Friendship Camp

We're having fun in the village!

The group got off to a slow start as the rain washed out our first morning activity. However, we adjusted our schedule, and started our Friendship Camp in the afternoon. The group decided to run three separate stations and let the villagers rotate through each of them: Kayla and Bryan taught English, Zack and Hannah taught Chess, and Alex and Sasha hosted art. That first day was crazy! The group was surprised by the number of kids that showed up—over 60—and astonished to find out that (NEWS FLASH!!!) teaching kids is not quite as easy as it might look from the outside. Issues our students wrestled with that first day:

1) Kids don’t instantly obey every direction or request.
2) The older village kids in Pang Liu especially had a difficult time listening to the teachers and following instructions.
3) Art supplies and sports equipment might mysteriously grow legs and ‘wander off’ if not monitored closely.
4) Big brothers and sisters always think they’re the bosses of their younger siblings.

The group debriefed the first camp session for almost an hour and a half. The leaders made sure everyone’s voice was heard, and asked the group to come up with solutions to various problems they faced. After ironing things out, the group functioned extremely well. Every activity was solid. The group discovered that the village boys enjoyed team sports, so they organized games of volleyball, capture the flag, and dodge ball for them. Since the girls really liked badminton, ping pong, and shutter ball, we incorporated those activities specifically for them. In addition, every one in the group taught English at least once. Everyone agrees that teaching English is the most challenging task of all.

Now for student notes!

Zakariah did his best to play with every villager. He did a great job while teaching dodgeball, often stepping in to help the losing team get back into the competition. He’s also very proud that he taught 20 kids how to throw a football. He gives 100% at everything he does, and always finds a way to stay positive. Zak has a new love, Chinese chess, and now owns his own set and plays whenever possible.

Bryan was the Friendship Camp policeman—he kept order and discipline among both the camp participants and the group. The leaders were impressed by the fact that Bryan was willing to get his hands dirty and watch out for everyone’s safety. He kept the older village kids in check when they tried to take over the younger kid’s games, and did a great job as a soccer referee. Bryan is a mature young man!

Kayla did a wonderful job getting everyone involved in camp activities, and made an effort to look out for the shy kids who sat on the periphery. She was a stellar soccer teacher, finding a way to bring the game to kids who were initially uninterested. She’s a real team player who’s willing to do everything, from taking pictures to cleaning the palettes after the art class. Kayla is always willing to go the extra mile for the good of the group.

Alexandra (like Kayla) made sure every village child had something fun to do. She was an outstanding art teacher, and also did a great job getting the boys to play dodgeball. Whereas Kayla was attentive to the needs of the shy kids, Alexandra became the champion of the young village girls—she shielded them from the teasing of the boys, and even took the time to walk them home from camp. Needless to say, the young girls all loved her!

Sasha really worked hard during camp. She did a great job team-teaching capture the flag and dodge ball with Bryan, and she was a killer dodgeball player—nemesis of the most competitive village boys. She handled everything related to the camp with confidence and grace. Sasha was the only group member to really find a way to get through to the older village boys. Nice work, Sasha!

Hannah is an amazing art and crafts teacher! In fact, she was amazing at everything—teaching chess, motivating kids, teaching English, trying out her Chinese—you name it, she’s good. Hannah’s family: you did a great job, don’t be concerned that these notes are short. She’s simply awesome!