Tweet
Laptop owners provide Lunches for the Needy 
Campion seniors doing it for GSAT students
BY KIMBERLEY HIBBERT Sunday Observer writer
Sunday, December 08, 2013
FROM an idea that two students came up with in their Personal Development (PD) class at Campion College, emerged the actualisation of a project geared towards helping grade six students who are unable to afford extra lessons prepare for their Grade Six Achievement Test (GSAT).
Lindsay Walker and Kristi Charles, both upper sixth form students at Campion, are co-presidents of Teens for the Academic Advancement of Jamaica (TAAJ) project which they started last year November. Charles said that for both her and Lindsay idea was to help curb inequalities in the country.
Lindsay Walker (left) and Kristi Charles co-presidents of Teens for the Academic Advancement of Jamaica.
"When Lindsay and I sat in PD class, we thought of why the country was the way it is and how we could help make a difference, and we decided to start with education. We can't do it alone, we have to start somewhere, so we chose to give extra lessons to GSAT students free of cost," said Charles.
Last year, the initiative saw over 50 students from four primary schools — New Providence, St Benedict's, Mona and Dunrobin -- benefiting from the extra lessons on a Saturday.
Apart from the lessons, Walker and Charles, along with their student volunteers, also provide the children with breakfast and lunch as the sessions go on from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm each day.
But for Walker and Charles, their project, scheduled to begin on December 16 at Campion College and continue through to the 19th, has been halted, as sponsorships to get the activity started in December has been hard to come by.
"Sponsorship this year has been hard to come by. Last year we had six sponsors on board -- Coldwell Bankers, Reggae Jammins, Wisynco, CB Chicken, Robert J Taylor and Diagnostic Area and Training Facility Ltd, and we were extremely grateful. However, we can't solely rely on government to take part in the improvement of our education system. We are trying to improve a situation and we really need the help.
Some of these children can't even afford a meal and they can't learn on empty stomachs, so we provide them with food so they'll have something in their stomachs while we tutor them.
"Many persons are looking forward to it this year, more schools, even principals have contacted us and asked us to return to their school to help out, we really don't want to have to postpone the project because of funding," Charles said.
Charles added that Campion College's principal, Grace Baston, had set up an account for the project and cheques toward the initiative had to be written to the school.
But Charles and Walker aren't discouraged, as they described last year's project as a success and expressed how they enjoyed working with the children.
"The interaction between the children and the tutors was great and the children wanted us to stay longer. They even cried when we were leaving," Charles and Walker said.
For both girls, their kind act has taught them to exercise humility at all times.
"When you're not faced with a situation directly -- being in overcrowded classrooms or learning on an empty stomach, you don't understand, but when you see nine and 10-year-olds faced with it, you feel really bad -- it's a tearjerker.
"I'm privileged when I look at what less fortunate students have and what I have. It encourages me to want to make more of a difference - to want to help, care and love them," Walker said.
Charles, however, said that most of the children who are a part of the TAAJ programme only need someone to care for them.
"Many people give up on their children. There was one little boy whose parent thought he was a helpless case and all he needed was someone to motivate him," said Charles.
Both girls also made an appeal for notable persons in society to come on board and give inspirational talks to the youngsters as some of them can be indisciplined at times.
"It's a less formal setting in the sessions and there is no real focus on being the authoritative figure, but instead we focus on getting them to not be afraid to ask for help. However, some children don't want the help and will make it known. Last year we managed to get Warren Weir to come to one of the schools and talk to the students about the importance of getting an education and after he left, their approach to work was different. If more individuals like him, who these children look up to, would come on board, I believe more of a difference would be made," Charles said.
Charles said that the sessions have no more than four students to one tutor, who uses mostly technology and visual appeal to assist students.
"We will formulate games on our laptops that coincide with the lesson and if we are teaching them about parts of the flower, we will show them the actual flower and dissect it so they see the different parts and some of them will even confess that they didn't know it was real," Charles said.
This year's programme is scheduled to take place over four days, focusing on one GSAT subject per day, tying English and Communication Studies in one day, and will see student volunteers from Campion College, St George's College, Holy Childhood High and Hillel Academy tutoring GSAT students from across the Corporate Area. The sessions will be held at Campion College's auditorium.
Walker and Charles said that they are looking forward to assistance from corporate entities, mainly because they do not want to disappoint the children or to offer help to them and not be able to feed them.
"If we are unable to garner sponsors we would have to do the programme without getting the children food. Most of these children can't even afford the bus fare to get to Campion and they really can't learn on an empty stomach. We want to help them in the best way possible, if it's even toiletries or folder paper, even if you think it's nothing it will help," they said.
The girls maintained that this project to them is a mandate.
"We can't see people needing help and ignore, when someone starts something everyone follows but we aren't going to sit and wait for people to do something before we do it," added the duo.
Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/...#ixzz2mvA3No8z
Campion seniors doing it for GSAT students
BY KIMBERLEY HIBBERT Sunday Observer writer
Sunday, December 08, 2013
FROM an idea that two students came up with in their Personal Development (PD) class at Campion College, emerged the actualisation of a project geared towards helping grade six students who are unable to afford extra lessons prepare for their Grade Six Achievement Test (GSAT).
Lindsay Walker and Kristi Charles, both upper sixth form students at Campion, are co-presidents of Teens for the Academic Advancement of Jamaica (TAAJ) project which they started last year November. Charles said that for both her and Lindsay idea was to help curb inequalities in the country.
Lindsay Walker (left) and Kristi Charles co-presidents of Teens for the Academic Advancement of Jamaica.
"When Lindsay and I sat in PD class, we thought of why the country was the way it is and how we could help make a difference, and we decided to start with education. We can't do it alone, we have to start somewhere, so we chose to give extra lessons to GSAT students free of cost," said Charles.
Last year, the initiative saw over 50 students from four primary schools — New Providence, St Benedict's, Mona and Dunrobin -- benefiting from the extra lessons on a Saturday.
Apart from the lessons, Walker and Charles, along with their student volunteers, also provide the children with breakfast and lunch as the sessions go on from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm each day.
But for Walker and Charles, their project, scheduled to begin on December 16 at Campion College and continue through to the 19th, has been halted, as sponsorships to get the activity started in December has been hard to come by.
"Sponsorship this year has been hard to come by. Last year we had six sponsors on board -- Coldwell Bankers, Reggae Jammins, Wisynco, CB Chicken, Robert J Taylor and Diagnostic Area and Training Facility Ltd, and we were extremely grateful. However, we can't solely rely on government to take part in the improvement of our education system. We are trying to improve a situation and we really need the help.
Some of these children can't even afford a meal and they can't learn on empty stomachs, so we provide them with food so they'll have something in their stomachs while we tutor them.
"Many persons are looking forward to it this year, more schools, even principals have contacted us and asked us to return to their school to help out, we really don't want to have to postpone the project because of funding," Charles said.
Charles added that Campion College's principal, Grace Baston, had set up an account for the project and cheques toward the initiative had to be written to the school.
But Charles and Walker aren't discouraged, as they described last year's project as a success and expressed how they enjoyed working with the children.
"The interaction between the children and the tutors was great and the children wanted us to stay longer. They even cried when we were leaving," Charles and Walker said.
For both girls, their kind act has taught them to exercise humility at all times.
"When you're not faced with a situation directly -- being in overcrowded classrooms or learning on an empty stomach, you don't understand, but when you see nine and 10-year-olds faced with it, you feel really bad -- it's a tearjerker.
"I'm privileged when I look at what less fortunate students have and what I have. It encourages me to want to make more of a difference - to want to help, care and love them," Walker said.
Charles, however, said that most of the children who are a part of the TAAJ programme only need someone to care for them.
"Many people give up on their children. There was one little boy whose parent thought he was a helpless case and all he needed was someone to motivate him," said Charles.
Both girls also made an appeal for notable persons in society to come on board and give inspirational talks to the youngsters as some of them can be indisciplined at times.
"It's a less formal setting in the sessions and there is no real focus on being the authoritative figure, but instead we focus on getting them to not be afraid to ask for help. However, some children don't want the help and will make it known. Last year we managed to get Warren Weir to come to one of the schools and talk to the students about the importance of getting an education and after he left, their approach to work was different. If more individuals like him, who these children look up to, would come on board, I believe more of a difference would be made," Charles said.
Charles said that the sessions have no more than four students to one tutor, who uses mostly technology and visual appeal to assist students.
"We will formulate games on our laptops that coincide with the lesson and if we are teaching them about parts of the flower, we will show them the actual flower and dissect it so they see the different parts and some of them will even confess that they didn't know it was real," Charles said.
This year's programme is scheduled to take place over four days, focusing on one GSAT subject per day, tying English and Communication Studies in one day, and will see student volunteers from Campion College, St George's College, Holy Childhood High and Hillel Academy tutoring GSAT students from across the Corporate Area. The sessions will be held at Campion College's auditorium.
Walker and Charles said that they are looking forward to assistance from corporate entities, mainly because they do not want to disappoint the children or to offer help to them and not be able to feed them.
"If we are unable to garner sponsors we would have to do the programme without getting the children food. Most of these children can't even afford the bus fare to get to Campion and they really can't learn on an empty stomach. We want to help them in the best way possible, if it's even toiletries or folder paper, even if you think it's nothing it will help," they said.
The girls maintained that this project to them is a mandate.
"We can't see people needing help and ignore, when someone starts something everyone follows but we aren't going to sit and wait for people to do something before we do it," added the duo.
Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/...#ixzz2mvA3No8z
Comment