At School in Kenya

Well.  Today is almost over.  At least I am now showered!  It is always a blessed relief to come home and wash off the layers of grime that cling after a day in an African school.  We had to walk home, as Jon was late in M’bale with the teachers.

 

 Having walked 50 minutes with my backpack containing my stuff plus Sarah’s laptop, a large cabbage, and 16 large bananas, I was pretty happy when Jon arrived close to the house and drove us the rest of the way!  

Manu hiding in a tea plantation 

It was a nice scenic walk back across the Kenyan countryside, with little tea plantations and mud huts (sorry, semi-permanent houses!) lining the way.

A very tidy African dwelling

Once home, I did some food prep for dinner (the aforementioned cabbage to go with leftover chilli), had a shower, and made the first batch of banana bread of the evening.  Which reminds me, I should put some water on to boil for drinking.  I am now lying on my bed in the mosquito net as one got me twice sitting on the couch and I do not like them, no I do not!

The children were... the children, today.  This morning I felt quite light headed - last night I had a terrible headache so it was probably just the tail end of that.  

Daycare kids

Spending the first half of the morning fighting to teach PP2(age5) anything at ALL was exhausting.  Especially at the beginner table that I was at!

“Write a letter n, Joshua.”

Joshua draws a P.

“No, write an n!” I demonstrate.

Joshua draws a W.

“N! N!” I take his hand holding his pencil and draw 6 ‘n’s in a row.

Joshua draws an I.

At this point I am tearing my hair out.  Finally after what seems like forever, he draws an ‘n’ correctly.

“Great!” I say.  “Now write a g!”

Joshua draws an N.

You sense my frustration?

After break, I was helping with Grades 1&2 and they were a little more responsive (the recorder lesson was hilarious!).  

Grades 1(L) and 2 (R) learning recorder

And then lunch, at which point you sit down thinking Thank The Lord A Break and five minutes after the children run into the church for their lunch (beans and rice) they all come pelting out raucously, all energy (it must be the beans) and there you go again... (with frequent calls of “Teacher!  This hit me!” And “Teacher, this will not share!”)

Alice swinging as high as she could

This afternoon, four of the African teachers went into M’bale leaving Sarah and I with the other three (Winnie, Esther and Rita)... and 100 children.  Actually maybe it was 1000 children I’m not sure, I kind of lost count.  I was assigned to PP2(age4) for art.  They had to colour a tree green (no NOT blue, Wilson!) and the trunk brown (why did you use red, Britney?) and then glue little red fruits on the tree (why did you glue the fruit below the tree, Abel?) and then draw Adam and Eve below that.  Some of the drawings vaguely looked human... most wouldn’t have been out of place in a sci-fi movie!  It is quite difficult as well when you are trying to explain something to one child while in every direction children are leaning over you, clamouring “TEACHER, TEACHER, TEACHER” at the top of their voices!

Clockwise from Top L: Gaitin, Melvin, Kent, Stephanie, two girls I’m not sure about but maybe Blessing and Precious, and Eric 

Manu climbing with Melvin watching 

Anyway, Sarah needs me to go do some more colouring reading pages, and I also need to make another batch of banana bread and finish off dinner... so that’s it, folks!