I am because we are

“Our most basic common link is that we all inhabit this small planet. We all breathe the same air. We all cherish our children’s futures. And we are all mortal.”

–John F. Kennedy 1963

Change. Not many people are okay with the word or the action. Personally, I think change is good. It’s fine to be scared of change, to feel unsure, but at the end of the day you have to realize that everything in our life changes. On the flight back to New York, I watched a documentary called “I Am Because We Are.” It was written and produced by Madonna, and brings to life the situation in Malawi Africa, the third most impoverished country in the world. In the film, she highlights the amount of children who have lost their parents from HIV Aids. Out of the 12 million people living in Malawi, one million are orphan children. As I watched, I began to think about my experience working in the township. In the beginning, I was worried that I should be back in America helping out on my own soil. Selfishly, I want to travel the world and would have probably gone to teach anywhere but in the United States. This documentary depicts how no matter where we are, or what we do, we are all humans. We all need food and water to live, we all need shelter to keep us warm and we all “bleed the same color”. By helping the children of South Africa, I am helping our world. We all live in this world together and we should all want to make it a better place. As cliché as it sounds, I honestly just want to be a part in changing the world and making it better. The thought of going back home to “reality”, to work and find a new apartment in the big city is exciting…but I’m not sure it’s what I “need” anymore. Every person in this world needs a chance and in the situations that I’ve seen and experienced over the past month, not everyone gets a chance. At the Wes-Eind school there were several boys who would walk around all day long. No one told them to go to class, they misbehaved whenever they were in class, and could not even add and subtract. When Nick and I asked a group of them why they’re never in class they would shrug, laugh and not seem to care. We asked them what they want to do when they grow up and they just laughed. One of the boys responded by saying he’s just going to work on a farm…. most likely following in his parent’s footsteps. The other two boys didn’t really even have a response. There is no one around to tell them to dream big…. to even dream for that matter. No one shows them that there is more to this life and that they can be confident, intelligent and successful. These kids, and every child need to be told to dream. The problems in this township and the majority of the impoverished parts of Africa are obviously far beyond my measure and control, but if everyone took some time out of their day to pay attention to the world around them, we will all help each other. All it takes is change. I’d like to be that change. Think about it, I am because we are.

So I leave Africa knowing that I’ve helped in some small way, but that it’s just not enough. I plan on working for The Kusasa Project again in the near future and trust me… I will be back.

Last Days of School

On August 5^th and 6^th Nick and I had one of the hardest jobs of this volunteering experience… saying goodbye to the kids and staff at Dalubuhle and Wes-Eind Primary Schools. When we arrived at Dalubuhle, all of the students and faculty congregated in their gym/cafeteria room. The teachers spoke to the students in Xhosa, the students said a prayer, and then we heard our names…”Miss Jen and Mr. Nick.” One of the teachers turned to us and said the school’s choir (we didn’t even know they had one) has prepared a few songs to say goodbye to us. In that moment, before they even started singing, I felt that feeling in my stomach and knew the tears were about to flow. After they sang a few songs for us, one of the other teachers told us we had to go in the middle and stand before the entire school. When we did, a teacher we had never even met greeted us and said the most wonderful things about how they were grateful to have us at their school for the month and how they’d never forget what we’ve done. (Insert tears now) Then she proceeded to wrap a beautiful beaded necklace around my neck and bracelet on nicks wrist. It might be the most meaningful gift I have ever received. I will cherish it forever. After a few photos with some students and faculty, the children went back to class, and we drove away in The Kusasa van.

