August 21, 2011 (Church Service)

Today we did not do any activities and so we have some bible study and discussions. We are divided into several groups and each of the group discussed a specific book from the Bible. Many people shared their personal experiences and it was very touching to hear their stories. We spent time laughing and I feel that I'm getting even closer to them. I love discussing in small groups compared to when we discuss in one large rocket because I feel that it is more effective and personal.

August 25, 2011 (Teaching)

Actually today is the Lebaran holiday but we told the kids to come today so that we could be closer. We were afraid, if we make today a holiday, the kids will forget about our name thus we don't want to start introduction all over again. Surprisingly, today the number of students have increased drastically! When I first came, I was so shocked and I became so nervous as I'm afraid if I can't handle all of them. There are around 15-20 kids that came. It's a good thing that Kendisha came to help. We split the kids into 3 groups --> 1st- 2nd grade, 3rd-4th, 5th-6th. I'm in charge of math grade 1-2. I start off with some introduction and started to get to know each others names. It was pretty hard to remember their names and I feel really bad if some of the kids actually realize that I don't remember their names. We read books and do some exercises. they seem to really enjoy drawing and coloring.

August 18, 2011 (Teaching)

This will be my first experience teaching primary year students. I honestly feel really nervous especially with the number of kids that we predicted to come. Last week, we visit the village and meet parents so that they could be informed of this extra lesson to their children. They expected 30 kids to be participating. I was really shocked about the number of students because it is sort of a burden for me as a beginner. When Ibu Tiwi (our supervisor), Kristie (my friend who joins this activity) and I came in, we were surprised because there are only 5 students. We were so sad and expqct more student to participate so that this activity could go well. As for today, we introduce ourselves and get to know each other. Since this is a pretty small class, it is easy for us to get closer to each other. We did not start any reaching learning process since we wanted to start off easily. I find the students really enthusiastic about this lesson as they are very cheerful and participate well in discussions.

Teaching primary year students

I will start my new CAS which is to teach math to primary year students. I will do this with one of my teacher - Bu Tiwi (as my supervisor) - and my friend, Kristie.

Here is my CAS proposal:
This activity will be one of my service projects. In this project, I am going to teach grade one until grade three students about mathematics, Indonesian language and/or English language. The first learning outcome that I will achieve is engaged with issues of global importance (education). This is because people in the rural areas usually do not consider education as their first priority, therefore by helping them to learn, me and my teachers will emphasize the importance of education. Here, I have the opportunity to share what I have to the less fortunate to increase their skills. For example, I am quite exposed to English language; therefore it is time for me to share to them my knowledge about English language so they will find good use of it in their future. As I will be teaching primary school subjects, the materials will not be a big obstacle for me. Making learning fun for them is the challenge for me, which leads to the next learning outcome which is increasing my awareness of my strengths and areas for grow. I know that my academic skill for primary school might be sufficient but I also know that teaching people is one of my weaknesses. This is because teaching needs patience and understanding of the student, I cannot be too strict for them but yet serious. I tend to want others to do things quickly; therefore by teaching these kids, I hope my skill to relate to others and understand their condition and their needs will increase. Throughout the CAS I will be showing my perseverance and commitment of this activity as I will try my best to attend the class to teach them every week as the appreciation for the students that are willing to spend time to study with us. Ibu Tiwi also emphasizes that we are going to teach ethics to these students, therefore the way I act will matter so I will have to consider the ethical implications of my actions. As my status there will be a helping teacher, it is not nice to give a bad example for the kids and it will also be bad if I disappoint the children’s will to study. At the end of this activity, I believe I will develop new skill. This is because I will learn how to make learning fun for children, share my knowledge with the easiest way to decipher for others and last but not least, the skill to improve my surrounding’s quality in this case education. I am very looking forward to this activity because even though the number of children we are teaching is small, we will have an impact on them.

August 28, 2011 (Church Service)

This week, we met together in one of the member's house. We spent time to discuss other things we can do to raise money or raise awareness for education. We realize that around Bogor, there are many little kids that don't have a proper education. Many of them can not afford to go to school or afford a proper book. We decided to buy books for these kids but before that, we still need to discuss with parents and other associates who understand the conditions better. Other than that, we also had my birthday celebration. They buy a cake we had a small party together. I was very surprised and I feel elated because in between their schedule, they still think about my birthday surprise party.

August 14, 2011 (Church Service)

Today, some parents donated cookies and other snacks so that we can sell them in front of the church. Many people buy the snacks and in no time, we have sold everything. We have bought several bible using the money we have raised and the church is now equipped with bibles that are ready for people to use. We believe that this will further help the church in their services each week.

August 7, 2011 (Church Service)

We continue to play the band but we decided to do this in the evening where many people have come. Today, many people have donated and we collected quite a lot of money from it. We are very happy and glad to be able to donate for this church as this church is very small but more people are starting to come here. We hope that this money could be used to better facilitate all the people trying to worship and praise the Lord. We will continue this next week but we are planning to have some parents donate foods or snacks so that we can also sell it to the people around this church. We will then use this money to buy bibles for this church.

11 Sept 2011

Today is my last meeting for this CAS program and we had a small farewell party. Then, we had some bible study and they are very warm and are thankful towards my presence for these past 12 weeks. I really hope that I can join this group again in the future but with the hectic exams and other schedules, I can not join this activity. I realize and learn many things from this activity. I learn about how care towards others can encourage every human being and how every human being have their rights and equal opportunities and that we have to help them go towards their hopes and dreams. I really hope that this group can be useful for the society and that they can continue in spreading their love and care towards even more people.

Sept 4, 2011 (Church Service)

We gather and practice for the choir / singing performance we are planning to have in the next two weeks. We did this to raise money for our next project in helping unfortunate kids. We had a fun time practicing and even though I can not sing very well, all of them encouraged us to sing with full power and be lively. I feel the care built in this group and I'm glad to join this group.