Workshops, 19 episodes filmed, first screening

The 2nd CLIP4 workshop! 👩‍🏫

On 9 July, we held our second CLIP4 workshop! This time, we tried something a little different. Before the workshop, we asked the teachers, "What kinds of teaching materials do you need right now?" We then designed the workshop around their answers.

We wanted to make sure the teachers could take what they learned straight back into their classrooms! Based on their requests, we prepared a variety of storytelling activities, games, crafts and worksheets focusing on popular themes such as transport, animals and emotions.

We were also lucky to have three special guests join us! First was Reach, who has been supporting TukTuk with AI development. Reach introduced AI and demonstrated the chatbot currently being tested for our website.

We were also joined by Airi, a JICA volunteer who had been working at a kindergarten in Battambang, and Roat, a Cambodian teacher from the same kindergarten. They shared some wonderful activities, including Magic Theatre and Sketchbook Theatre, based on the themes requested by our teachers.

The feedback was fantastic! Every workshop component received a usefulness rating of at least 4.43 out of 5, with the two guest-led practical activities both scoring an impressive 4.91!

On the other hand, we also learned that some teachers still find digital tools, such as AI and website searches, a little challenging. We'll continue listening to their feedback and supporting them as they build confidence in trying new things.

Teachers sharing with teachers! 🚙

One of the main goals of CLIP4 is for teachers who attend our workshops to share their knowledge and ideas with other teachers in their communities. To help make this happen, TukTuk staff join the regular Technical Meetings held in different areas, supporting our CLIP4 teachers as they introduce activities and resources to their fellow teachers.

During July and August, we visited all nine clusters, with a total of 241 teacher attendances across the meetings! What made us especially happy was seeing our CLIP4 teachers taking a more active role in sharing what they'd learned. They confidently demonstrated activities from our workshops and explained how the resources could be linked to the Ministry of Education's curriculum. We were also delighted to see teachers from our previous CLIP3 project helping and supporting newer teachers!

Our goal isn't simply for TukTuk to teach teachers. We want to create an environment where teachers can share their knowledge, learn from one another and support each other's growth. Seeing this happen is exactly what we've been working towards!

We believe that every small step these teachers take can eventually make a big difference to early childhood education in their communities. We can't wait to see how they continue to grow! 😊

19 episodes filmed in one go! 🎬

You may remember us introducing our new educational YouTube program, Sala Rean Sabey ("Happy School"), in previous issues of TukTalk. In July, our Australian filmmaker David returned to Cambodia for another round of filming!

This time, we set ourselves a very ambitious goal: filming 20 episodes during his visit! With such a tight schedule, the team was incredibly busy preparing scripts, organising materials and rehearsing before filming began. Fy and Choven, our two presenters, along with Sarin, who supported the filming, practised their scenes over and over again. All that preparation paid off! Filming went much more smoothly than before, and we successfully completed filming for 19 episodes! Although we didn't quite reach our target of 20, this was still a huge achievement for the whole team!

Another exciting development was that Rasin, one of our Cambodian staff members, began learning video editing. Until now, much of the production work has depended on support from overseas, but we're gradually building the skills needed for our Cambodian team to take on more of the production themselves.

Throughout August and September, we continued filming additional segments and editing the episodes, moving steadily closer to completing the program. We're all working hard to create something children can truly enjoy while learning. Stay tuned! 💪🏼

Khmer phrase & food

Khmer Word: Chaek Romlaek (to share)

It's used when sharing knowledge, experiences or ideas with others, and it's something we often talk about at TukTuk! Sharing is also one of the key ideas behind our CLIP4 project. Teachers who attend our workshops are now passing on what they've learned to other teachers in their communities. We're so happy to see this spirit of sharing gradually spreading! Why not try to chaek romlaek some of your own wonderful ideas or experiences with someone around you?

Khmer Food: Nom Pka (Flower Sweet) 👇

Finally, our first screening with children! 📺👧👦

We've been working hard on Sala Rean Sabey, but no matter how much we think we've created a fun program, we won't really know whether children enjoy it until we show it to them! So, on 15 and 17 September, we held our first pilot screenings at two kindergartens!