Our goodbye at Wes Eind was slightly different. Nick and I held a contest during one of the days we were substitutes and had to give out prizes to three students. When we got to school, we met with the teachers for their daily meeting and the principal was so kind as to thank us for our efforts and tell us we’re welcome back anytime. After that, we walked to the fifth and sixth grade rooms to hand out our prizes and say goodbye. Just before we left the sixth grade room, I pointed to a few of the boys who’d been playing kickball after school with us and told them they have to keep playing even though we’re not around. I really hope they do. When we were walking out, I saw that same group of boys I’ve mentioned in a previous post… the boys who never go to class, and who don’t have basic reading and math skills. This time Nick, Sintu and I walked over to the group. Sintu asked them why they weren’t in class and they bowed their heads, giggled, and began speaking in Afrikaans. We don’t know any Afrikaans. Sintu walked to the nearest classroom to find out why these boys were not in class. While he was doing that, I somehow influenced them in saying that they need to be in school to learn, and they need to learn in order to have a better life. After a few minutes I convinced the three to follow me, I’d take them back to their classrooms and explain to the teacher that they were sorry and they are ready to learn again. I was shocked when they didn’t say anything and all followed me. The first stop was the sixth grade classroom where two of my friends needed to go. I knocked on the door and when the teacher came out she gave one look at the boys and rolled her eyes. I politely said, these guys just want to apologize to you for their behavior this morning; they’re ready to learn and would like to come back to class. The teacher looked at the two boys and then at me and began yelling about how disruptive they are when they’re in class, how they never do anything and they’re bullies…on and on and on. Then she informed me she kicked them out of class a few days ago and they’re not allowed back in until they bring their parents to school. In that moment it took everything I had inside of me to not yell back at this teacher and make her take these boys back in to class. Unfortunately for children like Darryl and Jason who most likely act up in class because they don’t understand… they’re going to get lost in the shuffle. I can tell you right now, they are NEVER going to tell their parents what happened and that they need to go to school. They’re going to “go to school” so their families think everything is okay, but after a few weeks they probably won’t be allowed on the property. And then what? Will they get lost in a world of drugs and abuse? Will they ever learn to read and write? Can they even get a proper paying job? I’m okay with taking a guess and saying no… they won’t. And I’m definitely not okay with this. The principal needs to be efficient and give the boys some type of in school suspension so at least they’re doing something! I’ll go as far as to say that he should drive them during the school day to their parents house, or wherever their parents work to tell them what happened. How… how on earth, in good conscience can these teachers just let these boys go? It breaks my heart, and it’s not okay.

We left Wes-Eind, and the boys stayed… wandering around the property. In that moment I knew my job here wasn’t done. I’m not finished with these two schools, and I don’t want to leave… ever. Call me crazy, but it’s my new mission in life to help boys like Darryl and Jason. To give these kids a chance. To tell them to dream and dream BIG. To teach them to want more than what they’re given, and that it’s fine to wish for a better life. I’m not prepared to leave South Africa, but I can assure you I’ll be back. And I… can’t… wait.

Shamwari Game Reserve

Continuing our road trip across South Africa and about 5 more hours, our final destination was to the Eagles Crag Lodge at Shamwari Private Game Reserve. Getting to the lodge was half the adventure, as we had to drive literally through the game reserve in a vehicle that could not stand up to the bumps, narrow road and possible animals we would pass. Needless to say we survived the terrain, met our ranger Mushi, and went out on our first game drive just as we arrived at the lodge. We were completely spoiled and saw lions and a leopard on our first drive! In the middle of each game drive our ranger Mushi would pull up to a scenic view and we’d have some drinks and a snack. Once we finished our “sun downers” we’d take a few pictures and head back out into the wild. It’s an amazing feeling and slightly nerve-racking to get out of the land rover in the middle of the bush. After dinner and a few drinks our first night, we headed to bed early to prepare for our early morning drive the following day. Between the morning and afternoon drives on our second day, we saw elephants, zebra, giraffe, white rhinos, wildebeest, blesbok, hartebeest, springbok, impala, gemsbok, kudu, eland, warthog, baboon, monkey, a few cool birds and a lot of plants and trees. We saw two more leopard our second day, making that a record for Mushi. In his entire career he has never shown a group three different leopards in 24 hours. We were lucky!

