An Unforgettable Experience

A group of 26 children running and climbing all over me can only have one explanation - it was the first day of my Kindergarten project. I have never seen so many smiles in one room, the children were incredible, full of life, and so ready to learn. We had been given a lot of information on our class and were provided with notes on what they had already been learning so planning lessons and activities was a breeze! All the nerves I had recently had about teaching had completely gone since myself and my teaching partner made a great team. We used the week to try and help the children learn about plants, so with this we had them making DIY trees, singing songs, and creating their own gardens. Whenever a child had finished with their work they would run up to you just so they could get a high 5 (I probably gave out a 1000 of these every day)! This project was extremely rewarding, especially when you could see what a difference you were making to the children. When I wasn't in the Kindergarten I was exploring Bali with new friends from all around the world. During the induction week we were taken on lots of tours to become familiar with Ubud one of which was the Monkey Forrest. I bought a bunch of bananas and held them up in the air, not expecting the drama that would then follow... 6 monkeys began to jump and hang all over me. I couldn't stop laughing but eventually one sat on my shoulder and in return for the banana I gave him, he left a warm present on my shoulder and even though I was disgusted by the smell, I had never laughed so hard! Overall my IVHQ experience couldn’t have been better, from the second I signed up to the final day of my project I was given complete support from all the staff. I couldn't recommend IVHQ enough, I now have friends from every continent around the world and have made some unforgettable memories from one of the most incredible experiences of my life!