Every day the English class at the Department of Nephrology and Endocrinology at Children's Hospital 1 in Ho Chi Minh City is filled with laughter and talk.
Three teachers are responsible for teaching the child patients speaking and writing skills. Despite being on an IV drip, the children listen attentively to the lecture, then chat with their classmates and teachers.
9-year-old Nguyen Hoang Bao from Lam Dong province is eager to study. Thanks to this class Bao misses his school and friends a little less.
“I’m happy in this class. I feel comfortable. We have fun, study, play, and work together. When I joined this class, I got to know more friends,” Bao told VOV.
Dinh Thi Ut Bay of Bac Lieu province is taking care of her child in the Department of Gastroenterology.
She says her son, Tri, has a chronic intestinal disease and often comes here for treatment. Each course of treatment takes months, so his schooling is interrupted. Although Tri is 10 years old, he is only in 2nd grade.
Bay says she’s worried because her son is falling behind in his social development. But since the beginning of the year, participating in the hospital’s "Happy Class" every Monday through Friday has made him appear much happier.
Bay is moved to say, “He even participates in dancing at the class. In the past, he was very shy and never participated in any activity. I’m glad to see my son like this. I don't have to worry so much about him anymore. He likes the class very much. He looks forward to the teacher’s call to come to class.”
According to Chu Van Thanh, Deputy Head of the Social Work Section of Children's Hospital 1, they now take care of the child patients’ emotional well-being as well as giving them financial support. The "Happy Class" makes the time children spend confined to the hospital more enjoyable.
The class imparts basic knowledge and life skills. When it was first established, all the teachers were members of the Social Work Section. Now other foreign language teachers have volunteered their time. Volunteers have also come from centers specializing in life skills training, giving the child patients an opportunity to learn some practical skills.
“Many departments in the hospital have registered to open this kind of class,” said Thanh, adding, “We are looking at which departments have child patients and a suitable space for classes. Expanding the model will require benefactors to purchase learning materials and equipment.”
At the Oncology Department of Children's Hospital 2, 20 to 25 children attend "Happy Class" every day. "Happy Class" has been jointly sponsored there for 8 years by the hospital and the Beautiful Handwriting Club.
Children of different ages can study there at the same time. The younger children practice coloring and recognizing colors, shapes, objects, and animals. The older children learn the alphabet and numbers and prepare to enter the first grade. In addition to studying academic subjects, the children learn to draw, play music, and sing.
According to Le Thi Mai, head of the Beautiful Handwriting Club, the class is a spiritual fulcrum for pediatric patients who, in return, are a source of inspiration for the volunteers.
“I can never forget the children's responses. Their gestures, looks, and faces are the pictures the teachers teach them to draw. Little things like that inspire us to do better in our work,” she recalled.
The Beautiful Handwriting Club plans to launch a "Green Future” project for cancer patients who are at least 15 years old and undergoing treatment. The project will allow them to experience the work they've always dreamed of to decide if it’s a job that suits them.