Gruppi di volontariato vincenziano - AIC Italia - Milano - CAG Irda

Irda Youth Center, active since 1989, is an educational and youth center (Centro di Aggregazione Giovanile-CAG ,in Italian), affiliated to the Associazione Gruppi di Volontariato Vincenziano - AIC Italia, which over the years has played an important role in the social and educational life of the youth in Milan. The center aims to answer to all those challenges arising both from problems related to the personal experiences of the youngsters and from the social context in which they grow, which produces phenomena of scholastic early dropout and/or deviant behavior, that lead to the loss of self-esteem and disillusionment with their own future. Irda Centre therefore aims to create a protected and serene space, which enables a positive development of the personalities of youngsters, increases their self-confidence and promotes integration. The target group is young people between 8 and 18 years old, particularly residents in the neighborhood. The structure can receive up to 35 youngsters daily. The main activities are: 1)school support (sostegno scolastico): to prevent early school dropout and to support the beneficiaries in their educational path. The service is targeting primary and secondary school students and is open Monday to Friday from 2.30pm to 5pm, while for primary school children on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.The main goal is to offer a space to study and where they can find the necessary help to carry out the assigned tasks and to achieve autonomy. Another objective is to maintain constant relations with the schools attended by students, with the main intention of giving consistency and organicity to our work. 2)workshops: they are mostly recreational activities of non-formal education that allow, in addition to learning, the development of personal qualities such as self-esteem, curiosity, patience, creativity. They constitute a structured leisure space, in which youngsters themselves can manage activities under the supervision of professional educators. Workshop activities are varied: they can be artistic and expressive, created to develop creativity and to explore alternative means of communication (such as spray art, drawings, stencils, creative writing, poetry); practical, focused on manual skills (such as DIY, bakery, information technology, leather creations); they can be based on socialization such as musical, theatrical or dancing expression, through which they can work on self-awareness, the acceptance of others, and they learn how to positively manage their emotions; finally, they can be cultural, to facilitate the meeting of youngsters and their exchange. 3) free aggregation (libera aggregazione, in Italian): The Center is open Monday to Friday for all teens in the neighborhood, including regular beneficiaries (but not only) of the Center. This is a space which sees them protagonists, where they can freely propose activities of their interest such as listening to music, dancing, games, cooking etc. The educator has the role of observer and stimulus in case of need, always in compliance with the rules of the Center. 4)sports activities: both independently and in collaboration with other CAG of Milan, sports activities are organized, providing what for many guys is the only opportunity to be able to practice sports. Core activities for a complete mental and physical development of young people, courses, events and various sports tournaments on different types of sports are organized on regular basis: for examole footall, volleyball, basketball. 5) community garden: it is a project that aims to engage children in a practical activity, which empowers them, helps them create a more balanced relationship with nature and makes them cooperate with the rest of the local community. 6) trips, excursion, camps, both in the city and outside. They are extremely important moments, not only to let them discover their own country, but also to ensure reinforcement of the group and the possibility for youngsters to exp