Enriching Field Trips for Orphens
by Hagit ShweikyRichard D. Weisskopf, Chairman, Love for Israel Relief Fund
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Arazim students and teachers enjoy a nature hike. |
D. is a seven year-old student. One of five children, his family lives in a small tworoom apartment. His family is registered
with the Social Welfare Office for ongoing assistance. The mother of the family died last summer after years of illness. The kids are on the streets most of the day, exposed to difficult situations and have problems with the police. Since the father is not able to provide the basic needs of children by himself, the family struggles to survive. What is more, the father is unable to take the children on trips from the home even for an hour.
The Ministry of Education gives Arazim School a small budget for all our field trips each year. In reality, this budget hardly allows us to take the students on a short walk. It is important for us to give students like D. enriching experiences - to enjoy more field trips during the year than what we could afford from the small allowance from the Ministry of Education. Many parents are as poor as D.’s father and cannot afford to cover basic expenses – much less school outings.
These field trips give Azarim students like D. access to life-enriching experiences that
they would not otherwise have. Short trips are between two and four hours. They include trips to the zoo, museums, Tower of David, Nahlaot, Ein Karem, and more. The school provides students healthy breakfasts, lunches and snacks during the day.
Long day trips last the whole day. We take students on nature hikes, trips to water parks and amusement parks. They always return home with fond memories from these trips.
We want to expose students to overnight experiences. For most of our students this is the first time they have been away from home for two consecutive days. During the trip students enjoy various experiences such as nature hikes, horseback riding, swimming, accommodation by natural water reserves and various other experiences. School staff chaperone the students throughout the trip.
We work hard to keep low overhead on these field trips. Every $10 sponsors a child for a short trip. Every $25 sponsors a child for a field trip lasting a full day. Every $100 sponsors a child for an overnight adventure – including travel, room and board. These life-enriching experiences really mean a lot to these extraordinary kids.
Hagit Shweiky is the assistant principal at Arazim School in Jerusalem. The students at the Arazim School are between the ages of six and twelve. They are of normal intelligence and even gifted, but suffer from behavioral problems and serious emotional difficulties which stem from primary emotional deprivation. Most students come from lower socio-economic levels of society and their families have serious economic difficulties.
You can check out the school’s Hebrew website at: http://www.orianit.edu-negev.gov.il/arazimjer/
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