Urban Camp days 1 and 2
Tonight, we have just finished day 2 of 5 days of English camp. If any of our former English teachers read this, they may faint!
The team at the Urban Center is outstanding! We were quite nervous and wondered what exactly our roles would be here, our nerves are now at rest! They have an amazing program that is split into 2 age groups. The first age group is 9-12 years old, they come in the morning, the second is 12-15 years old and they come in the afternoon. We begin each session with ‘tea and talks’, which is basically getting to know one another in the Urban Center lounge, we play games, have snacks, and some of us get and extra cup of coffee.
After some time getting to know one another, we head upstairs to the 3rd floor where church becomes a gathering hall. We commence ice-breaker games, we learn the English words to focus on for the day and then break into 3 groups. The groups are led by a ‘commander’ from the urban center, and 2 Canadians. All the groups will read a paraphrase of the story of David. The kids then must pick out the words they recognize, say them in English, translate them to Russian, then give the definition. Some of the children are quite new with English and some of them might be able to teach us a thing or two. There are several games and challenges that occur in the lesson, it is awesome to see as most of the kids have begun to interact and come out of their shells.
Once the English program is complete, we all gather again on the 3rd floor and we as a team teach a short lesson on first aid. Day 1 was bandaging a cut, day 2 was caring for a burn. We demonstrate, with help from an interpreter and then we help the children in groups of two to complete the first aid on one another. This has been a great hit!
Before everyone is dismissed, they head to the main floor lounge again for games, fun and food! This may be the biggest hit of all!
We have been blessed to work with such an amazing team here in Moldova, they have created a fun, interactive and informative program. We are fortunate to be able to be a part of what they are doing this week.
(end of day 1, prepping for day 2)
(we also had time to help unload bibles and move care packages out of the sorting area to the Urban Center for dispersal)
Please continue prayers for the team (that is us, and the BOL ministry as we are one!) as the week continues, for more connections to those attending the English camp, and for the opportunity to share not only English and first aid tips, but also to share Jesus.
Brenda (and team)
