Tag Archives: Zambia

Beacons of Light

By Pat Kelly

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Here in the slums of Ibex Hill, Kalikiliki and Mtendere, where “Poverty” is your middle name and “no way out” rides in your back pocket, there is a place.

It’s a place where discipline and respect abound, where children summon all they can to come to school and work diligently for nearly six hours on empty stomachs.

Teachers are miracle workers creating something out of virtually nothing. They carry to each class some tattered textbooks, a piece of chalk and a plan.

From that plan, fires are ignited and sparks fly, carrying off into the air children’s wishes for a career, repayment to families for their support and service to others in Zambia. That’s the focus of Shine Zambia Reading academy- allowing impoverished youngsters to shine to their best ability.

First Grade Frenzy

By Mal Keenan

It’s hard to explain. It happens every time. It’s an energy that should be bottled. It’s that feeling I get every time I walk into a first grade classroom.

Excitement.

Happiness.

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Not long after walking through the first grade door at School of Hope, I found myself teaching a lesson with a busy bunch of six and seven year olds including: Wanzi (my favorite), Habula, Jane, Precious, Loveness, and Enock. At times, I found myself laughing at how hard it was to keep their attention. We worked on consonant and sounds, reviewing what had previously been taught, playing a game to make things more engaging. I’m not sure who had more fun – me or the kids.

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After the game, and spending time moving from one area of the classroom to the next, I looked at the teacher and said, “You are amazing and this is REALLY hard work – God bless you”. She smiled and proceeded with the math lesson. All in a day’s work in Grade 1.

Beep. Beep.

By Mal Keenan

Zambia is slowly building a small middle class. Very slowly.
And with a middle class comes more Zambian drivers.
Imagine a whole lot of 16 year old drivers on the road…that’s kind of
how it looks and feels. Some driving fast. Some driving slow.
Accidents.
Bumper to bumper.
Traffic jams.
Horns honking.
And the cars are changing, too.
Back home in Crystal Lake, my sons and I play the game “Slug Bug” when we
see a Volkswagen bug driving by, and I think I need to get that game going
here in Lusaka as there have been so many “Slug Bugs” passing by.
Slug Bug Green.
Slug Bug Blue.

A View From The Backseat

by Betty Trummel

On our way back to Lusaka last Thursday, I decided to take notes on the
colors, sights, and sounds of the journey.  Here’s what I observed
transitioning from rural to urban Zambian life.

•       A pink-orange glow greeting us as we left the Village of Hope at 6:00 am
•       The smell of charcoal burning (deforestation for the production of
charcoal is an issue here) as the momma’s started the cookers to prepare
the morning meal
•       Clouds of red dust as a Zambian woman used a hand-held whisk broom to
sweep trash away from the tarmac (road)
•       Bags of charcoal piled high (and precariously perched) on a large truck
being driven in front of us
•       Morning traffic on the “death road” (named that because of the many
accidents that occur on this major north-south road out of Lusaka) which
includes not only the traffic on the tarmac, but major foot and bicycle
traffic alongside the roadway; everyone is on the move to start their day
•       Children in colorful school uniforms and women in brightly colored chetenge
•       Police checkpoints along the way
•       A man on a bike with a rolled up mattress and bedding on his back
•       Mini-buses and vans packed with people…all overcrowded
•       “abnormal load” equals wide load
•       A man with a large wheelbarrow carrying 2 bales of hay; another man
using a wheelbarrow with a front extension, carrying bags of charcoal
•       As we approached the city of Lusaka there was increased traffic both on
the roadway and adjacent to it, more strip malls and roadside stands, and
much more trash everywhere.

I was already longing for the beautiful agricultural region we had left
less than two hours ago.  I’ll miss the stars in the clear night sky,
especially the Southern Cross.  I’ll miss the sounds of the farm, except
the ducks quacking outside my window at 6:00 am.

Food for Thought

By Pat Kelly

Mal Keenan has an answer for every question. While at the School of Hope this week, she’s led professional development (PD) sessions with the staff of 18. The A to Z team has had three days of teaching, brainstorming, meeting and consulting. They’ve gone into classrooms and the director’s office repeatedly in a quest to impart as much knowledge and as many ideas as they can in their short time here.

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Capping each day have been Mal’s PD meetings. She’s invited the teachers at this impressive School of Hope to continue the important, challenging work they do with new concepts and research driven practices. Teachers have been moved by Mal’s experience and expertise and have asked thoughtful questions as she, Becky and Betty had them go through the information.

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This experience has been a really powerful reminder of how critical our own professional development is in education. As educators, we need to continue to develop ourselves, connect with our peers, and collaborate on what is best for children around the globe.

Country Mouse. City Mouse.

By Mal Keenan

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We spent the last four days near the village of Nyirenda, working with the organization All Kids Can Learn International. Benedict and Kathleen, along with our friends, Bob and Mary, are doing amazing work out in the bush. Six orphan homes, one school, one truck stop, one take away, along with a farm that produces forty tons of maize yearly keep this ministry moving forward.

