TeachUNICEF Visit on Nov. 30

It has been yet another educational semester for the TeachUNICEF Committee, for both the children we taught and for the members as they prepared the lessons and learned about the joys and challenges of working with groups of young students. Our visit on Nov. 30 to the Perry School wrapped up the Committee's activities for fall 2011. The members spoke with the children about malaria and community services that can help a child stay healthy and live to adulthood. Below are their reflections.

Jordan: Overall, I feel that the visit could have gone better. Even though we had a small group of five kids, they were quite a handful. Charlotte and I did our best to teach the lesson clearly and keep them involved; however, the kids were quite rowdy and had trouble paying attention. The teacher in the room with us had to constantly interrupt the lesson to tell the kids to settle down. I think part of the problem was that the lesson might have been a little too difficult for the students to understand. I think that if we had a group that was better behaved, they would have grasped more of the lesson.

Charlotte: This week I had the opportunity to travel to the Perry School and teach a group of young children about the global effects of malaria. This was truly an empowering experience, as the children had never heard of malaria before our visit, but by the time we left they were able to grasp the broader picture of how malaria affects the lives of millions around the world. After we talked about the roles of hospitals and health care in different communities, the children watched an educational video and then drew pictures to represent what they had learned. It was amazing how these children could appreciate the devastating effects of a disease most prevalent half a world away to them. I left feeling like I had profoundly enhanced their lives - and minds!