More about the School

Saturday 22nd May 2010

I am totally inspired by how these children learn and how the teachers teach with the minimal resource. The kids use pencils until they are so small that they are no longer able to hold them between their fingers. Jotters are flimsy and dried from the heat and are treated like precious jewels. Erasers are scarce - the child with the eraser is very popular and shares with the other kids without a murmur. What I would give to have some boxes of erasers, notebooks and pencils to share with the children.

Text books are scarce - one text book between four children is normal.

Today it is raining - the rain started at 1am this morning and stopped about an hour ago. Grace and I went to the school to check on the water level in the classrooms. The roof leaks badly so we had a bit of work to do to move tables and chairs to drier areas in the classrooms. Anybody out there able to mend a school roof? It wouldn't take much - a ladder and some PVC would do the job and make a big difference.

My own roof leaks - I spent most of the early morning mopping up water and moving the few bits of furniture around however that is nothing compared to the damage the long rains do to the shacks the children live in. The baked mud turns to slime with the volume of rain and the shacks start to crumble and need to be rebuilt. Grace and I walked to the Cyber cafe today - the roads are flooded and on a couple of occasions we hitched a life on the back of motor bikes through the worst flooded areas.

I'm told the long rains last until the end of June - the Lonely Planet says the end of May - I'm hoping it's right!!

Please help these kids - this charity is no Tear Fund, Plan UK or Action Aid. Every penny goes to where it should and a few pounds a week makes such a difference. There are no fancy buildings or huge overheads to be paid, no advertising, no media cover. Just Maureen and Ian and Yvonne and her hubby and the other sponsors who donate anything from ten to fifteen pounds a month - this is nothing. Hardly the cost of a carry out meal on Friday night.

Please visit www.educatethekids.com or phone Yvonne on 01943 816557 or Maureen on 01506 494471 and ask how you can help.

Please Please Please.

love to all

Madame Jo-An lol x