In the afternoon of the second day, we began searching for something not many safari goers get to see. The cheetah. Considering the luck we’d been having I was confident our man Mushi would be able to find it. Well, he did. And when he did our car came to a complete stop, Mushi grabbed his rifle and came to open our doors. Yes, we were getting out of the safety of our vehicle and walking to greet the two cheetahs at a much closer vicinity. If I remember correctly, before I stepped out of the car I looked at Mushi and said, “Are you trying to give me a heart attack?” Naturally, he completely ignored me and gave us our instructions to stay in a straight single file line, walk very slowly and to not make a sound. As I’ve discovered through my bungy jumping experience, when facing death I simply stop breathing. I had my arms and hands clasped in front of my body and sandwiched myself between the two boys in hopes that if the cheetahs sprung to kill us, I wouldn’t be first. In case you are curious, the cheetah is the fastest animal in the planet… but since the headline in the NY Times in the past week has not read “American Volunteers Die From Cheetah Attack”… we’re good. I don’t know how many feet or meters we were to these two large cats, but we were close enough. And even to my own amazement, I have to admit, one of the highlights of the entire safari experience. Surprisingly enough I didn’t pass out from not breathing and made it back to the car safe and sound. And to quote my travel buddy, I am the biggest brave chicken he’s ever seen.

On our last morning drive we were in search for 3 out of the “Big Five.” The big five are the five toughest animals to hunt on foot in Africa. It consists of the Black rhino, leopard, lion, elephant and cape buffalo. We did not do too badly. In fact, that last morning we found a Black rhino, (which are one of the most rare animals to find in Africa), over ten hippos, and the cape mountain zebra which is also a very rare sighting. Unfortunately, we did not see any cape buffalo, but to be able to see four out of the big five in 48 hours is pretty amazing. Good Karma. J

3... 2... 1... BUNGY!

The last week of our stay in Africa, our host Susan organized a trip for Nick and I, our friend Sintu who works forThe Kusasa Project, and our newest roommate, Beatriz from Mexico. We traveled through the Garden Route taking us from the Western Cape to the Eastern Cape of South Africa…about 10 hours worth of driving. Road trip across South Africa… not many people can say they’ve done that one! Our first day of traveling we made a stop in a town called Plettenberg Bay where we spent the night at Hunter’s Country House. It was a beautiful lodge with a very quaint atmosphere, tucked deep inside the woods. It was Nick’s birthday so we enjoyed a fabulous dinner at a new restaurant called Zinzi where the champagne was free and the wine flowed like water. Nick even had the pleasure of enjoying “Happy Birthday” in both English and Xhosa. Very cool. After struggling to wake up the next morning, we packed the car, ate a quick breakfast and headed out for the next half of our road trip.

About an hour away from Plettenberg Bay, we made a pit stop in a town called Tsitsikamma, the location of the world’s highest bungy bridge. The company Face Adrenalin organizes bungy jumping off of Bloukrans Bridge. Now, if you know me you know that I’m usually up for anything, and this was no exception. I’m not going to lie and tell you that I did it in full confidence, in fact when we walked across the bridge I forgot that I needed to breath in order to survive. I was speechless while waiting at the top and nearly had a stroke when the guys that run the place told me I’d be the third jumper. Luckily, they blast techno music while you wait which helped me think about dancing instead of slipping out of my ankle straps as I fell to my death… not to be too dramatic of course. When I watched my video of the jump I was able to see the visible fear and fright on my face and heard myself say, “I’m not gonna die right?” “I can’t do this.” And let’s not forget, “Don’t push me.” After a hop to the edge of the bridge I heard a nice and loud “3… 2… 1… BUNGY!” and felt two men literally push me off the bridge to face my 216-meter fall. The next 5 minutes are still blurry, but I was told I was the loudest jumper of the morning and I can tell you that though many of my words needed to be censored, I simply could not control what came out of my mouth. When both of my feet were back on cement I slowly started breathing again and felt the rush of adrenalin that every junky needs. It definitely was a good rush… and I’m glad that when I’m “in Rome” I do as the Roman’s. It’s not every day you get to jump off the world’s highest bungy bridge.

