Imagine trying to explain how the carbon cycle works to seven-year old Jahora, a Somalian refugee. She speaks little English and has experienced more than most adults in her short life already.
"Many of the kids I have worked with have gone through more than I could ever imagine," sophomore Dorothy Knutsen said. "I've worked with kids who've had to take care of their younger siblings because they've been orphaned. I've also seen kids who've had to deal with the trauma from being raped or molested."
Knusten is a mentor at the Refugee Youth Project. While communicating complicated academic subjects may be difficult due to language and cultural gaps, she points out that it is important to also make the children feel comfortable in their new Baltimore environment.
Such is the aim of the Youth Refugee Project, which seeks to provide academic and social counseling to recently re-settled refugee children, whose ages vary from elementary school children to high school young adults.
"Many of these children do not know anyone else besides their own family in the Baltimore area and they are usually the only English speakers in their household." Knusten said. "So, it is important to make them feel welcome in America. I personally strive to help the kids I work with feel both comfortable academically and socially."
Working with under-privileged youth is nothing new for Knutsen, who spent three summers during her childhood, helping embattled children in Ukraine.
"I stayed in a girls' dormitory at a small orphanage in Ukraine when I was either ten or eleven," Knusten said. "I was an only child and my parents did not want to see me become a spoiled or na95ve American child. They wanted me to see what reality was and the problems that much of the world face."
She credits the experience with giving her the necessary skills for helping children like Jahora.
"I was able to socialize with most of the kids, who were mostly my age," Knusten said. "I met one girl, a few years older than me, who had raised her younger brother and sister since she was six years old. She had gone through so much, yet she was still just a normal teenager."
Marina Volfson, a senior, who worked with the Refugee Project last year, said that the children, despite traumatic backgrounds, have the typical interests of their generation.
"They are not any different from any other child. The girls want to talk about nail polish or TV shows. So there's not a huge cultural gap because American movies do get seen in much of Europe," said Volfson. "Many of the younger children are fairly well skilled in English, so that makes communication easier.
Volfson said that the children easily blend their newfound American culture with their roots from home.
"One day the program brought in a story teller to perform stories about Anansi the spider, which is a western African folktale," Volfson said. All the children were very enthusiastic to hear the stories told. It showed how they were willing to learn about a new culture or learn more about their roots, since many of the kids are of African descent."
While Knutsen stressed that she felt a strong commonality between herself and the children she works with, she said that there are some things that she tries to not emphasize.
"When I was in Ukraine, I learned that it was better to keep the conversation away from money or material possessions. It would make for an awkward exchange, as it would show the difference in our backgrounds," Knusten said. "We talked mostly about books, like Dracula, or movies. It is important to find a commonality which will help make them feel accepted."
She said that the slight language barrier also forced her to change her teaching and communication style in order to accommodate the circumstances.
"I tend to joke around a lot and sarcasm is a staple of how I communicate," Knusten said. "That kind of stuff doesn't really translate well, especially for new speakers of English. So I had to learn to explain concepts differently and be more patient with them, in order to get my intended message across."
Knutsen said that the ultimate joy she receives from working with under-privileged youth stems from the pure happiness they express from simple pleasures. Knusten remembers the joy she saw on a little boy when he saw a poster of Barney on the wall.
"When you see the kids happy, it makes everything worth it," said Knusten.
