WHAT WE DO
Adhvan Foundation is committed to empowering children living in Child Care Institutions such as Orphanages, Children's Homes and Shelter Homes through Library centric interventions that :
RAISE READERS
Once children experience the joy of reading for pleasure without pressure they become independent learners and thinkers.
SUPPORT LITERACY
When children learn to read and write with comprehension their language develops and academic performance improves.
ENHANCE LIFE SKILLS
Enhancing life skills equips the children with the knowledge, perspective and skills to thrive within the institution and beyond.
WHY WE DO IT
Death in the family, financial troubles, illness, disability, exploitation and abuse make children vulnerable. To ensure their safety many children are sent to Child Care Institutions such as orphanages and shelter homes. These children have to leave their families and get used to a completely new life within the institution. Though institutions try their best they are unable to replicate the individualised care available at home.
To cater to the needs of large groups of children with limited resources, days are highly structures. All children perform the same activity at the same time in the same way. Though this makes it easier to supervise children it doesn’t give children any room to exercise their choice. Obedience and conformity are highly valued in these spaces and children aren’t allowed to express or question.
These children are cut off from the larger world and cannot learn by observation. Since they have no opportunity to explore and experiment, they cannot learn by experience either. These children rarely have a chance to develop critical life skills such as communication, problem solving, decision making, coping with difficult emotions and many more.
Children come to Institutions from different parts of the country and at different ages. Many of these children have received poor education in the past or have dropped out of education. Child Care Institutions lack the resources and the expertise needed to support the literacy of these children. Their poor command over language makes it difficult for them to cope with their studies and they fall further and further behind.
The Adhvan Library Programmes provides children with free spaces where they can learn to read and express. The programme supports the literacy of children through interactive games and activities and custom designed activities around selected books enable children to develop and practice life skills. The Library programme provides a stimulating environment where children can explore, experiment and gain experience without any pressure and develop the knowledge, perspective and skills required to thrive