A volunteer program in Athens organizes play dates for migrant children and gives them access to education. The volunteers take children out to play and meet with local children at public schools.
The group METAdrasi, working under the auspices of the 'Open Schools of the Municipality of Athens' project, took a group of 700 migrant children to various schools within the city center earlier this week, as well as in the eastern Aegean islands of Lesvos ad Chios.
METAdrasi vies to promote integration
''The aim of METAdrasi is to emphasize the education of children outside the hotspots and inland locations, in order to facilitate their smooth integration into the formal school system'', said METAdrasi's president Laura Pappa.METAdrasi's philosophy states that the ''integration of migrants and refugees into society starts in the classroom'' and migrant children enjoyed lessons and creative play with their Greek counterparts.Students attend mainly Greek, mathematics and English lessons, following mainly the successful migrant education program set up by the ministry of education, with lessons held also at schools on the islands of Lesvos and Chios.
''The number of children who remain locked up for long periods in the hotspots of the islands is high, many of whom have never been to school, but all of them want to learn, play and grow together with children of their ages,'' said Anastasia Karagiannis, education officer at METAdrasi in Chios.''We were incredibly touched by the yearning we saw among the children as they waited to start lessons on the very first day, forming queues from a long time ahead of lessons; and they come every day with the same enthusiasm. The parents also visit us often, asking about the progress of their children'', added Karagiannis.
One boy, an 8-year-old from Syria named Samir, who was waiting with his new friends for his lesson to begin, said: ''I am glad to have notebooks and pencils and I am learning to write; ''Greek is difficult, but my teachers are good and they help me.Mathematics is like a game!'' The METAdrasi group is also making efforts to support children with special needs so that they are not excluded from the educational programs.Konstantinos Karakouzidis, who oversees METAdrasi's activities in Lesvos, said: ''We have identified and referred children with special educational needs so that they can fit into an appropriate educational framework as soon as possible.''
More migrants reach eastern Aegean islands
Meanwhile, in related developments, according to official figures released on Tuesday, over 500 migrants have reached eastern Aegean islands in the last four days.This new influx, which has followed a two-week lull in arrivals, is being attributed to Turkish authorities by local Greek police officials, who claim that Turkey is allowing a small number of people to get through.Camps on the Aegean islands of Lesvos, Chios and Samos remain massively overcrowded despite recent lulls and transfers to the mainland as the two-year anniversary of the joint EU-Turkey agreement on March 16 draws nearer.