Math Manipulatives

To manipulate by definition is to control or have influence over someone or something. In the teaching world we manipulate our students, our students sometimes manipulate us, and we must manipulate the parents of our students, as well as some administration during conferences and meetings. In the world of mathematics, the student gets the chance to be the manipulator of an object in hopes of having a better understanding of why or how we solve any particular math problem. In America, teachers are given, make their own, or purchase math manipulatives all the time. This past year I used blocks, unifix cubes, buttons, cards, dice, counters, gold fish, marshmallows, Apple Jax, stamps and fabric (just to name a few) in my classroom. Being the visual/kinestetic learner that I am, I know how important it is to have students become involved, create their own ideas and solve their own problems. From day one in the Franschhoek schools, I have been interested in doing some First Steps in Mathematics tools that I’ve learned these past two years, and knew that in order to do so I would need one thing…manipulatives. When I broached the subject to one of The Kusasa Project coordinators, he mentioned that each classroom has a set of LEGO pieces. Perfect. In the beginning of last week, we worked at the Dalubuhle School and were told we would spend our time split between two third grade classes to help work with and show the teachers how to use the manipulatives they have. Apparently prior to this, the boxes have been packed away in some corner of the room collecting dust. Again, with no game plan, Nick and I went in and were able to manage a decent lesson in addition and one in multiplication. The students seemed excited to be working with the LEGOs, (and after a few translations from the classroom teacher) began to understand what we were trying to teach. Being that many students have learning disabilities and no one to support them, there were still those students who struggled understanding the concepts being taught, but all in all they were trying their best. And for my teaching style, that is what matters most.

Kickball

This week, we implemented a kickball afterschool program. On Wednesday I went around recruiting in all of the classes, trying to give a brief synopsis of what the term kickball meant. I described it using the word soccer, so most of the boys were interested. The first day about 60 kids showed up, all not having a clue of what was going on. I quickly grabbed three backpacks to make first, second and third base, and had them all make a straight line so I could count them off into teams. The game started at around 2:00 p.m. and by 2:15 we were down to about 30 players. Most of these kids can’t stay after school because they have to go home and take care of younger siblings or cook dinner for their family. They certainly are not off to dance class, baseball practice or music lessons. I had to explain the rules and regulations as we went because these kids just wanted to play. They do not go to a gym class once a week like many of our students do in the states, so this might be there only form of physical activity at school for the entire week. Once everyone got acclimated to how kickball incorporates both soccer and baseball, they really seemed to enjoy it. These kids were kicking a hard soccer ball out of the playing field and are sure to beat any group of American kids any day, any time. Over the course of next two days, we kept recruiting, and more and more kids showed up to play. It was so great and we would have played until the sun went down, but unfortunately they lock up the school gates at 3:00…leaving these kids needing and wanting more. Hopefully The Kusasa Project can get some volunteers to keep this after school program going, because it will help keep these kids very active and off the streets…for a little while at least.

