Cambodian Children's Destiny | Volunteer in a Cambodia School

I recently volunteered at Cambodian Children’s Destiny for the month of January 2019. The village of PhumO is small and “authentic” and is located 1 hour from Siem Reap. My experience there was rewarding and humbling. The children, school staff and Buddhist monks were very accommodating and respectful to me, always assuring that my needs were met. I stayed at the school. The children were very eager to learn at all times. I was taken on local tours to make sure my Cambodian experience was rich with local culture and sites. You can get your big city “fix” by going to Siem Reap on the weekends to experiences the big city and visit the large local markets and temples. I met many lovely people that will forever be in my heart. When I left to come home it was like leaving my family behind. This experience is well worth your time!

Due to a fortunate set of circumstances I ended up visiting Cambodian Children's Destiny English school whilst on a break from teaching in Australia during the September holidays.
As an educator it was so encouraging to see both the optimism of the staff and the supporting expats and the level of professionalism that they are striving to incorporate into everything they do.
The founder Sokhun, and it seems his extended family and community, make you feel so welcomed and valued. My husband and I even had special time with the teachers and friends to explore the local dam area and were included in the cultural life of the village when we visited the local pagoda during Pchuem Ben celebrations.
Needless to say that as soon as I returned home to the Gold Coast in Australia, I booked tickets to return to help out in a greater capacity for a further 3 weeks in December.(My hubby will join for one week)
The children in my class in Australia have been collecting and making things to send over and have loved hearing about this amazing school, about the founder Sokhun's selfless work and dream to leave the world a better place by helping the children of his village learn English and for the school to one day be a model of sustainability and self reliance.
Just spending time with this wonderful group of people and the student's is nourishing for your soul, and believe me you will want to come back.
I will be doing a part-time home stay at a local village house during the week and spending the weekends in Siem Reap in December.
Book the flight, enjoy conversing with the students and experience a unique side to Cambodia!
Kate

What an amazing experience while helping in the school. We went in thinking we were there to teach as we are teachers but came away learning far more than we could ever teach. Teaching the children was just as fun as learning new things from them. We were lucky enough to take some resources over to the school and the children drew some pictures for us that we were able to bring back to our school and share the experience with the children at home. Amazing children, people and families. Can't wait to go back and see all the progress. Truly the most wonderful experience of my life.