Three AquaTerra volunteers ran Speech Ready at Ek Tara this May, helping 35 children take their first steps toward speaking comfortably in front of others. Short prompts and impromptu topics gave kids a low-stakes way to practice finding their words on the spot.
Nerves were obvious early on, but so was the improvement, by the second or third turn, most children were speaking with noticeably more ease. Volunteers kept the tone encouraging, treating every attempt as progress.
By the end, a room that started out shy was full of children eager to raise their hands and speak again.