After being up North, and now back near the city, I realize that I’m more of a country mouse than a city mouse. The sunrises and the sunsets were spectacular. The dairy cows walking by and the noisy guinea hens were entertaining. The rooster and ducks did well as my alarm clock. Everything around me made me smile. Our walks to school in the morning will not be forgotten with lovely with kids walking alongside us. It was truly peaceful.

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This first time visit out to Village of Hope will not be the last. It is a place A to Z teams will return to grow a stronger relationship in education and serve vulnerable children.

Looking Back While Looking Forward

By Ann Yanchura

Confucius tells us to “study the past if you would define the future;” this is continual thread in the fabric of A to Z Literacy, and one of the many reasons why I’m honored to be a part of this organization. At this time two years ago, I was planning my lessons, collecting school supplies from my generous school colleagues at both Hannah Beardsley Middle and Indian Prairie Elementary Schools, and packing up for my first trip to Zambia.

Looking forward: View through our windshield on our way to Shine Reading Academy

Looking forward: View through our windshield on our way to Shine Reading Academy

By looking back while looking forward, I have learned a few lessons from all that planning: Continue to look to the future of our world by investing in the education of our young. Never underestimate the power of teachers. Always have a Plan B in both life and lesson plans. Time spent learning is never wasted. Be open to whatever and whomever comes your way because there is always something more for you to learn.

Looking back: Just one of the many beautiful memories of lessons learned

Looking back: Just one of the many beautiful memories of lessons learned

Note that in the first paragraph, I called the 2012 mission my “first” trip to Zambia; once you go, you will want to return over and over, and I’m looking forward to that. It’s no secret that I am both excited and jealous to follow the adventures of this year’s mission team of Mal, Pat, Betty, and Becky. I will always look back on the memories shared with our 2012 team made up of Mal, Stasia, Kalan, Mariann, and me as some of the best of my life. And to paraphrase both General Douglas MacArthur and the Terminator, I WILL RETURN to that magical and wonderful place in the future for more life lessons. No doubt about it.

Follow us as we Skype to Zambia!

By Koriann Lance

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Though I am not physically traveling with the crew to Zambia, I am excited to be a part of the experience in another way – through Skype!

I decided that I wanted to be able to meet and talk with some of the students who want to pursue a higher education, but perhaps don’t have the financial means to do so. In chatting with them through skype, I want to learn as much as I can about these students in hopes that I can find donors who will want to give them the financial means to make their dreams become reality.

What a blessing it would be to give the gift of an education – a luxury to many of us here in the states. Tune in as the summer progresses to hear about these students! Perhaps you can be the one to help them…….

Making Connections through Science in Zambia

By Betty Trummel

Looking ahead to a few weeks from now, I’m busy packing up school supplies to bring to Zambia, and I’m pulling together the books and props I intend to use in my lessons.

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Betty in the garden on a previous trip to Zambia

Science topics can provide a connection across cultural borders.  I’ll be using this subject area as I focus on literacy instruction.  There is a school vegetable garden at Shine Zambia Reading Academy.  Pupils will accompany me on a mini field trip to learn more about how plants grow.  I’ll share great nonfiction text with them, and hopefully once we land in Zambia I can buy some seeds for each child to plant.

I’ll be using my savanna animal finger puppets to bring alive lessons on animals indigenous to that region, as I share informational text with the children.  On my last trip to Zambia, I used the puppets while at Shine.  Children of all ages were mesmerized by them; they inched closer and closer as I realized they probably hadn’t seen finger puppets before.  It was an amazing learning experience for me.  Bringing along some simple props engages the students, just like it does with my fourth graders here in Crystal Lake.  Some things are just universal.

Oh, and my class is finishing up the “Husmann A to Z” book that they are writing together.  I’ll be sharing that with children and teachers in Zambia as well.  My students have learned a lot from the book I wrote with students at Shine four years ago.  Now it’s time to pay that forward by sharing our school life with those I meet on this journey.

Very excited to get this trip going and both inspire and be inspired by our Zambian friends.
Cheers,
Betty

My Journey Begins

By Becky Roehl

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My journey to Africa began with my students making informational books for schools in Africa. After a blog post, some emails, and meetings in Lake Geneva, I was given the opportunity to represent Wisconsin on the trip of a lifetime. Going with the A to Z Literacy Movement to Africa to give children and teachers the skills to succeed, is a dream come true.

During my travels, I hope to bring my 7th grade students’ informational books and letters to the students in Zambia. My lessons in Zambia will focus on why we write and the different ways we communicate with each other.  As life is a journey and our mission to help others continues, my goal on this trip is to show students that reading and writing is also a journey that children and adults continue throughout their lives.

Let the adventure and journey begin!!