Retired teacher, Peter Lewinson, brings 40 years’ experience to his role as a tutor at Kisharon’s Adult Day Centre and Print and Bike Shop, where he teaches literacy, numeracy and life skills to 15 adults with learning disabilities, mostly on a one-to-one basis. He is a passionate and enthusiastic gentleman who has built positive relationships with each person, valuing them for who they are and encouraging them to develop skills that can be integrated into their daily lives and to enhance their inclusion into society.
He volunteers three full days a week including spending Fridays at Kisharon’s Tuffkid Nursery where he has set up a gardening project for both mainstream children and those with special needs.
Many of Peter’s students were left behind as children in the classroom setting and as adults, only have a very basic level of reading and maths skills. At home he prepares individual learning plans for each student because their needs are so varied. He assesses their work and adjusts their work plans if needed. As well as attending staff meetings, he holds training sessions enabling Kisharon staff to support the work he is doing with the students.
Peter teaches practical life skills. One student is unable to read and has difficultly calling his friends, other people are unable to count change and don’t feel comfortable shopping alone. These are the areas that Peter incorporates into his lessons.
Key to Peter’s success is his patience as it takes a lot of time for each adult to grasp any new material –this is a long, repetitive process. He puts time and effort into getting to know each student and understand what is going on in their lives. Peter feels the progress of the students and children is a result of the bond and relationship that he has built with each person – he has gained their trust and there is mutual respect on both sides.
A manager at Kisharon’s adult day services, said: “Peter has taken time to get to know each person that he is working with so that he is able to plan appropriately for them. Peter comes up with creative ways of learning such as using pictures of outings to prompt discussion and writing which the person can relate to. Everyone looks forward to having their session with Peter”.
In addition to the one to one tuition lessons across Kisharon’s Adult Services, Peter goes to Kisharon’s Tuffkid Nursery and works in the garden. The children are a vital part of the gardening work and improving their nursery environment, they are involved in planting plants and vegetables. Peter feels that it is imperative that the children do the gardening work and are part of the growing sequence. He wants them to enjoy gardening and feel its therapeutic attributions.
Peter is passionate about Kisharon but sees his volunteering as a self discovery as well. Every week, he learns more about each student, their lives, and their difficulties and how they overcome them.