Responsive Classroom

As an avid believer in the methods of the Responsive Classroom, I’ve decided to use what I know in run-in situations while subbing at the Wes-Eind school. Every time we have gone there, a teacher has been absent and we’ve had to take over…no lesson plans, no curriculum, basically we had to wing it during every period for the past few days. Lucky for me, these kids have never been exposed to a morning meeting and since they lack many social skills to help them succeed in life, I figured it would be a fun way to get them to interact with one another. For all of my non-teacher friends, the Responsive Classroom is a method that focuses primarily on creating a safe, welcoming classroom community while promoting social awareness and academic growth. During a morning meeting, the students must greet one another, share something about them, read a message describing events for the day and participate in an activity. Though it took a while to break through the language barrier, the 4^th, 5^th, and 6^th grade students that we had morning meetings with seemed to really enjoy it and begged for more. What I found to be the most interesting is that these kids loved the greeting. I honestly don’t think they’ve ever gone around and said a simple hello to one another. It was funny to watch the first group because they were so silly and shy, almost embarrassed to say hi to the person standing next to them. Makes me wonder who, if anyone is teaching them how to be citizens in this ever changing world? How will they go on a job interview if they can’t look a superior in the eyes? Sadly, the majority of these kids will not continue school past the seventh grade. When we asked three of our tougher seventh grade boys what they want to do when they grow up they turned their heads and laughed. Finally, one said he wanted to go to the army, the other said he’ll just work on a farm. These kids have no support…there’s no one around to tell them to dream big and that this is not the only life they should want to lead. I’m still dreaming big and want more, and could never imagine a life where I thought I was only supposed to do one thing. We are so, so lucky. These children are stuck, and they need someone to guide them and pull them out. It should be their teachers, but the teachers have a hard enough time teaching what’s expected of them, that crowd control becomes the existence of every school day. Even the way these kids interact with each other is extreme. Boys hit girls, girls hit boys, sixth graders push first graders…it’s all very rough and when they are on their lunch break, there is no one supervising or even watching to make sure no one gets hurt. And when someone does get hurt, they have nowhere to go. I’m used to all of this behavior by now, but the first week we were teaching I was in culture shock, standing there looking around this big open space wondering where are the teachers? On the other side of the spectrum, it’s just good that these students do have a place to go to for school, and even though they’re not well equipped with the resources they need, these teachers are making some attempt to better the lives of these children.

Cape Town

Table Mountain and the V&A Waterfront

Cape Point

We got out of school early on Friday July 23 and took Frances the Beetle for about and hours drive to Cape Town. (I should really say Nick drove the car and I held the GPS…thank God we borrowed a GPS) We were staying at the beautiful Cape Grace Hotel, which is located right on the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront. Our room was absolutely stunning, very modern and very cool. After we got settled we went for dinner at a restaurant the concierge recommended called Balthazar. I tried my first African fish called kingklip, and it was delish. We walked around a little and found an Irish pub where we met our new friend Dominik from Frankfurt, Germany. It really is amazing how everyone outside of the U.S is fluent in at least two languages, where in the U.S. most people struggle with their own. I’d seriously like to become fluent in another language. So cool.

Saturday we woke up early hopped in the beetle and drove about another hour South along the costal route to Cape Point and the Cape of Good Hope. If you’re not familiar with it, at the top of the Cape Point Mountain, you can see where the Indian and Atlantic Oceans collide. It’s really beautiful. The Cape of Good Hope is known for being the southernmost point on the African continent…(though apparently that is debatable, and there is another spot that we did not see.) After many pictures we headed back to check into our new digs for the night, the Table Bay Hotel. We were told by several locals that we had to go to Long Street for the night, and we did. There are a ton of bars and restaurants to go to, and we ended up going into The Purple Turtle and Dubliner with our new friend from Germany. Never having been to New Orleans, I can’t be positive, but we decided that Long Street resembled what Bourbon Street sounds like. It was great.

Our only stop on Sunday was to go to Table Mountain. It looks just as it’s name sounds, like a table, and it is amazing. You can pay to take a cable car to the top, (3,567 feet) or take on a massive uphill hike. In the interest of time and after our long night, we opted to take the cable car. The inside of the cable car spins, so you have a 360-degree view of the city of Cape Town and many of the nearby costal towns. The view is breathtaking. When you get to the top you can choose to do various walks that take you all around the mountain. I’d say we walked across about half of the flat mountaintop before we decided to leave. Everywhere you looked was different, and every view was stunning. There’s a contest going on to have Table Mountain join the 7 Wonders of the World, and I think it should definitely win. Pictures won’t do this place justice, but if you ever get the chance to go to Cape Town, Table Mountain is a must see.

