Once a month, on a Saturday morning, a group of university students swaps the lie-in for a learning centre full of children. That’s V.BLESS, the community experience at the heart of GO>MORE.
The children come from refugee and stateless families in the Klang Valley. The volunteers come from all over: different universities, different countries, different first languages. Most of them have never met before the morning starts.
Sitting on the floor together
There’s no stage and no lecture. The room fills up with small circles on the floor, each one a couple of volunteers and a handful of children, working through an activity together. It might be a picture story, a worksheet, colouring or a game.
The activity is really just a reason to sit together. A volunteer points at a picture and asks what’s happening. A child answers, someone else jumps in, and before long the shyest ones are leaning in to see.
Learning to work as one team
The children aren’t the only ones meeting new people. V.BLESS puts students who might never otherwise cross paths into the same small circle, from different campuses, different courses and different countries.
They have to work things out together on the spot. Who explains the next step? How do you keep three children interested when one of them only wants to draw? Who notices the child sitting quietly at the edge? Before the activities start, a short briefing makes sure everyone knows what to do. Afterwards, a reflection circle gives everyone a chance to talk about what they noticed, with people they met only that morning.
What you need to bring
No special skills. You don’t need to speak the children’s languages, have teaching experience or know anyone. If you can sit on the floor, listen and be patient, you’ll fit right in. Everyone who takes part receives a certificate of participation.
Join a V.BLESS morning
V.BLESS is part of GO>MORE, AntsEducare’s volunteer programme for university students in Malaysia. Start by registering on the GO>MORE learning platform, and look out for the next V.BLESS date in our events calendar.
