Story of a young Amerasian girl. ( by Rick Smolan, photographer)

I am inspired by people who do not pass by the people who need help. They start projects that affect the minds and hearts of people. And bring this project to the end. Deeds, not words adorn the human. Let's learn to do the projects! And our lives are filled with meaning :)

Personal Photo books for orphans

Cover of the photo book. 

     I want to share with you one idea. Last year we thought that we should make personal photo books for orphans. But we could made only one book for one child - Sasha Ismailov, I wrote about him below. But I think it's a great idea! It's amazing present for child! not only for the orphans but for any child. We want to describe different parts of life of the child, may be use old photos from his childhood (if child has them), also include there photographes made by me and things this child is interested in. 
     You can see below a few pages from the photobook we made for Sasha. We put there his fairy tales (wrote on lessons of the Fairy tale therapy with Alexandra), Sasha's song ( we ask our friend wrote music for Sasha's poem), also we wrote inspiring  words especially for him. 

This book size - 20 sm x 20 sm, 38 pages. Name - "The beginning of a long journey".
Only problem is money. Such personal photo book is not chip. But we're looking for the donations and we plan to make such photo books for orphans in future.
   P.S.  Sasha Ismailov lives in Republic of Adugea (Russia) and this photo book are also there ))

Page with Sasha's fairy tale. We scanned paper with fairy tale and his picture.

Sasha, people from his orphanage and inspirational quote

Sasha learns in the Cossack Cadet School and we put there photos with cossacks

Photo studio for children "The Light" in the Orphanage #24. Moscow.

     I started work in the orphanage and yesterday I spent my first lesson there. I worried very much. I prepared. Red books, red my own diaries and notebooks.  And think, think and think! What I should to do, how I should talk to children and in which manner? It’s not just lessons for them and for me. It’s very important. I wish my photo lessons will be “fresh air” for them! They need attention to their personality very much. And I want to help them open their mind. I want to show them freedom, real friendship, kindness, respect and DESIRE TO CREATE. They should have desire to create not only photos but their life and themselves!

     Many ideas I took from book by Johannes Itten “Design and form: the basic course at the Bauhaus”. It’s a great book for designers and artists. And there Itten describes his teaching method. I reflected a lot about Itten’ method and I try to make these ideas a reality in my photo studio. By the way I called it “The Light”. Now I have 2 groups of teenagers (11 children in each one) and 1 group of children of secondary school age (8 children). 

     I planned teach children to be open to the World, to feel their responsibility for that planet, society and themselves. Every week I will give them “food for thought”, I want to wake up their Personality, their Mind. And I will do it through The Photography. They all are at the beginning of their life and I know that I can change their lives. I hope… You can connect with me if you want to do the same things. We could help each other by our experience and our ideas. It will be very interesting for me! 

     Also I want to share with you Johannes Itten ideas:

1.     Above all the Teacher should release and enhance the imagination of pupils. Release their creativity. 

2.    Respect for people is the beginning and the ultimate goal of any education.

3.    See natural gifts and temperament of people and reveal them.

4.    Person must develop harmoniously. All sides: physical, spiritual, intellectual, sensual.

Photo by Romualdas Rakauskas

Photo study group. Orphanage.

Wednesday. 5/10/2011. 
It was my first visit to the orphanage where I will start my photo circle for children... I was like little rabbit. I'm not a professional teacher... But I took myself in my own hands! And say: Be strong!
There was nice atmosphere and I hope, everything will be good.
It was Teacher's Day and I took photos.  

 Music was from film "Step Up". 7 class. 

Summer "Good habits camp" for children

     If you’re interested in children education, worry about morality, want to teach children ecology and healthy way of life and so on….If you want to teach kids good way of life….Then there is a great idea to open camp (summer, winter, autumn and spring). And there you can set your rules, good and right rules! You as Director show good example and….I think you know – all depends on the head!

In yellow T-shirt (behind Sasha) - Vladimir ( The Director of this camp).

     And we ( I, Alesia and Masha) were in such camp. Vladimir ( The Director) can’t get over the fact that all the smoke around, drink, say terrible words and do nothing…  And he decided to open “Good Habits Camp”. Vladimir and his crew show children healthy, active and interesting way of life.  This camp is not large (maybe 30 kids). All depends on money…It’s not easy. But it’s a great pleasure and profit for these 30 kids!

Sasha Ismailov likes it very much. And also it’s good for him to have normal social contacts. This camp placed near Moscow. But we could wish to see not only one but a great number such places))  Ordinary educators in camps look after physical conditions but not moral and creative ones.

Patronage of orphans

Sometimes miracles happen… I  think so when I remember one boy, Sasha Ismailov. Alesia met him in Adygea, the republic of Russia, in 2010. This was orphanage.  Sasha immediately impressed Alesia. He was 14 years old. He grown up in terrible conditions, but he wrote kind, sensible poems and tales. Sasha opened himself in fairy tales which he wrote in Alesia’s project “Fairy tale therapy”. Alesia and Sasha became friends. After Alesia came back from Adygea they continued communication and… He comes  to us in January 2011. It was amazing holidays for him! He was nowhere except for his small town… Alesia prepared a great interesting program for all 10 days. We showed him our way of life, shared our thoughts. He knew only one way of life… not good… But we try to give him a chance for better life. He’s already adult (15 years old), we can’t change him, but we can help him to do the right choice.

Sasha visited us again this summer. We talked about everything; he’s so clever and smart! Also he was in summer camp for 3 week. It was very interesting, I talk about it later.. ))

Alesia and Sasha. Summer 2011, Moscow

It’s a great idea to help such teenagers! They have no support from parents. We are not parents but we could become real good friends for them!  They just start their life and we could help them  don’t do silly mistakes.

Fairy Tale Therapy.

Studies was in the library

  What can do author of fairy tales in the orphanage ? Of course to help children dream and write different fairy tales! Alesia worked with children of the one moscow orphanage from Oktober 2010 to May 2011. I know for someone fairy tale therapy sounds not so seriously. But they are wrong. 

   Fairy tale therapy is a unique method of psychological, moral and spiritual support for children. Such therapy considers fairy tales as a way of character education, as opportunity for discussion and solution of psychological and social problem of any person, as a way to develop positive and socially active thinking. Fairy tale therapy helps children understand themselves, and thus creates a sense of psychological security and allows children to develop their inner creative abilities and vital resources.

My project " Open yourself " for the orphans.

Children impressed by their photo albums )

I started this project with one russian charity. We want to help orphans open theirselves. I showed kids their beauty and  unique personality. Many orphans react to pictures of themselves with surprise and delight because they have never seen such a thing before. We try to make every child feel that he is the center of attention, that he himself is someone important, someone needed, someone beautiful and capable of laughter. These children need to believe that their future will be better than their present. We always tell them, “You do have a chance. You can do anything because you are the best!”