Wes-Eind Primary School

Wednesday July 21 was our first day teaching at Wes-Eind Primary. Immediately upon our arrival we were told that a teacher had surgery and was going to be out the entire day. We were the substitutes. Now, I’m sure you remember when you were in school and you had a sub how different everyone acted; well this experience was very similar. All of the students at this school speak Afrikaans, which sounds a little like Dutch. Lucky for us, these students can understand what we were saying, and we could understand them. At Dalubuhle, the students speak in Xhosa and it’s very difficult to communicate effectively. Our day consisted of teaching math, natural science and art and culture, to students in grades five through seven. Fortunately, the teachers at Wes-Eind are amazing and provided us with worksheets for all of the math classes. For the most part, the day ran very smoothly, and we only had a few of the boys acting up. We were told the behavior at this school would be worse, but to be honest, it was easier dealing with behavior issues when there was enough work, papers and books to keep the other students occupied. The overall dynamic at the Wes-Eind school is very different than Dalubuhle.

Nick and I prefer teaching at Wes-Eind now because of how wonderful the staff is. The minute you walk into any of the classrooms you can tell they are trying their best to educate these children. The first classroom I walked into was a first grade class. This teacher in particular gives and gives back to this school and all of these kids. She is currently in the process of transforming a small room into a library, and we are getting ready to paint the now stark white walls in bright colors. Hopefully it will inspire the students to want to read more, which us teachers know will only help improve their minds.

We spent the rest of the week at Wes-Eind filling in for the teacher who had surgery. The school was unable to find a replacement teacher until the following Monday, and Nick and I were happy to stay. Many of the students lack confidence in speaking and presenting in front of their peers, so Nick and I had them write journals about what they do here in South Africa in the winter, draw a picture, and present their writing in front of the class. It was interesting to see how shy and embarrassed these kids get when speaking in front of the class, and how they lack the appropriate manners as audience members. I did a quick 3-minute responsive classroom mini lesson about what it means to “be a good audience.” Though the seventh graders were able to come up with some rules themselves, they were unable to act on it. In that moment I was missing my Room 3 first graders, and was wishing they were there to “set a good example.” J

After School Program

Today we had our first after school program at the Dalubuhle School. We ran an art program where the students had to follow a specific theme to enter their pictures in a Franschhoek art competition. We had six students show up and once we gave them their paper, some crayons, and their theme (which was Mother’s Day) they went right to work. There was only one girl in the class and just as we were getting started she ran out of the room crying. I went after her to see what was wrong and she informed me she didn’t want to be the only girl in the class. I told her I was a girl in there with her too, and she decided to come back. I am so happy she did because her artwork was beautiful. All of the students were drawing their homes and their mothers, but this girl just had something special about her and her illustration. Her mother was dressed in traditional African clothes and she drew a castle on one side. When I asked if her mother was the queen of the castle, she put her head down in shyness and just giggled. I got a little emotional as I watched her spend an hour coloring every last detail of her mothers clothing and felt the pride she took in doing so. These kids have so much hope in their eyes and life in their laughter that is really inspiring. They have so little and are willing to share so much, I just hope that throughout this journey we are helping them become great people.

