Free education for 300 children in rural Cambodia

Introduction

Here at Helping Hands Cambodia we have been having a great year so far. There has been an influx of new students joining our program, and the ones that were already here have come back refreshed after the winter break. The teachers have a very difficult job taking care of them all, but they are happy to have the opportunity to learn together.

As always volunteers have brought extra colour and joy to the school, and learned a lot themselves alongside the students. They have also helped the teachers and coaches put into practice their new ideas for activities. In the coming months we have plans to continue upgrades to the school buildings, and have more workshops for our students and staff.

Education

With new students joining the school, our staff have really pushed their limits to consistently deliver better quality education and social care services to the whole community. Over the course off the last couple of years, it became too difficult for many of the older students to continue at Helping Hands. They need more support and have more commitments to balance. So, it is encouraging for everyone to see the new group of younger students coming in, keeping the total number of students just below 300. There are a total of 15 different class groups, which means the teachers at Helping Hands are able to dedicate enough time and attention to each individual. It is also makes the scheduling tricky, but our Head Teacher stays on top of that. It would be great to see our plans to improve the classroom and kitchen facilities continue. Right now, it feels like we are operating at full capacity.

Food & Farming

These months of the year have always been a hard time for farmers in Cambodia; the weather is dry and becoming ever hotter until the rain comes again. Many local people also say that they feel this season has been getting drier and hotter in recent years. So, we were lucky to have volunteers with us for many weeks. The garden continues to produce vegetables, and potatoes and pumpkins have been planted. Students and staff have all been responsible for their part in the watering schedule, and will be happy to plant more when the rain comes.

Community

Volunteers are always helpful in the classrooms, but in March we also had one volunteer who specifically supported our social worker, Kong. She had previous experience as a social worker in her home country, so was able to share her knowledge about the techniques and processes she had used. From that we have made some developments to our record keeping and case follow-up procedures.

Earlier in the year we were lucky enough to welcome another volunteer who is a highly skilled artist. She painted full murals in two of the classrooms, and the desktops which really brightened them up. We also installed new whiteboards that are better quality and easy to erase.

There was a special event in February, the Giant Puppet Parade. This was a fantastic experience for our students, and showed off the best of Siem Reap and its many community development organisations. At the end of this month we have a school trip to visit and learn about one of those organisations, and the next of our staff training workshops.