Happy October!!

So much for getting into a routine. Kayla and I, instead of just working with one class each, have almost taken over the Standard 6 class, as well as still teaching English in Standards 4 & 5. The reason for this is that Mr. Maniya, the teacher, has been sick for the last 2 weeks. Last week, when they asked Kayla and I to cover for a bit, we usually just did review work or played games with them because we didn’t have lessons to plan. On Tuesday, though, when they asked Kayla and I to cover the class, we decided to teach them, and not just the English and Math that we’d been doing. Kayla took ‘Social & Environmental Sciences’ and I did ‘Agriculture’. We split the learners into 2 groups and taught our respective lessons. What a difference it made to only be teaching to 30 students instead of 60! Though there were still some issues, it seemed to work for all the learners and it was a different way for them to experience learning.

The rest of the week (Wednesday & Thursday) had a fairly similar routine. Kayla & I would teach English in the morning, then after break we both went into Standard 6 and split them into 2 groups. We don’t have any idea what will happen on Friday (usually an assessment day) because neither of us know what to prepare for the learners to be tested on. We both are sticking to only assessing our classes for right now.

There was a sign outside today (I’m typing this up on Thursday) that said there will be a ‘Jumping Castle’ for the students on Friday. Kayla & I are thinking that it is a bouncy castle, similar to what we have in America, but we’re not sure & no one else seems to know for sure what it is either (we asked some of the teachers & Dorothy hadn’t ever heard of it). There is also a company that sells books to the children that will be stopping by. Though it is great to know that the students have an opportunity to purchase books; it is unfortunate in the way the books are handled. The company brings in large bags filled with books & empties them onto the floor in the Church Hall. Some of the books are missing pages, written in, torn, etc. The students just rummage through, looking for a book that would interest them and that they can afford. Last summer, I bought ‘Maniac Magee’ (a great children’s story) for 100 Kwacha (which is less than one US dollar).

This week, Kayla and I met the Chairman for the orphanage that the church here helps to support. He was very eager for us to visit the orphanage and encourage the girls there to continue their education. Many of them do not even want to finish primary, let alone try to complete secondary. Kayla and I are thinking that this could be a way for us to have more 1-on-1 interactions with some students; we would both really enjoy mentoring some girls at the orphanage and know that we made a difference to them during our time here. We are hoping to visit the orphanage this Friday, but we will see what our schedule brings.

This Saturday is the commissioning service for the ‘Prayer House’ (that’s what they call the church) in Mombezi (about an hour from us). I am super pumped for this service and to meet more people. I’m sure I’ll have lots to share with you next week about this experience.

Thank you for your continued thoughts & prayers. I have been feeling much better this week & am glad to have the sore throat behind me. J

Have a wonderful weekend!