The Day We Got Frances The Beetle

Monday July 19 began like every other day has been in Franschhoek. Typical school day, and the weather was beautiful. Nick and I decided it was time to rent a car for the next three weeks and Susan our host set us up with a place called Best Beetle. For 2500 Rand, we were able to rent a car for the month. Sounded great. The people from Best Beetle even offered to send someone to pick us up to take us to Brackenfell where the car was located. The rest of the trip to get the beetle was like a scene from a movie. Our new South African friend Andre was one of the supporting characters, head to toe covered in grease and probably one of the worst drivers I’ve ever been in a vehicle with. Once we headed into the town things began to get significantly sketchier. After passing a few townships and driving down a few dark allies, we arrived at our destination to see a 1977 VW Beetle covered in orange, red, white and blue spray paint. The interior was ripped to shreds with masking tape covering the spot where the radio used to be and there was no left hand mirror. To top it off, in case you were not aware, the steering wheel is on the right hand side AND they don’t have automatic cars..and they drive on the opposite side of the road. I thought I was going to drive it home….sadly mistaken. Nick learned how to drive stick shift in the states so lucky for me he was the one to drive. After going in to sign the contract we were told we have to check the oil before every time we want to drive it, and that even though the speed limit here is 100k, we should not pass 90k (55 mph max) because our beetle is so old. Needless to say, I was feeling real safe…. and it was now getting dark out. So our first experience with our ancient beetle was driving in South Africa at night. The rest of the story will be disclosed once we return to the US.

Bastille Day

our berets and mustaches

outside of the marquee

inside the marquee

In Franschhoek this weekend there was a Bastille Festival where visitors and locals came into town to drink wine, eat fabulous food and wear berets. There was a huge food and wine marquee (tent) that was full of some of South Africa’s best wines. Upon entering we received our wine glass for the day as well as 5 drink coupons good for sampling wine. Some of the countries best chefs were in making delicious gourmet food. Outside of the tent there were various sporting events such as boule, which is similar to baci ball, and a barrel rolling competition. There certainly was a lot of wine to be drunk, and we had no problem drinking it. The marquee closed around 5 p.m and our host’s son threw a braai, which is another name for a barbeque. Half of the tent from Bastille Day was at their house and it was very fun. South African’s are big into meat and the boys were cooking up ostrich boerewors, and biltong that are similar to the sausages we have in the states. Once we finished the braai everyone headed out to a pub called Elephant and Barrel and we continued to meet cool, interesting people from all over the world…most of whom we invited to meet us down in Cape Town when we go next weekend. Very fun.

The Dalubuhle School

July 14, 2010 was our first official day volunteering at The Dalubuhle School…and what a day it was. It’s about 45 degrees, pouring rain, and needless to say, very cold. Nick and I neglected to pack and dress appropriately for the occasion. We began the day in a reading program, which is much different from what we do in the states. There are no guided reading groups, no morning meetings and zero literacy programs. Basically, the teachers have books that are way too advanced for the students and nowhere near their reading level. Though the students can read the English words, their native language is Xhosa and do not begin learning the English language until the third grade. These children are reading; just nowhere near where they need to be in terms of comprehension and vocabulary.

We taught in two math classes before a 20-minute break and went to an “EMS” class, which stands for Economics and Management Skills. The teacher of this class dived into conversation about how it’s not enjoyable to live in poverty and constantly repeats the phrase, “Time is money and money is time.” The textbook tells ways of how to become an entrepreneur and manage a business, and any other way these children can have “sustainable living conditions.” I understand the mentality in teaching these children to want a better life, but the manner in which this curriculum is taught is ridiculous. In a group assignment, fourth grade students have to create their own business plan for an imaginary business they will have when they grow up. These kids cannot even multiply yet and they’re expected to come up with a proposal for a business plan? Makes no sense to me.

Today we spent our second day volunteering at the Dalubuhle School. My first class was English and just after I walked into the room and was greeted with smiling faces saying, “Good morning Miss Jen,” the teacher hands me a book and says, “Okay, choose a story and read.” I start flipping through this “text book” that has stories pertaining to every part of the world. I ended up choosing a story called “Lost in the Louvre,” since it was the only one I could throw some random personal experience tidbits into. I started my mini lesson asking the students if they have ever heard of France. Silence. Then I asked if they have every heard of Europe. Silence. So I go into a rant about where France is in relation to Africa, and hurry on my way. By the end I fell into a groove, and realized I should ask comprehension questions. Much to my surprise, a lot of the students were raising their hands and answering what they knew. Beautiful.

