A crowd of children, a coach is facing them. He picks a child and positions himself behind it. He throws a ball from behind over the child's head, who catches it with both hands. Simple. Second part: "Now watch out! Don't take it personally, but you'll never make it. And anyway, you're no good, you're a big loser!" Another throw. The ball falls to the ground. Part three: "Well, that was really mean of me. I take it back. You can do it! You're clever, strong and fast! You'll definitely catch the ball!" Third throw - caught!

This experiment is great fun for the children and, thanks to an extra portion of love and encouragement, leaves no lasting traces on the courageous volunteer in the experiment, showing how words have a formative effect on children in their development.

Our prevention projects in South America aim to make children strong and give them a healthy sense of self-esteem. The stories from our Punto.com prevention program in Lima, Peru, show how crucial verbal encouragement is in this process.
 

"You are pretty!"

said one of the team members at the prevention program in Lima to Lucia. No one had ever said that to her before. Now Lucia is beaming with a new sense of self-esteem.

"Well done!"

Xavier threatened to seriously disrupt the children's afternoons at Punto.com with extreme behavioral problems and concentration disorders. He often annoyed the other children. Instead of scolding him, the team decided to reinforce his good behavior with recognition. Xavier was praised for every effort, no matter how small, and for every learning success. After just a few times, he found it easier to follow instructions and keep his aggression in check. He and the other children can now enjoy the workshops in a whole new way.

"Do you sometimes feel scared?" 

Fear of the dark or nightmares - Punto.com also addresses issues that children struggle with. Together they can talk about them and - if they like - have the team pray for them. Many children have lost their fears in this way.