Melembe Everyone!
I’m picking up on some Lukisu/Lumaasaba! My favorite phrase so far: Kaasula (no worries). The locals still laugh, but they appreciate the effort. They make an effort to speak English too. Almost every child knows, “Mezungu, How awe yooou?” Everywhere you go, you almost feel like a celebrity.
I don’t know where time has gone lately. I’ve been busy with the school and traveling! Lots of adventures, and misadventures…
At school:
AAH has this event every year called the Reading Challenge. Arlington Traditional School in Virginia (our sister school) also holds the same event each year. Basically, we ask students to keep a reading journal and challenge them to read 53 books in 3 months. Vicky, Emily and I worked on the official “Kick-off” event to present the whole theme to the school. “Reading is a Treat All Across Africa” is the theme for this year. Each student was given a “passport” to document the books they read, and they are asked to read the information about all 53 countries in Africa. We went into each class and presented the event, and read a story to begin the challenge.
We also had a big celebration at school to celebrate the 4th of July and AAH’s 6th year of existence. I was surprised that America’s independence day would be celebrated here, but the Board of AAH, and all the staff here look at it as a way to thank ATS in the States for all they have done. It was a pretty extravagant celebration, complete with a 6-hour assembly of song, dance, speeches, and guests of honor. Afterwards, we had dinner and a party for the teaching and FIMRC clinical staff.
Vicky and I have been working a lot in the library. We reorganized the whole library to make it more user friendly for the teachers and the students. We’ve also added new materials, donations, teaching guides, etc. and we are setting up an inventory system. We just got a money from USAid so we were able to purchase new text books, which are much needed! Now we’re working on designing a “Kids Corner” with a mural on the wall, some pillows, stuffed animals, and big picture books so the P1 and P2 students can have their own place. I keep relating back to my first grade days with Mrs. Brown and remembering all the cool things we did and I wish we had the funds to do some of them here.
We had a staff meeting and discussed what Vicky and I would be able to contribute. Most of the curriculum is strictly aligned with the Ugandan Government, so we don’t have much room for lessons that are not part of national textbooks. The kids are tested 3 times a year and are then ranked nationally. AAH is consistently in the top 5 scores in the country, so they take exams very seriously.
We also started making lesson plans to teach first aid, and I am helping with some lessons in sustainable development. We have started doing reading groups with students who are struggling in reading and English. Most of the time I work with younger kids (P1-2), but today we started reading a book with P 7 and will do a whole unit on the book. I have to assign homework to seventh graders! This is shocking! They are all so willing to work, and eager to learn. It’s a nice change from trying to teach 5 and 6 year olds how to read when English is their second language. They are SO cute, but trying to get a group of P 1 boys to sit still and read was one of the hardest things I’ve done here. Not exactly a success, but I’m working on it!
In other news:
So far I have enjoyed my experience to the fullest. The other volunteers at the Guest House are amazing people and we have all become close friends. Right now we are at capacity with 14 of us living in the Guest House. It’s like a revolving door of people in and out, but there are four of us who are here for the summer. We are going on a safari in a few weeks, I can’t wait!
More updates on:
White Water Rafting in the Nile
Kayaking on Lake Victoria
Outreach projects in Bupoto
PS We just got a wireless router so I have more access to the internet! YAY!
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