Nick and I then went to spend the rest of the day teaching “Maths” and to our surprise were slightly ambushed by the teacher when he basically told us he wasn’t going to teach that class and we had to. After a quick brainstorm, we decided they needed multiplication practice and came up with a game where they had to write down as many facts as they could in ten minutes and the group with the most facts correct would be the winner. Lucky for us, the kids did not ask any questions about what they would get if they won, like some of my old students used to. The lesson seemed to go well, and the kids had fun.

At the last period of the day, our teacher went missing, and the sixth graders refused to listen to Nick and I. Wanting to bring the methods of the Responsive Classroom to Africa, I decided to teach the class of 57 how to play “Buzz”. They LOVED it, so much so that they stayed after the final bell to finish the game. I hope we can play again with all of our classes tomorrow.

First Meeting

Today we met with Liesel King and Sintu Quza who are The Kusasa Project’s only two full time employees. We were also able to meet with one of the founders, Doug Gurr, who is as energetic and enthusiastic about life as he is about his program.

Our morning began with a drive into one of Franschhoek’s townships called eTyotyombeni. The scenery consisted of shacks, garbage and unemployed residents hanging up just washed clothing. Everyone stared at our bus with The Kusasa Project emblem. All the way up the hill we stopped at our first school of the day, the Dalubuhle School. The school is made out of cement and is very stark. There were two sides surrounding a courtyard. One side is compiled of classrooms accommodating grades R through 4, and the other side has classrooms with grades 5 though 8. Grade R is equivalent to our U.S. Kindergarten. When we arrived at the school, one of the classes was finishing up lunch and washing their plates and spoons then returning them to a bucket. The South African Government provides the school with a lunch and some fruit for a snack. We were able to walk inside three of the classrooms we will be teaching in. Having one of the lowest passing rates in math, our Kusasa Project friends would like us to help out especially in the “Maths” as they call it here. One of my short-term goals is to get the teachers and students to become familiar with using math manipulatives and to help the students learn and understand the counting principle. We have until August 8^th to do so.

Our second school that we visited is not located within a township, but teaches many of the children who live in the shacks. As we pulled up to the Wes Eind School, one of the government employees was dropping off a shipment of oranges and cabbage for the children to eat. There we met the principal and a very friendly woman named Ester, who has turned her old classroom into a new library for the students to enjoy.

Tomorrow will be our first day teaching, and I am excited to make some kind of impact on these children’s lives.

We've Arrived!

After 24 hours of traveling, (on July 12) we arrived safely in Franschhoek, South Africa. We were able to meet Susan, and many members of her extended family over dinner. The conversation included, politics, religion, as well as celebrities with a group inhabiting all parts of the world, including South Africa, India, Australia and the US. Needless to say, this experience will be very culture friendly. We go to meet Liesel from The Kusasa Project tomorrow morning to discuss our plans for the next month. Let the adventure begin.

Here We Go!

Being new to the blog world, I'm not exactly sure where to begin. If you're reading this you probably already know that my name is Jen and I'm a teacher. Being in the teaching profession, I am fortunate enough to have the summers off and can use them to further my education, career or personal endeavors. This summer I am about to embark on what seems to be the journey of a lifetime.

On July 11, 2010 I will be traveling to South Africa to work with The Kusasa Project. The Kusasa Project is a non profit organization that looks to better the lives of African children living in the Cape Winelands. Some of the goals of The Kusasa Project are to ensure that each student recognizes the importance of education and falls in love with learning, while becoming role models within their underprivileged township community.

I am excited to share with you my adventures in the town of Franschhoek in the Cape Winelands of South Africa and the trials and tribulations that go on in their township schools. I hope to share my love of teaching and of life, and I hope you enjoy reading about it.

Until next time...