Volunteering in TF

Posted by Sunandini on our blogsite for the volunteers:

Hello!

I am from India, but currently a resident of Qatar. I worked for TF this July at their evening tutorial classes and thoroughly enjoyed my first volunteer assignment. I taught English to Class 3 and Math to Class 7. I was so excited when I first got a reply to my application from Mr Ritwik Patra, the COO of TF – thank you Ritwik for this opportunity.

My time at TF was an enriching and satisfying experience. TF staff were very supportive and friendly. I was amazed to find children who live in deprived and difficult circumstances can be so warm, affectionate and lovable, far more, I felt, than students in more privileged schools. It really makes you want to do something for them. Also, these were children happy to come to class, quite self assured and confident – you could see the difference TF has made when you compared them with the entry level students.

Knowing the language made it easier for me to communicate with the children, since they do not speak much English. I found the classes well managed, with sound and practical systems in place. The teachers seemed to know the children well and were dedicated – the job is not easy, specially getting through to some of the older boys. I specially admired the way the coordinator Anupa Dutta ran the center so efficiently but always with a smile. Much loved and respected, I never saw her reprimand or raise her voice, yet all abided by her decisions. 

You could see that the TF team cared about the children. They also taught them discipline, good manners and values – these children can be pretty boisterous, quite a handful sometimes – so I saw the need for this!

I feel TF is doing tremendous work in various fields, and affecting many lives. I would love to continue my association with TF, and besides sponsoring children I would like to work for their other projects too, such as their community outreach projects.

Sunandini

Teaching Class 3