Fourteen kilometers away from PSE headquarters, you can find Sen Sok village. This winter, the Community Service Center (CSC) that is used throughout the year as a nursery school turns into a Project for children aged 2 to 16. A very special additional aspect to the work of the fourteen Khmer and seven European volunteers -who get to the site on a pick-up truck-, is the collaboration of the teachers that, after a full year of working with the children, opt to continue working with “their kids” during the Project.
Sen Sok village is not the richest of the Cambodian capital, however the smiles of the children suggest otherwise. Welcomed every morning by the instructors and coordinators with music and dances, the kids start the day off with a joyful attitude. Once everybody is in the Sen Sok, they raise the flag and sing the Cambodian anthem, a very special moment for the European volunteers.The breakfast served by the teachers and instructors is the typical Khmer rice and fish. Starting with the little ones, they line up in chuas -Khmer term for rows-; in an orderly manner, they take their meal to their assigned room, eat, and wash their dishes and spoons on their own. “It is amazing how independent the two-year-olds are, they know exactly how to do their chores”, adds Marta, a European volunteer.
After breakfast and singing some songs about the importance of hygiene, all of them take showers, covered with the typical krama -Cambodian scarf with multiple utilities-. This is a must in all PSE Projects, as “for some of the children it is the only resource to cleanliness on a daily basis”, mentions Iñaki, a European volunteer who has been coordinating PSE Projects for five years. This allows the kids to start the day off feeling fresh and clean and to pick up the habit of personal hygiene.
The Project offers the children a time to enjoy their holidays, to play and relax
After this, activities commence. Depending on the day of the week, the schedule varies, celebrating special activities like Fairs, Gymkhanas and Olympics. A regular day in the Project consists of different activities shaped according to the range of age. These activities are mainly ludic. Even though the purpose of the Project is to continue with the values and education learnt in school, the Project offers the children a time to enjoy their holidays, to play, and to relax.
As this CSC works as a school during the year, there is a loud bell that announces the change of classes. This is how, during the Project, the kids are informed about the beginning or the end of an activity. Each group participates in an activity prepared by the instructors in a different bamboo room. These involve drawing, dancing, running, hiding and seeking, and some traditional Khmer games such as Domderm Slerk Cher – the Handkerchief Game with some modifications-. When the bell rings again, by chuas, the eight teams rotate to the next room to try out a different activity.
“Sen Sok children sometimes feel like warriors”
The age mix between the kids is the biggest challenge for the instructors and coordinators. Teenagers and infants want different things. This is why the games and activities are adapted to each of the kroms –Khmer term for team-. Teenagers have a lot more energy than the younger children, and enjoy physical activities rather than relaxed ones. The teams cheer on each other but there is also a sense of competition, “nothing to worry about, they are just kids who are playing”, clarifies Monika, a Khmer instructor. “Sen Sok children sometimes feel like warriors”, notes Han Mesa, the Khmer coordinator, with a laugh.
The Project offers the kids a goûter -French term used in the Project for snack- like a piece of fruit or a sandwich a couple of hours into the activities. This way they do not run out of energy before expected. In spite of this, they are always hungry at lunchtime and, in the same manner as at breakfast, the children line up to get their dishes of food. “Can team six eat first today?”, asked Somnang, a 7-year-old boy. A nap afterwards is very necessary for most of them. The eldest of the CSC are allowed to take a walk for half an hour and come back to finish the day.
“Some of the teenagers that have joined this year´s Project are the little ones that were in Sen Sok six years ago”
The installations of Sen Sok CSC are almost brand new, as it was necessary to change the CSC location due to deterioration of the previous one. One of the things that has not changed is the colorful playground that used to live in the last Sen Sok CSC. The other aspect that remains is the protagonists. Iñaki affirms that “some of the teenagers that have joined this year´s Project are the little ones that were in Sen Sok six years ago”.
The CSC receives around 250 kids per day, a considerable amount considering the size of the building. Even though it is new and beautiful with walls and doors made from bamboo sticks, the playground it harbors is not big. This means that the instructors need a double dose of patience and energy, but in the end, it all works out for everyone. “The 250 kids love playing in the park; although it’s not very big, they enjoy it a lot”, notices Marta.
“The teachers are the main pillar of this Project”, points out Iñaki. They like to contribute to the education and wellbeing of the children they take care of during the school year. Sokunthea, a teacher that has been working in the school for two years, explains that this way they can help the instructors, as they already know the children that attend the Project, their families and the circumstances that surround them. “In a way, they are like my children”, she remarks.
Among the 250 kids that attend this CSC, there are some who do not go to PSE schools during the year. However, the NGO welcomes everyone. Given the popularity of the Project around the village, some children that study elsewhere like to join the School Continuity Programme with their neighborhood friends. After the Project is finished, some of them request to join PSE; our Social Services team takes care of this job, finding and taking requests from the families who are in need and placing them in our programmes. The fact that other kids from the area join the project, does not mean that it becomes more chaotic. The children listen and obey the instructors and teachers, and although sometimes it takes a bit of work, when Hong Hann (Khmer instructor) says “Sen Sok, please silence!”, all of the children stay quiet.
After the nap, the instructors organize relaxing activities for the kids. Examples of these are reading, telling stories, or drawing. Before lowering of the flag, there is always a big game played between all of the children of the CSC. This allows them to play with kids from other teams that they may have not met throughout the day. Sometimes this big game involves water, as the heat in this country is constant and the children enjoy this sort of activity very much.
A very special touch added to this Project in particular is the final part. The children carry the last goûter of the day in their hands as they leave, usually a piece of fruit and sometimes a Nom Pang Pate -a pâtè sandwich-.Some parents pick their kids up at the gate, but a lot of them walk home on their own. These are children who live around ten minutes away from the installations. The Camp instructors, wearing their green T-shirts, walk these ones to their homes and get sometimes invited in. It is a unique moment for the volunteers, as they get to meet the families of the children they work very closely with.
“Sen Sok is a place full of love and energy, definitely an amazing reason to get up in the morning”, concludes Angèle, an European instructor.
