Reinventing the play day

About 140 university students spent their Saturday morning swinging across monkey bars, building block towers and hopping in moonbounces to teach a group of youngsters some valuable life lessons.

These volunteers serve as role models for kids enrolled in the kineseology department's Children's Developmental Clinic, where they help developmentally delayed children sharpen their motor, language and reading skills during four-hour sessions for nine consecutive Saturdays.

While student volunteers hail from all fields of study — education, kinesiology and family science are the most common— many said they were drawn to the program for the same reason.

"I came because I like helping kids," said senior microbiology major Gaelle Njonkou. "If we can help them improve their life and play like other children their age, I think that would be something very good."

About 85 kids — infants to 13-year-olds — registered to participate in the clinic, which runs for nine weeks each semester. Each child partners with one student volunteer, or two for some children with autism, for the duration of the clinic, and they met their buddies this weekend.

Each Saturday, the participants receive at least one hour of motor development training. Depending on each child's needs, they may spend another hour building their motor skills, or instead hone their language or reading abilities for the remainder of the session, according to Dennis Vacante, the adjunct kinesiology professor and Prince George's County Public Schools teacher who has run the clinic for 30 of its 40 years.

Additionally, all the volunteers attended two four-hour training sessions before the first clinic for briefings on safety measures and to become familiar with the childrens' various needs.

"It's important for [the kids] to know that even though this is a fun place to be, you can't just do whatever you want," Vacante said.

Junior microbiology major Scola Muriuki said spending time with the same child every week enriches her understanding of that child's needs and allows her to help her partner learn more effectively. She added that the clinic often exposes many of the kids to social situations that transport them outside their comfort zones and ultimately teaches them how to interact amicably with their peers.

"We are able to understand them, to help them with social skills, like to talk with another kid, play or share their toys," she said. "It's a good start for them."

Though the volunteers' work isn't always as easy as playing a game of tag, the clinic provides the children with a well-rounded base for social, intellectual and physical development, Vacante said.

"We realize there's times that'll be challenging," Vacante said. "What they'll do is set up games and teach them how to take turns, share equipment, any kind of social skills, really."

Freshman letters and sciences major Clare Bubniak said seeing the children enjoy learning makes her time at the clinic more than worthwhile.

"I thought it'd be a really cool opportunity to just hang out with kids," she said. "It's been a blast. You can really see how much the kids who are returning appreciate the people they've met here."

kirkwood@umdbk.com