This week has been filled with both new experiences and familiar ones. On the familiar side of things, it's been nice to return to the Kibo Hill Nursery School, Mama Eva's school. Only 2 children remain from when I was here last, because they've gone on to primary school. There are 36 children who attend the school, from age 3-6. She and Teacher Betina continue to do a great job of preparing the children for primary school by teaching English, phonics, math, reading, writing, and manners through songs and chants. I've also gotten to watch Mama Eva teach counting and number writing, and I look forward to bringing home some of her number writing teaching techniques. I like the simple way that she teaches it, using words like down, round, cross, and up. For example, to write 4, children say, "Down, cross, down." Mama Eva expressed concern early on that I might be disappointed in the way the school looks before I arrived on the first day. Those of you who have followed me on my previous trips to Tanzania might remember that I held a fundraiser in New York to help Kibo Hill. One of the main things that Mama Eva spent the money on was having the school painted, and having letters, numbers, and pictures painted on the walls as well. She told me it had gotten dirty because the children put their hands all over the walls. I told her that the same thing happens in my classroom in America, and we had a good laugh sharing stories about our students. 
On our first day at our volunteer placements, I accompanied Jillian and Emma for a bit at each of their placements to help them settle in. At Emma's school, Bethel, I found myself getting emotional at the prospect of seeing some of my old students who'd moved on from Kibo Hill. I remember the first time I left Tanzania, I wondered if I'd ever return and whether I'd ever see any of the people I'd met again. One of the things that I treasure about working with the African Community Exchange is having the opportunity to continue many of the meaningful relationships I have with both students and members of the local community. In fact, I think it's what's become most important to me when it comes to my work with ACE.
On the new side of things, there is a lot to write about. I really enjoyed the conversation about teaching techniques that I was able to have with the teachers who came to the home base to meet Emma, Jillian, and myself. One thing they were interested in was how I punish my students in America. Corporal punishment was made illegal a few years ago by the Ministry of Education here in Tanzania. Unfortunately, what's been challenging for many teachers is that they did not receive any training in alternate forms of classroom management. So they were very interested in how I run my classroom at home. We talked a lot about logical consequences and ways to motivate students through positive reinforcement. Today, I spent some time at Bethel in the afternoon and modeled the star system I often use with my students in order to get them to follow directions. The kids loved it! It's amazing what drawing a star on the chalkboard can do.
I've also been able to have a host of new experiences because of the capacity with which I work for the African Community Exchange now. One of the goals that Peter and Deo have while I'm here is to check out some fo the new volunteer opportunities they've found.
On Tuesday, Peter, Deo, Gasper, and I drove out to the bush, about 30 minutes from here on a dirt road, to a beautiful lake and campsite, called Lake Chala. They thought it might be a nice afternoon trek to do with volunteers, but wanted my opinion. On the way, they helped clarify for me what the bush really is, which is really an area where there are no villages (though there may be some homes) and where there are wild animals. We parked at the campsite, where we saw a handful of tourists and a secondary school there on a field trip. Then,Deo, Gasper, and I hiked down to the lake. What a gorgeous trek! And we saw wild elephants off in the distance!!! It was quite a hike, but well worth it. One side of the the lake is in Tanzania, and the other is in Kenya. We met Peter at the top after we climbed back up, enjoyed a beer together, and headed home. It's one of my favorite experiences I've had here so far. Definitely great for volunteers!
I've been running around quite a bit since I've been here this week, and I'm looking forward to the prospect of some down time this weekend. Perhaps not waking up at 6:30, and maybe even spending a little time reading. But we'll see. Everything I'm doing is enjoyable and educational, and there's been a lot of laughter among us all.
Until next time....
TanzaNina
Such adventures! And so great to be able to see some of your former students!
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