Driving a sense of community, compassion and charity
Why is developing empathy in pre-schoolers more important now, than ever? Building an understanding of what others are feeling and how a child’s own actions can impact another, is a valuable life skill for children to possess. It not only benefits them in childhood, but also helps them to become well-rounded global citizens as adults.
As part of Little Paddington Preschool’s philosophy, each centre fundraises for a charity chosen by the children, every year. Fundraising is an important part of our school’s culture.
This November, the children, parents and teachers of our Tanglin Road child-care centre, came together to celebrate the festival of light and to bring back a glow of hope and a sparkle of joy, to victims of the recent Indonesian earthquake and Tsunami. Little Paddington Preschool matched all the amounts raised by our children and parents by 1:1, in our effort to build a better world. All funds were donated to Mercy Relief for the Sulawesi fund.
We wanted to motivate our children and families to engage meaningfully in a project that benefits others. Children and staff busily planned for this event – costumes, decorations, food and more. It was a fun filled morning which started with the children’s dance performances, followed by auctioning their masterpieces done with Rangoli (traditional Indian colour powder) and finally a host of Diwali inspirited activities including games, henna, Rangoli, murukku (traditional Indian snacks) making and other crafts. The event was a great success and we would like to thank our children, parents and staff for their tremendous support and generosity.
It was a meaningful way for children to develop empathy towards others who had recently gone through tragedy. By engaging in and being involved with the process of creating artwork on canvas and ‘Diyas” (traditional earthen candle holders) and then auctioning them, the children and their parents came together and invested their time and resources towards a good cause.
The children felt a great sense of accomplishment, towards giving back to society and helping those in need. Apart from instilling good values in children and developing positive role models, we also saw sparks of creativity, team-work, confidence and sharing. It also helped developed a great sense of community within Little Paddington Tanglin Road, with the children, parents and teachers working together for common good.
We hope to continue to develop a sense charity and sense of compassion in our budding citizens of tomorrow!
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