Trauma-informed care and onsite education boosted   

The New Year starts with a new school year here in Guatemala. Our residential program school resumed in January with a new educational coordinator and additional teachers to enhance the onsite teaching program.

We are delighted to have Xiomara Monroy as our new Education Coordinator. A certified early childhood development psychologist, she is also an experienced administrator. Her presence raises the support for trauma-informed care for the girls in our Oasis and La Arquilla programs.

Due to the pandemic’s challenges, we have decided that all students will study on our Oasis campus. To support this initiative, the Guatemalan education department stepped forward to assign four teachers – one for special education, two for middle, and one for primary school.

This year we have enrolled 37 students in the 13-18 age group. The majority of the students will be finishing a significant portion of their studies this year as they strive toward graduating*. Four of the students will pursue high school and participate in an online work-study program.

Kids Alive Guatemala continues to strengthen the Pre-Independence program for 15-17-year-old girls at Casa Ester. To support this, we are laying a strong foundation, instilling related values and principles from an early age to move the girls toward autonomy and independence.

This year, Joanne Lara, Residential Coordinator, is especially excited to implement the Montessori program to further develop our early childhood education program. We are delighted, as this will be the first time that the youngest in our care, ages 3-6, will be formally studying in Pre-K.

Kids Alive Guatemala is grateful for the support of Walker Center, an occupational therapy facility that provides therapy to children under six coping with developmental delays caused by malnutrition, abuse, and neglect.

Our holistic care is driven by Luke 2:52, which reminds us, “Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.” We support children in our care by creating space for formal and informal education and learning experiences that will provide girls with greater opportunities today and in the future.

*Under Guatemala’s educational system, 9th graders “graduate” and then branch out to pursue either technical training or pre-university courses.

Please pray for

• Our girls, that they would find peace and tranquility at Casa Ester.
• The aunts (tias), as they work with girls with varying ranges of abilities and understanding.
• The start of the new school year and all the work it entails. Praise Jesus for sufficient funds for schooling, supplies, uniforms, etc.

Teachers welcome old and new Pre-Independence students with ice-breaker games and team-building activities. With pandemic-related restrictions still in place, Kids Alive expanded its program to provide in-house schooling at Oasis.

Meaningful learning happens at all ages in Kids Alive Guatemala programs. A young lady from Casa Ester teaches a child in the nursery to sort colors and shapes.

Daily walks around the Oasis compound are educational and fun for these toddlers from our nursery as well as their caregivers.

Many young ladies in the Pre-Independence program work during the afternoons at Oasis to develop basic skills and cultivate a good work ethic. Some work in the kitchen, some assist in the nursery, and others help in the library and the school supply room.

Amelia* makes chocolate-covered fruit treats. Many young ladies at Casa Ester work rotating jobs at Oasis to learn new skills and get experience toward becoming independent and self-reliant. *Name changed

¡Bienvenidas! Girls in one of the houses welcome their new fellow residents with a welcome sign.