After a rather quiet week previously, this week proved very busy. Not only did we conduct two meetings with the caregivers, but also we began our program with the children. And because my packages finally arrived I was able to distribute the Romanian translated CBCL for the caregivers to fill-out on each child.
The first meeting with the caregivers focused on the creation of rules. As of now no formal written rules exist within Casa Sperantei, making it difficult for the children to know what each caregiver expects of them. Children with behavioral problems tend to respond better to written rules because they can see them and be reminded of them throughout the day. Some of the major concepts I addressed for developing rules included: 1.) making them clear and simple, 2.) using "we" language, 3.) telling the children what to do, not what not to do, and 4.) associating each rule with a picture for children who cannot read. I also stressed the importance of talking with the children to ensure they understand what each rule means, repeatedly teaching the child how to implement each rule, and focusing attention on those who follow the rules. Because the caregivers identified mealtime and bedtime as the most difficult aspects of the day I had them create rules for each of those times integrating the concepts we discussed. They did a really great job with this!
Later in the week Iulia and I asked a couple groups of children for their ideas on rules during mealtime and bedtime. They were very excited at the opportunity to give their input! Many of the rules lined-up with those of the caregivers, but they had additional ideas as well. I brought these ideas back to the caregivers, asked if they liked the additional rules, and then merged the two lists together. This coming week I will work with the children to make posters of the rules, having them color and cut-out the pictures, to encourage their participation even more. Hopefully their increased involvement will provide a sense of ownership with the rules and increase their compliance. Iulia and I will take-on the major role of making sure the children understand each rule, and have the children repeat the rules to really ingrain them in their mind.
Our second meeting focused on the reasons behind behaviors and the research behind behavior development in orphanages. While this meeting was less instructional and more informative, I feel most of the caregivers gained knowledge they had not heard before. Many of them said they did not know why the children act the way they do and were curious to find out the reasons. For almost all the children here they just want attention, and they know that by acting out they will receive the attention desired. Additionally, little time has been spent teaching them how to act appropriately when playing with one another (even though they have been told myriad times). It is through practice and being held accountable for their behaviors that children learn. Unfortunately the caregivers have a difficult job and it is much easier to yell at/punish a child for behaving poorly rather than taking the time to ensure he/she actually implements good behaviors. So the children simply take things from each other without asking, hit or kick each other when they want something, cry when they don't get what they want, and continually yell in each others' faces-- all because each of these has been positively reinforced. I also wanted to make the caregivers aware of the developmental consequences facing the children at Casa Sperantei simply because of the fact they are raised in an orphanage-setting. Using the research, I created two graphs that highlighted the differences in cognitive and psychological outcomes between orphanage-reared and community-reared children. While the reactions of the caregivers was not as dramatic as I expected, I think they were surpised by the anxiety and depression rates. The good news is that the caregivers can make a difference in reversing these outcomes through implementing the strategies I'm teaching them.
For the first week in working with the children I couldn't have asked for much more from the children. While they definitely struggled in consistently implementing positive behaviors, it was obvious many put forth efforts to listen, share, and act civilized towards one another. As the week progressed, they began to realize that Iulia and I give attention to the children who behave well and those children are the ones who are rewarded (with praise, stickers, playing with sidewalk chalk). And they all know very well that if we see them hit/kick each other or not follow the instructions they must spend two minutes sitting in "the chair" watching. Eventually this time-out period will need to be increased to match their appropriate ages (1 minute per year), but for now I want them participating more in order to learn the skills they need. Unfortunately I have observed little change in the behaviors outside of the group time, but I cannot really expect that in such a short period of time. Plus, the caregivers play an integral role in carrying forth the principles Iulia and I are teaching the children; a role I haven't seen adopted very much. At the meeting on Thursday I asked that at least one caregiver be present during each group time so they can learn from the behaviors of Iulia and I, and so they can see certain strategies in action.
Fortunately the children all love the games/activities planned for them and cannot wait for the next time they get to play with us (even those who were penalized). From parachute games to magic carpet rides to "rainmaker" to circle games with a ball the children must incorporate myriad positive social skills to participate. We spend the first 10 minutes or so of our hour together discussing important principles such as listening, following instructions, and respecting one another. The oldest girls tend to have the most difficulty, and act more like 7 year olds than 10 or 11 year olds-- again because they want attention and are used to getting what they want. For example, one of the activities I had them make picture frames by gluing on positive attributes of themselves and decorating them. Then we sat in a circle and the girl with the ball had to tell everyone what positive attributes she has, then throw the ball to someone else. The girl who caught the ball had to tell the other one nice thing. Shockingly the girls struggled with this seemingly simple request! Now that I have an greater idea of the skills each age group needs to focus on the most I can design the games/activities even better. And Iulia suggested the next several weeks we work with even smaller groups (5-6 children instead of 7-9) to give even more attention to each child. As the children get better at implementing the desired skills we will gradually make the groups larger. Iulia and I are very eager to see what changes occur by the time I leave in September-- not only within our group time but also throughout the day. Alas, we too must practice patience!
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