Little Lambs

Although I was hoping to go a whole semester without stepping foot in a classroom, I (un)fortunately was not able to make it more than a month.  Tuesday, a few of the kids from our home asked us to go to school with them, and without hesitation I agreed.  Most of our kids attend either Everwin or Little Lambs school, but unlike most primary schools, Little Lamb was established to help kids, like some of ours, that didn't start school on time due to finances, family reasons, or just the lack of opportunity.  Being there no other way to reach this school, Linda and I woke up bright and early to walk to the bus stop with the kids.  This was my first time on a school bus in probably a decade, and I think they've shrunk from what I remember.

Some information on Little Lambs School

• started by Maria Gislen and her husband, a Swedish couple who moved to India about 16 years ago
• Maria still leads the children in song and prayer everyday in the courtyard with her long gray ponytail and guitar
• Peter, their social worker, goes out in the community to find kids who are working on the streets and offers them a chance to go to school
• Funded entirely by donations and sponsors, it costs about Rs. 600/mo ($12) to send a child to school
• For children who can not afford school or would normally not have gone
• Preschool-5th standard (or grade) when completed are sent to secondary school (high school)
• Special classes offered to students who did not start school on time or who need extra assistance. Once they have reached 5th standard of reading, writing, and mathematics (at their own pace and time) they continue on to secondary school
• NO standardized placement testing.  All assessment is done by the teachers and staff after spending individual time with the children and assessing their knowledge based on their own way of learning
• Individual attention given to children to help them learn in their own way
• Laid back, not strict. Children who have lived their entire lives on the streets can not sit in a classroom for hours on end.  They have the choice to sit there or can just as easily go outside to play, returning when they are ready to learn.  Short class times with frequent breaks for tea and recess help maintain attention.

I enjoyed returning the classroom, sitting in the little plastic chairs or on the floor of the library for reading.  I helped them with drawing and spelling, and had the pleasure of reading with them one on one.  The faculty were so ready to speak with us and loved that we were there to help.  

In partnership with their school, Little Lambs also has a home for children. Not a short stay home that provides temporary housing, but an actual home where they will live until they graduate or get married.  However, they receive no funding from the state and are completely dependent of sponsors and volunteers.  In order to provide the individual attention for the children, they are always accepting visitors who will sit and listen to them read or help with their mathematics.

If you want more information on this amazing project, you can visit them at www.littlelambsschool.org