Training at the Boarding School

We have had a busy few weeks! Here are photos from our training at the orphanage with about 30 teen residents. As you see here, one of the teachers at the school (also a mentor in our Mother's School program) used the information she learned from our training to design a training for youth. Our consultant, Olena, provided advice about how to adapt the material for a younger audience and we were able to do so. This training will be repeated in the future for other young people.

The teacher/mentor was able to pass along information she learned to the young people. They discussed such things as teen pregnancy, the developmental needs (physical and emotional) of pregnant mothers and their babies, as well as, the material needs they require after they have been born.

This kind of open dialogue is important with these children, as many of them have no parents (and thus, no examples in their lives) and/or little contact with adults who provide them such education. We take this for grantide in our everyday lives.

These kids are like every other teenager in the world. Their bodies are changing and the hormones are causing them to act in ways they may not understand. Many of them say they know these things and understand them, but we often found that their information was skewed and incorrect. The training, as much as anything, was important to changing their perceptions about how to become pregnant and how sexually transmitted diseases are passed on to others. But, just as important are the softer issues like psycho-social and moral issues as they relate to the choices these young people make in their lives.