And so, we reach the end of February (how is time moving so fast???) as expected, it's been another crazy month full of exciting things at ABCs and Rice and as we say every month, it's because of people like you who support us through everything that makes all of this possible.
DRAMA CLASS!
We had an amazing two day visit from the lovely Jodie who ran drama workshops with every class. It gave every one a chance to express themselves in new ways, provided our teachers with inspiration on new ways to run their lessons and bring the English language to students in a whole new way! Some of us even got out of the office for a session (or two.. or three...) and were blown away with how amazing, innovative and imaginative the entire session was. And on that note, if anyone needs me, I'll be playing my new favourite game of 'What's the time, Mr Giant?' with the Ducklings!
Rice Day!
We had a another Rice Day funded by the amazing Iris and her friends and family from Victoria, Canada. Check out the photo of the lady herself in action making sure every child had a full bag to take home. Big big thank you to everyone who donated and made this month's rice day possible.
As we mentioned in our last newsletter, it is through Iris' incredible dedication, perseverance and generosity (and that of those around her) that we can guarantee rice for 2018!
Some of you may know, we rely completely on donations to fund ABCs and Rice and when money is tight, rice day is the first thing that gets pushed back. Now we are safe in the knowledge that this wont happen for a while!
Ultra Trail d'Angkor
At the end of January, a group of staff, students and volunteers got up before the sun to get to Angkor Archaeological Park. Each group spent between 7-12 hours handing out water and snacks to runners of the UTA, a 128km ultra marathon. Although we all felt tired, it was nothing compared to how the runners felt. We'd like to say a big thank you to the organisers of the event and everyone who took part for the donations made to ABCs during the day. A lot of fun was had by all involved.
Access ABCs!
We have recently enrolled three new students into ABCs and Rice. These three have been living on Full Belly Farm which is now a home and sanctuary to three families with disabled members, these people would otherwise be homeless.
Two of these new students have disabilities, one being in a wheelchair. Because of this we have accelerated our accessibility fundraising efforts! We are so pleased to announce we now have a portable ramp which can be moved from classroom to classroom as the student's English improves and they progress through the school.
Our next step is to make one of our toilets big enough for a wheelchair and have a web of concrete paths to each classroom, as a wheelchair on sand is not feasible forever! Check out this amazing blog post by Education Manager, Justin, to learn more about our new students and their journey to ABCs and Rice!
Project Manager Houk Presents at CamTESOL!
Our amazing and fantastic Project Manager, Houk, was asked to present TWICE during the CamTESOL weekend. CamTESOL is a conference for English Language Teaching professionals. Houk helped to grow links between ABCs and English professionals in Siem Reap and we couldn't be prouder of him. Thank you to everyone who helped show Houk how he can shine and gave him the ability to do so.
A Canadian Visitor...
We were lucky enough to be visited by Sheri, a Canadian board member, supporter from day one and most importantly, friend. She wasted no time in getting stuck into life in the classrooms, office, kitchen and everyone's favourite, rice day! It was a pleasure having someone, who believed that we could achieve great things from the beginning, finally see what all her hard work in Canada helped to create!
Feelin' Resilient... Artfully Resilient!
Long-term supporter, volunteer and friend, Magie of Artfully Resiliant, came back to see us again and stayed a month! She spread brand new art ideas throughout the whole school, my personal favourite was Drawing in the Dark! She also turned our sensory table into an amazing area that aids imagination exploration. Check out our Facebook page for photos of it in action!
Exams
We recently came to the end of our new year exams and we are pleased to see that some of our Lions have now moved up to the Dragon's class!
Another big shout out to the lady of the newsletter, Iris! She carried out almost 100 individual listening tests with the Duckling's and Monkey's classes, a job most would pass on after test number 5!
We'd like to finish this months newsletter the same we started it, with a huge thank you!! Just by reading this letter you are showing so much support for everything you do and making it all a bit easier! Follow us on Facebook and Instagram for regular updates and subscribe to receive our monthly newsletter!