A Tour of Bukoba

Today we went on a tour of Bukoba.  It was really great to see all the things outside the city center where we have spent most of our time here. 

We went to the home of a local farmer who is growing a cocoa plant.  This is a picture of the inside of the plant.  They explained that they are experimenting with growing it here and are still trying to figure it all out.

We also went hiking through a field and down a somewhat scary cliff to a small cave that had some paintings on it. The cave was interesting but I think we enjoyed the thrilling climb a bit more.

Then we went to a small waterfall and enjoyed the peaceful scenery for a bit.  All in all a wonderful day full of friends and fun.

Chai Time

Every morning lessons stop for tea.  The students line up to get a big cup full of tea and milk.  They are also given a handful of nuts to eat.  Then we all take a few minutes to enjoy the break before heading back to class. 

 

This morning some of the girls were washing, rinsing and drying millet.  After it is dry, they will take it to town and have it ground into flour at the mill.  Then it will be used to make porridge.  This amount of millet will last a week or two. 

This was a short week to kick off the school year.  I did introductory lessons and exercise to get to know my students in all my classes.  One of my goals for the year (and I have several) is to get to know each of my students individually.  That is no easy task when each class has close to 45 students.  The first step was to have each of them fill out an index card with information about their interests and backgrounds.  They were very interesting (and sometimes entertaining....). 

The other task for this week was to give each of my classes their first diagnostic test so I can understand where they are currently performing and better plan my lessons.  Below is a picture of Standard V hard at work on their first diagnostic.  I think I've got three really great classes and next week, the real work begins. 

A New School Year Begins

Today marks the start of the 2015 school year at Kibeta English Medium Primary School in Bukoba, Tanzania.  This means that the border students arrive today and the day students arrive tomorrow for the start of classes.   My family and I (Trevor, Patricio, 7, and Nino, 2) moved to Bukoba last August so that I can teach at KEMPS.  It was a big move for our family and we've gone through every emotion in the book as we've adjusted to our new life here.  I've spent the last 13 years working in education both in and outside of the classroom but of course teaching is quite a bit different here.  I'm happy to have been here for a few months last school year so I already feel like I know and understand the basics of how things work at KEMPS.

I will be teaching English for Standard III, V and VI this year and I can't wait to get started.  I've designed month long units using the Curriculum Standards outlined by the Ministry of Education.  But I've also planned out a focus on writing and reading that I hope my students will really enjoy.  The goal will be for students to write and publish original pieces of writing for each unit.  I'm excited to share the work we do together here on this blog as we get going in the coming weeks.

Here's to a fantastic 2015!