Yarob’s first and core program: the first activity started here, it was the main reason the Association was founded, it was its first lasting success — and many board members and community leaders came out of it.
Roots and origins
The program belongs to the “youth work system” that emerged in 1973 from the International Summer Camp for Orphan Girls and Boys. The camp was founded by a group of volunteer UNRWA teachers, first run by the YMCA together with UNRWA, and since 2006 has been held by the Orphan Care Charity (Baqa’a Basin) with UNRWA; it celebrated its golden jubilee in 2026. Dozens of committees and associations working with the youth work system grew out of that summer camp, and this program continues that approach — developed and reimagined in its Yarob version.
Al-Bawasil works with a set number of children each year — between 200 and 300, aged 06–16, boys and girls — under a clear admissions policy with flexible criteria.
Admissions policy includes
Orphans
Children from broken families
High-achieving students
Sporting and artistic talent
Refugee groups
Holders of Gaza documents
Other cases that are not necessarily vulnerable
Al-Bawasil aims to protect children from the risks around them, give them social and human skills, and raise their awareness of culture, life and public issues — to strengthen educational, religious and national values and build an aware generation with a sense of belonging, able to change its personal and community reality.
Target groups are served through precise methodologies that have been tested, documented and developed, according to the following categories:
Masha’el methodology06 – 09
Rakem methodology10 – 13
Assistants team (Al-Huras)14 – 16
Youth Leadership methodology18 – 30
Rakem methodology — in detail
Rakem is an integrated program for children (10–13) in which every child builds a personality that is balanced in behaviour, emotions, social life and leadership, and able to take a positive part in their community.
Results chain — from impact to outputs
Impact: Children with a personality balanced in behaviour, emotions, social life and leadership
Outcome: A tangible, measurable improvement in behaviour, life skills and belonging, thanks to steady guidance from qualified staff and regular participation in activities and clubs
The outcome is reached through 7 outputs the program controls directly ↓
1. Selected children
A target group registered under transparent enrolment criteria — children reached and accepted
2. Rakem staff ready
Selected mentors, trainers and volunteers, trained and approved in line with the Code of Ethics
3. Matching complete
Groups (mentor + children) formed — ensuring steady guidance throughout the cycle
4. Activities delivered
Regular guidance and fun sessions to schedule — weekly attendance commitment
5. An active sports club
Varied sub-clubs (football, swimming, wrestling…) and representation in outside tournaments — target enrolment 20%
6. An active arts club
Sub-clubs (photography, voice-over, content creation, theatre) — regular exhibitions and competitions — target enrolment 80%
7. A documented close
A full evaluation, impact documentation and a graduation event that involves children and staff — documented success stories
Delivery path — from outreach to graduation
Stage 1
Choosing staff: Set enrolment criteria, open volunteering, train and commit to the Code of Ethics, approve mentor and trainer teams
Stage 2
Choosing children: Announce enrolment criteria, interview parents, hold a trial activity day, approve final lists
Stage 3
Matching (integration point): The staff and children tracks meet — each mentor is given a fixed group of children for the whole cycle
Stage 4
Delivery: Weekly national or religious guidance sessions + regular meetings with parents + fun activities — branching into the sports club (20%) and the arts club (80%)
Stage 5
Closing (integration point): A full post-evaluation, documented success stories, and a joint graduation ceremony for staff and children
Sub-methodologies
Sub-methodologies also run alongside the main ones, such as the social counselling approach, the Anan methodology, the Thurayya methodology and the Zahr Al-Rumman methodology.
Assistants team (Al-Huras)
The assistants team handles logistics and works alongside the field team in serving the children. It has its own dedicated program, run by Al-Huras Foundation for Sustainable Community Development, which gives it all the tools it needs.
Youth Leadership
Then comes Youth Leadership — every young man and woman who has volunteered in this program. Yarob’s role with them is to instil the value of research, experimentation, diversity, self-confidence and grounding in knowledge and experience. The program aims to give volunteers a safe, creative space and to encourage dialogue and social engagement through their work with children.
The program and all its methodologies run on the program-cycle system, much like a school year: enrolment opens every year, and children graduate at the end of the cycle.
+160
training hours per child
+160
hours of psychosocial support
+80
weekly activities across the cycle
Delivery models
Al-Bawasil runs on several models that change from time to time as needed, such as:
Rotation systemNational / religious / life skills / psychosocial support
Clubs systemPhotography / table tennis / IT / media / drawing / cooking / handicrafts / dabke theatre / choir / farming / voice-over / public speaking & poetry / content creation / computing / AI / and any new topic
Projects systemChildren choose a specific topic to work on for a whole cycle, such as: community tourism / technology / rights / content creation / community work
Stages systemEach activity works on one specialised topic; after four specialised activities the fifth is chosen by the children and the sixth is an initiative or project the children carry out, plus a combined fun activity for them
Alongside the main Friday activity, there are sub-activities during the week, such as field visits, exploration trips, outings, psychological support circles and more.
A methodology that discovers children’s talents and then refines and develops them from hobby to mastery, helping children express who they are through their talent.
Groups that grew out of it
1Hanouneh Yarob Dabke TroupeIn partnership with Al-Hanouneh Society for Popular Culture
2DrawingIn partnership with Etar Fanni Foundation
3Public speakingIn partnership with Al-Huras Foundation for Sustainable Community Development
4TheatreIn partnership with Khashabat Al-Masrah Foundation for the Arts
5ChoirIn partnership with Crescendo Music
6Cultural, artistic and literary initiativesThey carried on as youth groups, such as the Anqa’ Al-Ramad Troupe, which has become an inspiring, knowledgeable reference for every group working in arts and culture
Who we serve in Thurayya
In Thurayya we serve dozens of boys and girls aged 10–16 by immersing them in art — as a tool for social change and better mental health, and as a way of preserving national heritage.
It also encourages personal growth through art, which shows in individual taste, social progress and family influence, and is one of the most important tools of self-expression for individuals and groups.
Thurayya combines specialisation with theory: each child joins the hobby they chose based on their interests and talent and learns it properly. In folk dabke, for example, a child learns why we dance dabke, how to dance it, and how dabke relates to the land, the people, folk heritage, history and identity.
