Quepos monthy achievement report April 2017

Helping anyway we can

Objective

One of our objectives here at GVI Quepos is to ensure that we provide volunteers
and interns unique, safe, responsible travel experiences, exceptional training and
career development opportunities, and facilitate the ability to make a real difference.
We do this by periodically running activities for the people of Cocal that are a bit
different from the norm so the volunteers can participate in a wide variety of projects
and become a part of the community. In this way volunteers feel that they had
sufficient opportunities to explore their skills and make a difference during their time
with GVI Quepos.

Summary

In April, we had the opportunity to develop a full week of professions, giving the
children the possibility of creating their expectations for the future, moreover, thanks
to the help of the National Board of Children (PANI), we were able to reinforce the
theme in their first pedagogical workshop with children.

Report

Many times we have studied at school different professions, or the opportunity we

have in our homes to grow by watching our parents or family perform their different
jobs, from which we have a vision of what we would like to do when we grow; But the
children of the community do not have direct access to a guide, model or someone
close to them to explain that. If we really try, we can study to become professionals
in something that we really love to do, we collaborate in contributions to the
development of our society.

During one week of the month, we

managed to develop different
activities of exploitation where we
could explain the different types of
professions, unconventional
thinking and achieve in showing
children the vision of the importance
that we all must want to be
professionals when we are adults.

To conclude the topic, for Friday, we had the idea of being able to develop a set of
scenarios, taking advantage of the different spaces we have in the community centre,
so we decided to divide into groups, each of the volunteers and staff members, a
professional position in which the children could develop own functions of position.
 This was how we were able to recreate the work of
biologists, studying the different types of silver around the
community centre; Policemen and thieves, in all common
areas; A complete set of news, interviews with different
professionals of the day and using real video cameras
and finally our restaurant station, where they had to fulfil
the duties of the waiters and in the kitchen as chef,
preparing their own snack for that day.

There was no better teaching method for children than

direct practice, where they were completely consumed in
their roles and learned. It was undoubtedly one of the best ideas of work that we
have been able to develop together with the little ones, being very funny and making
a difference in the conventional way of studying the subject.

Now, something very important

for our foundation, is to achieve
the work together with allied
institutions that help us to do
our work better; since a few
months ago, we were planning
the possibility of having the
support of the National
Children's Patronage (PANI),
which is in charge of ensuring
the welfare and socio-emotional development of children in Costa Rica and during
April, we achieved our first team work. The PANI has a unit of professionals working
outside the offices, composed of a psychologist, a sociologist, a counsellor and a
social researcher.

During their first visit to the community, they

decided to develop the theme of individual
visualization into the future, where children
could create, through newspaper clippings
and newspapers, a profile of how they
wanted to see themselves in the future, and
many of them looked for representative
images of the professions we studied in our
class; an answer that we are proud to see in them, and of course, a recognition by
this institution of the work we have done on our part as well.

In addition to the work carried out by the PANI with the children, a workshop was
also held with the parents at the community centre to discuss the issue of conflict
resolution, being the first topic, among many others, So that they as parents, are
more responsible in providing a more appropriate treatment in the of their children.
April ends up being a very profitable month, giving us satisfaction to carry out our
work in a good way and with the good news of having a new ally to guide the
development of our projects together, learning more and more

Until the next time!

Luis Jimnez-Ramrez,

Logistics officer GVI Quepos