Around a one hour drive away from PSE Central and in the midst of nature, there is a province called Kean Svay. With that same name, a Community Service Center (CSC) was built in 2018 by PSE volunteers during the summer. Four years later, this small but beautiful place welcomes approximately 120 kids each day for the School Continuity Programme.
“Very loving and energetic, a little bit like monkeys in the jungle”
During the school year, like a few others, this CSC does the job of a kindergarten. However, many other kids from around the area join the Project during the holidays. This means that the ages of the children are very diverse. Kean Svay kids are described by the volunteers as “very loving and energetic, a little bit like monkeys in the jungle”. Entering the CSC it is noticeable that these children are very happy to be in the Programme, and as kids they are, like to laugh around with their friends.
A day in Kean Svay starts with breakfast, showers, tooth brushing and aerobics. This last part is used to encourage the kids to let off steam. “During these thirty minutes we manage to take a little bit of energy out of our kids”, laughs Lili, a European volunteer. This energy is a positive feature, but sometimes during the activities, volunteers struggle to keep the children calm. For these reasons, the instructors have learnt to improvise. “Some days, I find that the children are a bit tired and want to do other activities”, explains Maelle, a European instructor.
“Our objective is to make the kids happy and to help them learn, relax and to feel secure”
david
Carmen, the European coordinator, affirms that, due to the fact that the children have diverse family backgrounds, it is sometimes difficult to understand how they are feeling. “But they are kids and if you give them a hug and speak to them with love -even if it is in a different language from theirs-, they will calm down”, she adds. However, a week after the beginning of the Project, Khmer coordinator David reveals that the children are becoming more understandable, as they are starting to trust. “Since the first day, our objective is to make the kids happy and to help them learn, relax and to feel secure”, maintains David.
This CSC has only three rooms, but they are big enough to fit a big group of kids. Most of the activities here take place indoors, as it is easier to get the children’s attention. Activities like Bingo, making bracelets, spoon games, passing the Krama, or face painting are examples of these. Volunteers in charge of planning the activities coincide with the fact that children like to engage. They are very lively and have the need to take part actively in the activities. If the activity is face painting, it will be the kids that paint each other. “This way they also learn to play together and to trust each other”, points out Lili.
“A beautiful mess”
maelle
When the activities take place outdoors, they are usually sport related. The space is not too big, but when it comes to playing, children will enjoy themselves anyways. These activities also seem to be very attractive to Kean Svay kids as they are very good team players. All in all, “they love simple games”, remarks Sengkeang, a Khmer instructor. A very special touch added to Kean Svay is the swimming pool that is filled up every Thursday. Children look forward to this day and love the Water Party that the instructors prepare for them. Water runs everywhere and children can cut loose. Maelle defines this activity as a “beautiful mess”.
“It is like a family here, small and cosy”
florette
At lunch time, due to the long distance between PSE´s headquarters and the CSC, the food that comes along with the volunteers in the pick-up has not yet been cooked. It is the cook that works in the kindergarten who prepares the breakfast and lunch for the children during this School Continuity Programme. She believes that the food should be recently cooked in order for the kids to perform well during the day. “A happy kid comes with a full stomach”, she affirms. One of her kids attends the Project and it somehow feels like she is the mother of all of the children. This is not too far from what the volunteers think about this CSC: “It is like a family here, small and cosy”, says Florette, a European volunteer.
After lunch, like in all Projects, the children take a nap. It is challenging to get them to sleep at first, but when nap time is over, they are deeply asleep. Following the nap, it was planned by the volunteers to play board games or activities like reading or drawing. Due to the excitement of Kean Svay kids at all times, this was reformulated. Therefore, at this time, kids have the possibility to take a second shower. It is not mandatory like the one in the morning, but most of the children take it, as they are used to doing so in school. It is the eldest children that normally skip it, since they are usually allowed to take a walk outside the CSC during nap time.
“The children of Kean Svay might not have a lot, yet they exude a tremendous joy of life”, reports Brieux, a European instructor. This is clear when it is time to leave the CSC. Children wave goodbye to the five European and thirteen Khmer instructors, plus their respective coordinators, before going home. They wear huge smiles and carry the same energy they had in the morning. The volunteers agree that these kids are a shot of happiness and love and that, although they require a lot of work, it is completely worth it.
