Volunteer to Learn: Guiding your Children's Education through Volunteerism

The number of lessons learned through volunteering are only limited by the opportunities explored within your community, country, or world.  Thankfully, the number of opportunities is huge.  Military families are already used to the concept of service, and in fact, you are already involved in a charity organization, or feel strongly about a few right off the top of your head, but this is an opportunity for your children to find their own exciting path to service. 

No matter what the activity, no matter what the level of involvement, your child will have the opportunity to learn first-hand what it means to be of service in their community; the inherent value of hard work; and the importance of working hard.  Your children will be able to learn unique skills related to the particular types of service they choose, from writing persuasively, to planting a garden, to planning an event, even running scientific tests.  Moreover, more than any other summer  activity in this blog, children will learn what your family cares about, and have an opportunity to explore what causes they think important. 

Younger Learners:  When selecting service for younger volunteers, choose an organization that takes families as volunteers, and get the whole family involved.  Be mindful of the time requirement, and don't sign up for something that might take longer than an hour or two.  Light labor activities like planting a garden, or handing out supplies and food will give younger learners the tactile, hands-on fun that they crave.  To maximize learning, have a talk with them about why this particular cause is important to your family, and ask them after whether they think they were able to help.

Older Learners:  Older learners will not be as entertained by some of the mundane aspects of service jobs.  They might find more engagement in organizing and event planning activities.  Also, while they will listen to suggestions, I am sure they will want to have a big hand in selecting the organization they work with.  Older learners should be encouraged to take on larger challenges working with the organization, such as making calls to potential donors, or writing letters for grants.  In order to maximize learning, ask children to keep a written, photo, or video diary of their experiences: their feelings about how they contributed, notes on how the organization works, people they met, and activities they participated in. With any luck, they can use that information for a project or essay during the school year. Keep an eye out for organizations that sponsor teen days, or specifically look for teen volunteers.

English Language Learners:  Volunteerism, for this learning group, is an excellent opportunity to feel confident in the language they have already learned, as well as the new one.  It is easy to get discouraged when immersed in a new language, and to feel that you are underachieving.  By working as a volunteer, translating conversations or documents, or in service to other bilinguals in need, your child has an opportunity to see how much they've really learned, and how far they've come.

Learning Disabled:  Children who have learning disabilities should have little problem doing the same volunteer activities as their peers or siblings.  If your child has problems concentrating, keep activities short, or choose activities that switch responsibilities frequently.  If your child has trouble socializing, choose activities where interaction with others is minimized.  As it is with language learners, volunteerism is an excellent opportunity for students with learning disabilities to work within their own communities.  If your child is minimally disabled, they can work with others who have more severe learning disabilities, in day to day needs, tutoring, or just for moral support to release another disabled learner from the solitude that many suffer.

My Suggestions:
 
MCSS Readiness and Community Support has a Volunteer Program Coordinator, looking for volunteers of all types.  "No act of kinds, no matter how small, is ever wasted." Phone: (760) 725-3856  Email: mcb.campen.volunteer@nmci.usmc.mil

The City of Oceanside also offers a directory of volunteer opportunities.  Highlights include their teen partners programs and their harbor and beaches programs.

If you are looking for something in particular, something unique, or really don't know where to begin, Volunteer Match might be a great place to start.  They are a nationwide volunteer opportunity directory, and more.  You can do a search by city, or by topic.

Finally, Check out the Camp Pendleton Patch events page for other ways to get involved!