Directly witnessing the children's lessons, we were extremely surprised by the excitement clearly shown through each delighted look, each carefully written notepad, and each time they raised their hands to speak... All of those things were so simple, but they were simple things that not every child could have during the Summer...
Entering June, Mr. Thai Van Khoa (born in 1979) had another special mission, which was to take his two children to the "Love Class N2". This class was opened by two girls, Nguyen Hang Nguyet - Deputy Secretary of the Youth Union of Lien Thanh commune and Nguyen Thi Ngoc - a member of the Youth Union of Hamlet 3 to help disadvantaged and disabled children in the commune to participate in summer school. Mr. Khoa's family is one of the poor households in the commune, never stopping worrying about the difficult life of making a living, but with the heart of a father, he always longed to take care of his children's education. Therefore, when he learned about this special class, he quickly registered his two children to attend. Although the distance from his house in hamlet 9 to the classroom in hamlet 4 is more than 3.5km, and he only has a bicycle as a means of transportation, for him, taking his two children to school is an incomparable joy.
Seeing the excitement and progress of his children after each lesson, all his fatigue seemed to disappear. His daughter Thai Khanh Linh (born in 2012), who was once shy, has now become bolder, even quickly raising her hand to speak enthusiastically. As for his son Thai Duc Giang (born in 2011), although he was previously very afraid of studying, he now surprised him greatly when he came home and diligently did his homework so that tomorrow he could stand in front of the class and give a speech to the "teacher". Little Giang told his father that every time he gave his homework, he would be more proud when he saw his sister looking at him with admiration.
That joy also spread to many poor but determined students in that special class. Also a young student present from the first lessons, Pham Thi Thanh Song (born in 2016) is one of the students with clear progress. Since childhood, Song had to fight with congenital heart disease, her family was among the poor households in the neighborhood. In those difficult conditions, she still had a studious spirit and wanted to participate in soft skills improvement programs with her friends. The "blue shirt" teachers were also friends and sisters to encourage her, sharing with her many joys and sorrows in life. Thanks to that, not only was she enthusiastically taught knowledge, she also became more optimistic and happier when she was given more love for learning.
Sharing about the class, Ms. Nguyen Hang Nguyet - Deputy Secretary of the Youth Union of Lien Thanh commune said that the desire to open a free class for disadvantaged and disabled children in the area has been in mind for a long time. However, it was not until this summer that she had the conditions to do it. Accompanying her is member Nguyen Thi Ngoc, who graduated from the Foreign Language major of Vinh University and has a lot of experience in teaching English. Deployed since the beginning of June, the class has welcomed 12 disadvantaged and disabled children in the commune to participate in the summer school. The class is opened regularly on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays every week. The children practice writing, reading, learning foreign languages, doing math and participating in soft skills development activities.
Although it was hard, witnessing the progress of the students as well as the agreement and support from the parents was a great motivation for the two members to actively maintain the class. For example, Nguyen Cong Phuong (born in 2011), who was born deaf and mute and had to wear a hearing aid to study, took the initiative to ask his parents to let him go to class. The reason was that his family had previously sent him to study in specialized classes, but due to difficult family conditions, he had to quit school for the past 2 years. When participating in the free Summer class, both students and parents enthusiastically cooperated effectively with the "teacher" in each lesson. Now, Phuong has made a lot of progress in absorbing the lessons. In class, he smiled more and was happier when he was able to express himself in each lesson.
For Vu Van Quang (born in 2016) and Vu Van Thang (born in 2017) in Hoa Tham hamlet, Trung Thanh commune, these past summer days, they felt like they had a second sister and mother when they participated in the calligraphy class organized by the Trung Thanh commune Youth Union. As the "teacher" of the class, Secretary of the commune Youth Union Tran Thi Can (born in 1993) considered the two children as her relatives, because Can had long understood their disadvantaged circumstances. When Thang was only 1 year old, their father went to work far away. A year later, their mother also left their hometown, and they had to separate to live with their paternal and maternal grandparents. Until this year, when Thang was about to enter first grade, he moved to live with his paternal grandparents, and the siblings were finally reunited.
Lacking parental affection, the children were quite pensive and quiet. In the first days of class, their handwriting was still lacking. Understanding the situation, Can always gently encouraged and guided them in each stroke and sitting position. Up to now, after 13 lessons, their handwriting has made remarkable progress. Their personalities are also less shy, they know how to ask the "teacher" about things they are wondering about or about math problems and essays that have not been solved, and they also consider her a reliable address to share.
Along with Quang and Thang, the class also had 15 children aged 6 to 9 in Trung Thanh commune participating. Most of them were children of farming families, with not so good family circumstances. With patience, along with 5 years of experience in teaching beautiful handwriting to students, the Secretary of the Trung Thanh commune Youth Union has successfully fulfilled the role of a guide, a sister, a mother accompanying the children in the process of practicing handwriting and cultivating character during the summer vacation months.
Not only the children in Trung Thanh and Lien Thanh communes, now there are 12 commune Youth Unions in Yen Thanh district opening free summer classes for disadvantaged children in the area. Ms. Pham Thi Huyen Trang - Secretary of Yen Thanh District Youth Union shared that the teaching team is made up of qualified and professional union officials and members. With the desire to contribute to the community, this team has devoted all their time and passion to maintaining the class in the most complete way. The children participating in the class are mostly from difficult circumstances or with disabilities. Therefore, the members not only teach knowledge but also organize extracurricular activities and folk games to create confidence and integration for the children.
Recently, joy came to 3 children in the free class of the Deputy Secretary of the Youth Union of Lien Thanh commune when they were given bicycles by benefactors to make it easier for them to go to school. Among them, there was Thai Duc Giang - son of Thai Van Khoa. Receiving that meaningful gift, the father and son could not help but feel moved, so from now on, Summer days will have more joy and unforgettable memories...