Reflection Essay

I choose Relias children home, because it offers favorable services to the society by improving the living conditions of children across the community. The children home besides acting as a residential place for the abandoned children has created a learning program which demonstrates there dedication to upgrade the community standards. I joined the organization program and using my skills I have indulged in helping children improve learning capabilities through mentorship encouragement and fellowship. This has helped children who have been experiencing learning difficulties. My volunteering has eliminated the cost that would have been used to hire trainers and also gave me a chance to interact with the children. Under this paper am going to discuss how I used the various skills have learnt in the course work to change the lives of children and improve my experience.

Relias homes has a population of 400 children’s who are aged between 1 month and 18 years. The children have different abilities and are in different classes. The home has adopted the children from different places (Terry, Gordon, Steadman-Wood & Karel, 2017). They have a learning center, which is located inside the home. Some of the children are mentally and physically impaired and they need special attention to catch up with others. Others are facing disconnection from their families. S stepped into the home and using my learnt skills I have been helping the children who have been lagging behind in studies. The program usually is carried out three times a week that is two hours on Monday Wednesday and Thursday during the evening hours.

According to the course work a good mentor should have willingness and abilities to pass on what you know. Communication is a very important aspect in mentorship. As a mentor I listen to the children, what they need to say about their particular experiences, I gave them a chance to express themselves. Through this I was able to understand what they really wanted, what they have gone through, what they aspire to do. After a short duration I had a clear record of how to approach anybody in the program and help them glow. Communication involves observing the facial signs, body movement and change in moods. I continued to share my experiences with them and helped them grow, communication process involved taking part in group learning and individual session where I evaluated each member.

Approachability, ability to listen and availability are some of the items found in course work that have adopted and have improved my experience (Terry, Gordon, Steadman-Wood & Karel, 2017). To enhance this I made sure I was always available to the children. Every day I passed through the institution to check on the progress of the children and to make sure if any of them needed help it was given (Goodbar & Lewis, 2015). I also made sure I kept my schedule on the meeting day and that I was mentally and physically prepared to help the learners. This aspect helps in making the children to be free with you they appreciate the fact that you are around them and that they can easily share their learning experience.

To help the children improve their capabilities I focused on three things, improving their physical activities, improving their socialization process and improving their cognitive abilities. I understood although some of the learners were not good in class learning they were excellent in physical activities like football and short distance running. Therefore I introduced a program where the learners would be expected to go to the field and indulge in physical activities. The physical activities included organizing football teams, participating in short races and ball dodging. This helped the learners improve their fitness and appreciate themselves. On socialization process I grouped them into small groups of five. The group comprised of people within the same age brackets and had both genders. In the group they were expected to share their memories, participate in same discussion and develop a group project like drawing, netting and other projects of their choices. This improved the interaction process among the learners. They were able to learn from each other and they could help each other grow their reading, writing and other developmental skills. On the cognitive part this was individual task where I would involve them in discussion, and fellowship. Later I would expect them to come up with anything written or recite anything that they heard from the –program. This is important in improving their remembering skills and helps in brain development.

To achieve this I focused on objectivity and fairness in delivering of the services. I ensured that I treated each kid as a special case and took my time to understand the different abilities (Goodbar & Lewis, 2015). Through objectivity you learn a lot of things you are able to see the behavior change. This requires a high level of compassion and genuineness. Although I was objective that does not mean I never showed compassion. I reasoned with the children and figured out best for them. This is applicable through putting myself in their own shoes and understanding their challenges.

After a month this process started bearing some positive outcome. There was an increment in the learning behaviors of the learners. Children who could not write and read could now do so comfortably and they showed progress in their behavior. Learning is a gradual process that takes time and I was satisfied that I was able to transform their lives and behaviors. The learnt concept in the classroom had brought the impact needed.

References

Goodbar, N. H., & Lewis, K. F. (2015). Finding and working with mentors. American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy, 72(11), 921-922.

Terry, D. L., Gordon, B. H., Steadman-Wood, P., & Karel, M. J. (2017). A peer mentorship program for mental health professionals in veterans health administration home-based primary care. Clinical gerontologist, 40(2), 97-105.