We showed Episode 19, themed around "Family", and Episode 14, themed around "Friends". We carefully observed how the children responded, which parts caught their attention and whether they joined in with the activities. The results were fascinating! The children's attention noticeably increased during songs, games and puppet scenes. On the other hand, when the presenters spent too long talking or explaining things, their attention began to drop. We also made a surprising discovery! Even when some children appeared not to be paying attention, we realised during the activities afterwards that they had actually been watching and taking in much more than we thought!

But one of the most encouraging moments came from the teachers' feedback. In the program, there are moments when Fy and Choven make small mistakes. Instead of getting upset, they simply laugh, recover and try again. After watching this, the teachers commented on how wonderful it was that the program showed children that making mistakes is okay. And here's the exciting part: that's exactly one of the messages we've been hoping to share through Sala Rean Sabey! We want children to understand that making mistakes is a natural part of learning, and that trying again is more important than getting everything perfect. The fact that the teachers recognised this message themselves, without us even explaining it, was incredibly rewarding!

Of course, we also discovered plenty of things we could improve. We quickly went back and re-filmed Episode 14, using the feedback to make the program even better. We're learning so much from the children's reactions, and we'll continue experimenting, improving and having fun as we work towards creating a program that makes learning truly enjoyable! 😊

Voluntuker spotlight | Teacher Robin

This time, we'd like to introduce Teacher Robin, a long-time supporter of TukTuk from the USA! Since her first visit in 2019, Teacher Robin has continued to follow and support our work, and this March, her long-awaited return to Pursat finally became a reality!

Q. What is your profession? I am a retired teacher who taught children with varying abilities, reading, and English as a Second Language. For the past eight years, I have been an international volunteer, volunteering in 10 countries in Asia and three in Africa. I have been teaching English as a Second Language as well as converting rooms at schools into English language libraries.

Q. What brought you back to Pursat this time? My first time there was so memorable, and I always knew I wanted to go back to Pursat. I was delighted to have the opportunity to write my first children's book and work with the preschool teachers on how to read the book with expression and come up with activities so the children could interact with the book.

Q. How did you find Pursat this time? Pursat was just as wonderful as ever! I hadn't worked with preschool children in a long time, and I'd forgotten how much I loved it. Being part of the TukTuk team was just as awesome as the first time. They were so helpful and willing to make anything I needed. "No" was never in their vocabulary! I was sorry I didn't have time to see the children I worked with during my first visit, but I was happy to meet one of the teachers again. She surprised me by showing me that she still had the lucky penny I gave her back in 2019!

Q. What did you do with the TukTuk team during your visit? The TukTuk team was an integral part of the book I wrote. They helped edit it, one of them was the illustrator, and they helped put it together. They also helped make all the materials I was preparing for the preschool teachers to make their teaching more exciting and improve classroom management skills. I will forever be grateful to Fy for translating every day of my teaching. He was just amazing and always had a smile on his face. I really enjoyed our time together.

Q. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your time with TukTuk? That's a really hard question because I enjoyed everything with TukTuk! I loved the meals we shared together. Yes, we had long hours in the office preparing for the teacher workshops, but we always found a way to smile and enjoy each other's company. I have to say the most exciting part was seeing the book I wrote in print. Doing the teacher workshops was exciting too! The TukTuk team is one that will always be in my heart. This adventure was totally different from just teaching English as a Second Language. But I do know this: whatever I do with the TukTuk team will be wonderful and an experience I will never forget. I love you all from the bottom of my heart and look forward to seeing you, hopefully in 2028.

Thank you so much, Teacher Robin! We are truly grateful for your warmth, enthusiasm and continued support over the years. A heartfelt thank you also goes to the Kiwanis Club and all the individual supporters who helped make these activities possible. We can't wait to welcome you back to Pursat! 😊

We're currently looking for volunteers who can help TukTuk bring educational resources to children in Cambodia, particularly in the following areas:

• Google Ads
• Fundraising
• Website Development
• Videographer

If you want to get involved or know someone with skills that could help us spread positive education in Cambodia, hit that link below and say hi (we're friendly, we promise). 😉

Get Involved ⇢

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