Lert Sa Wat Nursery cares for an average of 30 rural children from the ages of 3-6. They attend Monday to Friday in term time.
Before the Lert Sa Wat Nursery opened in 2003, young children were left with elderly relatives or to fend for themselves while their parents went to work. Children from poor rural families were totally unprepared for school and found it hard to catch up.
New starters often arrive at the Lert Sa Wat Nursery malnourished, unable to talk or dress themselves. Within weeks, a good diet and happy environment transforms them. They learn how to relate to other children, and are taught independence skills and personal hygiene. The Nursery curriculum is based upon the child-centred Montessori system. Primary School teachers are impressed by the good foundations given by Lert Sa Wat.
A typical day starts sometime after 8am when the Lert Sa Wat pick up does an hour’s round trip collecting children from remote farms and the stone carving district. Other families deliver their children to the Nursery on the back of a motor bike.
At 9am everyone lines up in front of the flag for the National Song, which is sung at all schools in Thailand. Afterwards, everyone is given a drink of milk followed by lessons with teachers Prapaipit, Nong and Gung. It is then time to wash hands in preparation for lunch.
Lunch is in two sittings, first the younger ones who tire more easily, then the older ones and lastly the staff. Cook Ooy has over 30 years experience in preparing nutritious food for Nursery children. A hungry child cannot think properly, so Lert Sa Wat makes sure children eat well. In most Nurseries, one egg would be shared by 3 children. At Lert Sa Wat they have an egg each. All lunches includes both meat and vegetables. Sometimes there is little left by the time adults sit down to eat, so Ooy has to prepare extra for them.
The children clean their teeth, then they can play outside on the climbing frame, roundabout and swings, until it is time to collect their mattress and pillow for a sleep. Many of the children stay up late at night as they are with their parents selling things in the market or at food stalls by the road, so this ensures they get plenty of rest. They wake up for a drink and some fruit or Thai sweet, the older ones receive their homework, they collect their bags, and at 3pm the pick up sets off to take them home again.
Visitors to Lert Sa Wat are impressed by the happy learning environment and well behaved children, all looking smart in their red and white uniforms.
During the COVID pandemic, the work continued with the staff following Thai Covid restrictions. Facemasks are still mandatory. In 2021-22 the Nursery had to be closed due to COVID restrictions; however, Nong set and marked work online for the Nursery children throughout. Although the Christmas party 2021 had to be cancelled, the children all received Christmas gifts and all sponsored children continued to receive their sponsorship money. In May 2022 the Nursery re-opened with a smaller number of children. Parents are requesting a place for their children for next year already.