‘Student Volunteer Army Fights The Decline Of Youth Volunteering With Koha For Kids Campaign’

Best known for their crisis response mobilisations, the SVA also teach and support volunteering at primary and secondary level, with over 25,000 primary students taking part via SVA Kids. This Te Wiki Tūao ā-Motu | National Volunteer Week, SVA are launching Koha for Kids, a campaign encouraging businesses to sponsor a class to join the SVA Kids programme to get involved in their local community.

A $100 donation will provide another kiwi primary school classroom a SVA Kit, which empowers the entire classroom to get involved and create their own volunteering project. This not only provides fantastic local benefits through the volunteering project, but also gets our tamariki interested and excited about giving back, setting them on a path of lifetime service.

Since the launch of SVA Kids in 2015, over 100,000 of New Zealand’s tamariki have participated in a volunteering project led and executed by themselves. Teachers are sent an SVA Kit with all the tools required for their students to plan out and do a project in their community. It has wonderful outcomes for both the students and those that they help. Students understand how their actions can influence the well-being of others or the environment and the world is a better place as a result of these actions.

As can be seen by the likes of the cleanup of the Canterbury floods last week, volunteering is still vital for our communities - the SVA is providing an integral service by teaching ākonga (students) how to self-organise, do so safely and to solve problems in their own backyard.

Lydia, a teacher using the SVA Kids kit said:

“What a fantastic program! Our tamariki were highly engaged in brainstorming ways to help their community. The box provided excellent resources to support thor thinking and made the learning tangible. By outlining a range of roles students could successfully analyse the benefit of delegating certain jobs to different people. This program effectively supports students’ understanding of the community and how they can be active participants”

Sam Johnson, Founder and Chief Executive of the Student Volunteer Army, said;

“We often get asked by local businesses and organisations how they can support the mahi of the SVA - Koha for Kids has been designed to help build those connections in communities. For $100, a classroom of primary school students will learn to use their skills in creative new ways, which benefits both themselves and their community in the long-term.”

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