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Sunday 6th
I wandered down to the lake at 8.30 as I had arrived in the dark the night before. I just happened to come down to the lake next to Cecelia’s house where she was washing in the lake. We went to look at the self-catering quieter Anglican chapel that they thought I could stay in. However I asked to stay at Cecelia’s as I didn’t want to be by myself. They thought I wouldn’t want to be at Cecelia’s as there is no electricity or water and it means bathing in the lake and a long drop squat toilet. We sat outside in her garden overlooking the lake and then went into the ‘town’ to the Hunger Clinic for lunch. We eat with a traveler who was wearing far too much sun cream and must have scared the children! We went to meet the rest of my committee at 2pm but everyone was late, we sat and waited at the Reverend’s house until 5pm. By 5 I’d only met the Reverend and Mr Ngwale and Cecelia and still have little idea about what I’m doing here. The Reverend’s house is very big with a TV and fridge and
he has a motorbike that was given to him by a diocese in Birmingham!
Monday 7th
Up at 6 as school started at 7am. We went to one of the schools in the local ambulance and observed science and maths in Standard 6 and 7. The maths was subtracting fractions and multiplying decimals- way out of my league. The science was on the stems of the plant which he sent them out of the class to pick stems so had the right idea about using the resources around them but the knowledge was a bit lost on the children.
We were back at Cecelia’s by 11am. I went for a swim and spoke to Colin (the guy who organized this for me in UK) about the age of the pupils and the standard of work being higher than what I teach. In the afternoon I went to the Lake Malawi Project office and helped by typing up things for Alfred.
Thursday 10th
Tuesday and Wednesday were spent in 2 other schools observing lessons. One science teacher was really enthusiastic and had collected dishes and candles for the children to burn the things for their experiment in, while the
One of the projects gardens
they were sitting doing nothing until the camera came out!! equivalent lesson at the other school was done by the children going into the playground and starting fires and holding leaves over the fire! I had tried observing 2 lower classes for Maths, it is taught in their mother tongue-Chichhewa, however the words for the numbers are the same so I understood most of it.
I’d finish by 11am every day and then I’d read while Cecelia went to work then we would have lunch- rice or sema with eggs and tomato sauce. Then the afternoon was spent typing in the office.
I still had no idea what I was going to do to help the schools, What could a teacher with 2 years experience who has only had 20 kids in her class tell teachers who have taught for as long as I’ve been alive and have 80 children in there class?! On Thursday I was suppose to be meeting with all of the comittee to review my observations and come up with ideas for the workshop. Mr Negwale and Cecelia had been there for all the lessons and the only other committee member to turn up was the Head from St Peters. She unfortunately took everything as a
personal criticism to the school and no one suggested any ideas for the workshop from these observations. My idea is to give them time to make the resources that they say that they are lacking.
Monday 14th
Last week I was very down, I had no idea what I was going to do in the work shop, I didn’t feel anyone was about helping me and whenever Cecelia had friends round they spoke Chechewa- but it was still better than being in the chalet all alone from 11 am everyday which could have happened.
On Friday Cecelia and Ben - her boyfriend- walked me over to Mango Drift- the backpacker place to stay on the other side of the island where I met Shea. I spent the whole afternoon talking to Shea, it was great to have a rant about the project. She also told me about what she had been through in Swaziland. It was so bad what she had to put up with that it made me feel better! Just before I had to walk home before it got dark 6 people on a day trip from the smaller other island turned up. One of them had
also worked with some teachers somewhere and she said you have to make everything seem like their idea otherwise they wont listen. It was a simple idea but what I needed to hear from someone else. Slowly I was having ideas for the workshop.
On Saturday Alfred took me in his little boat over to Chizimulu- It was a bit scary the waves were very big. Once we arrived in one more or less dry piece we walked to the backpackers on that island (I regretted packing in a rush and putting in the whole of my wash bag) and Alfred left me to do some work. Unfortunately I felt seasick all day but I relaxed with the 6 that I had met yesterday. It was one of their birthdays so while she was still in bed we blew up balloons and some of the others made a treasure hunt for her.
One of the girls gave me sea sick tablets for the journey back on Sunday and it was also calmer. From Alfred’s house I walked to Mango Drift in the midday sun and burnt my back. Luckily Shea was there and I joined her on the beach for
The Hunger clinic
The local restarant - Shea, Tom, Suzie and I the rest of the afternoon.
Monday was spent on my side of the island. Shea and Tom (from Lilongwe) and Susie can to visit me, we went to the really big church, played cards, had dinner and visited immigration (a guy standing in the window of an open brick house) to get Shea stamped out of Malawi as she was going to Mozambique tomorrow.
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