break when it falls from a high elevation.
Rubik's Cube: This was the most mind boggling event. We all waited for the first one to finish and hit the bell. Cherry Mae (in the green shirt) solved the cube in 48 seconds!
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The Underground River
This week, my Level A2 students finished the topic about the natural sceneries of the Philippines. One of the natural sceneries talked about really amazed everyone: the Underground River in Palawan. During the discussion the students asked many great questions.
Here are some of them:
1.) Is it scary inside?
2.) Are there lights around?
3.) What animals can be found inside?
4.) What if an earthquake happens, will the cave collapse?
5.) Is there a ghost inside?
6.) How did the water enter the cave?
7.) Can we go inside the cave just by swimming?
8.) How many bats are there in the cave?
9.) If the boat we are riding in turns upside down, what will happen?
10.) Is it okay to make noise inside the cave?
After the questions were answered, I asked them to raise their hand if they wanted to visit the underground river soon. Out of five, four raised their hands and one was undecided. The other students tried to convince her to raise her hand but she didn't. I then asked her why. This was her reply: I'm scared to go in the river!
The class was then given a culminating activity which was to draw a picture of an underground river. At first I thought the students would find it hard to do but I was wrong. All of them couldn't wait to start drawing their picture!
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Green CSC
Check out the changing look of CSC. Solar panels have been installed on the roofs of the Cherne and Eicher Homes and at the school. This will save us thousands of dollars in electric bills every month. It has changed the look of the houses, especilly the Cherne Home. But the savings will soften the blow a little. At CSC we want to be good stewards of the money that God has entrusted to us and that comes from friends like you. Money saved here will be available for food, medicine and the education of our children.
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Tools!
It is really nice to dream about something big. It gives you strength to achieve your desired goals in life. One goal our preschoolers have is to live in a loving home surrounded by their family. But, if you look closely at a home, it takes a lot of work to build, just like our dreams.
During a recent art class in preschool, we introduced the students to different tools we use to build things. It started from reading a story (which they really loved!) to a coloring activity and our last activity for them was to have a first-hand experience on how to use the different tools. We went to the shelter and, through the help of Uncle Cio, the students were able to saw, hammer, and measure. We let our students try each tool one at a time to avoid chaos and to ensure safety. Clearly, their eagerness overflowed as they patiently waited for their turn and the whole activity was filled with so much fun!
As teachers, our ultimate goal is to help our students build a strong foundation so they can achieve their dreams and aspirations in life. At Cebu Children of Hope School we have a huge supportive team around the world who support the ministry so us teachers can help our students dream dreams of what their lives could look like. We, together, are all building a fantastic future for these kids!
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