The girls are creating some objects with recycled materials as a present for Mother's Day, with the help of Ines, the librarian, and the women who take the arts and crafts classes in the afternoon.pano ai corsi di attività manuali durante i pomeriggi.

The last months of the school year are always the toughest: the girls have to get ready for the oral and written exams. For some of them it's a hard task. For the last two months the five girls with the greatest learning problems are being followed both by our specialists and, once a week, by the UPE (office of psychopedagogical support). We really feel the need for both a full-time psychologist and a full-time psychopedagogist in the Jardin.

Getting ready for the oral exams.

Giorgio (wearing glasses) and Irene (with the purple top), are SVE volunteers (European Voluntary Service) who just arrived in Mérida. They will spend 6 months working in the Fe y Alegría children's center of the Loma De Los Maitines, with a group of children from a similar background to those of the Jardin.

The psychopedagogist, lately, is focusing on a few particular students. Apart from the lack of food during infancy and the cultural limits of their families, some children had some problems at birth, which are appearing now, during the learning process. For this reason, the psychologist suggested a neurological visit. The neurologist, prescribed a treatment and a full check-up for two of the girls.

The lawyers from LOPNNA (Ley orgánica para la proteccion de niños, niñas y adolecentes), who work at a school close to our center, came to threaten the children a bit... Ehm, I meant, they came to give a lecture on the rights and duties of minors. During the last few weeks there was a war going on in the neighbourhood of Los Curos, a lot of youngsters got murdered, most of them minors, neighbours, ex schoolmates and acquaintances of the children's families.

For Mother's Day, the girls prepared an acting of the song ¨Amor y control¨ by Ruben Blades, with Carol's help. The song is about how members of a same family should take care of each other, especially in difficult moments.

The song is a salsa and it obviously ended involving the mothers in a dance.

The song is a salsa and it obviously ended involving the mothers in a dance.

…and finally a very special Italo-Venezuelan lunch!

These are the gifts that the girls prepared for their mothers.

And the girls who unfortunately do not have a mother were accompanied by a relative.

The mom who behaved best, demonstrating a true sense of responsibility, deserved a small present...

Catedra de la Paz started a new class on sexual education for teachers, so we decided to participate without any doubts, because sexual education is one of the themes that we constantly take care of. Most of the girls are now developed, some of them have a boyfriend and the last thing we want is an unwanted pregnancy. In Venezuela, the percentage of teenagers who get pregnant is very high and on the rise and abortion is illegal.

An advertisement against cigarettes and alcohol on the hospital wall.

A medical check-up. ...

After months of “papeleo” (taking care of the paperwork) we finally managed to sign the first contracts.

Now, both the teacher and the girl in charge of the logistics have an official contract.

We are not scared of AH1N1! Jokes apart, in this photo we are talking with a social worker and a doctor about a very serious topic: the AH1N1 epidemic. The flu can be dangerous or lethal for people who suffer from breathing problems or immunodeficiency. There have already been a few deaths reported and the government announced the safety measures that should be taken to stop the epidemic.

We continue our partnership with the Casa Hogar Divino Niño. We have already signed a deal in which we confirm our support for one afternoon every two weeks. The girls of the Jardin who live in this family-home are progressing both on an academic and a behavioural level.