ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Got any questions? Please email us: info@travellersworldwide.com
Thanks from a School Principal to Travellers'
NZ Organiser:
>Hi Annette, Just a quick note so
say how much the staff enjoyed having Jennie and Delyth and are still enjoying having
Adria. They all fitted in really quickly and have been a tremendous help to us.
As well as helping children read, assist in class and so on, we had a new child
arrive who was very needy and Jennie and Delyth were able to work with him separately
at different times while we were trying to organize support. This meant the teacher
was assisted greatly and could concentrate more on the rest of the children. Just
wanting to pass on all the school's thanks for the volunteers and hope there are
many more to come.
Diana Tregoweth"
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU BOOK YOUR PLACEMENT?
Once you have applied for a placement, we'll contact you and send you our Welcome
Pack. You'll also receive Log-on details and password for our Volunteer Extranet
where you'll have access to all the documentation and information which we've put
together to facilitate preparations for your adventure! Your Project Co-ordinator
for your country will liaise with you throughout the arrangements process, as well
as while you're on your placement and on your return home.
The documents you'll have access to also include a Country Factfile, Safety Guide
and any manuals that may assist you on your particular programme (e.g. Teaching
Guide, Sports Manuals, Enrichment Suggestions for Animal Care, etc.). We do all
we can to make your stay one that you'll never forget. This is a truly awesome,
elegant and beautiful country.
On Arrival, your Introduction to the Country:
When you arrive you will be welcomed by a member of our team who will take you to
your accommodation and introduce you to everyone. During your first few days you'll
be given an induction so that you can learn about the country and its culture, as
well as other useful information, like how to use the transport system, banks, safety
issues, tipping, and lots more.
VOLUNTEERING WITH CHILDREN AND VULNERABLE
ADULTS
As well as protecting all our volunteers, Travellers Worldwide is committed to all
our projects and dedicated to practices which protect children and vulnerable adults
from harm. Read Travellers' Child Care and Vulnerable Adults Policy.
TRAVELLERS' SUPPORT AND BACKUP: Read about the excellent Support & Backup we provide before you leave and during your programme.
Veronica van der Straaten, Deputy Principal, talks
about the huge difference Travellers Worldwide Volunteers are making to the Children
and the School.:
As the day begins there are
screams and laughter coming from the school pool as children at 9.15 a.m. plunge
into the cold depths and race around trying to get warm. Meantime in the music room
nearby the music teacher is setting up instruments in front of each eager face as
the music lesson for a junior class is about to commence. As you walk around the
school you notice one or two groups of children reading to an adult while busily
in class children are learning, with the help of the adults in the room. In the
office area children who are running late are having their names recorded in the
absence register, while the telephone rings and a parent with a new five year old
waits patiently to have his/her child enrolled. In the resource room volunteers,
teacher aides and a parent stamp and bind new books ready to be categorised and
to be put onto the shelves ready for teachers to use. In classrooms children are
reading, writing, and/or working on their maths.
This is the start of a typical day at Owairaka Primary School situated in the central
city district of Mount Albert, Auckland, New Zealand. A busy multicultural school
with 320 children, some of whom were born in New Zealand, many of whom have English
as a second language or have parents from non- English speaking backgrounds, some
are refugees. As you look around the classes and playgrounds there is a vision
of the United Nations with Ethiopian, Somalian, Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Russian,
Samoan, Tongan, Cook Island, English, Maori, European children, and many more cultures,
intermingling, playing and learning together.
At the swimming pool, while the class teacher is instructing a group on how to use
arm strokes to swim, a volunteer is working with a group of children teaching them
how to float. In the music room another volunteer assists the music teacher with
her programme, encouraging and assisting the youngest children. The adult listening
to the small group of children read is a volunteer from England. He realises the
importance of his role because for some of these children reading to a parent to
whom English is a second language is difficult. In the office another volunteer
is typing up a policy document that is needed for the next Board of Trustees meeting
while her friend is working in the resource room, stamping and taping new readers
for classes to use. In a year 3 and 4 class, the last volunteer is working alongside
a child who needs help to write his news for the day while the class teacher helps
the other children.
We are very fortunate at our school. This term we have had the benefit of having
six extra adults in our school. They are making a difference! Two of the volunteers
from Travellers Worldwide are assisting our music specialist; all of the volunteers
are involved with classes so there are at least two adults at the pool at any one
time teaching the children to swim. All of our volunteers have children who read
to them daily and from last year’s testing we know this has and does make a difference
to their learning progress. At lunchtime we have volunteers supervising the free
swim time as well as taking the school cricket and softball teams. One of our volunteers
works in the library for part of the day binding books and assisting children in
the selection of books. All of our volunteers work alongside children in classes
at some time during the day. There is variety in their programme and their strengths
and interests are utilized.
2007 saw the start of our association with Travellers Worldwide ... [the volunteers]
have been welcomed with open arms. I cannot speak more highly of their commitment
and dedication to our school and the children. They are making such a difference.