This week

Have decided that I like riding with Clement.

While he concentrates on the driving I can sit back and think about the day ahead and it’s quite nice listening to the World Service too which I’m surprised I can still get as we climb the mountains and admire the view…

Muganza again today. In the year 4 classes, we had fun with fractions. Considering they are trying to do everything in a second language they were pretty impressive. There’s a lot to learn. Once you’ve mastered a half, a third and a quarter, you then have to be able to read two fifths, two sevenths and two ninths etc etc (as you can see, we concentrated on the numerator ‘2’ this week) I’m not sure even my year 6’s in the UK would have passed an oral in mathematics. It was ambitious, but the teacher did really well building on last week’s work and used some of the ideas we talked about as well as the fraction rice sack I designed - nice. Next week, I’ll be teaching the classes but with various numerators (aim high), am already thinking about matching pairs and ‘splat’ (which probably doesn’t mean much if you’re not a teacher but it’ll be a bit active anyway :0)

It’s not easy saying three sixths as Jacqueline discovered. Every time we asked her to pronounce one of the numbers she started giggling uncontrollably, tears rolling down her face and everything. It was more hilarious because she was so embarrassed about it. You could see she couldn’t help it but found speaking English just the funniest thing…I kept hoping Leocardie would ask her to repeat just because it was so funny. I like this class. The teacher’s really encouraging if the children are finding things hard but has high expectations too. The other teacher I’m working with is different. When children are clearly not understanding, he thinks that shouting louder will help to clarify ideas. I left the class with my ears ringing. In the feedback I said I was looking forward to a more peaceful lesson next time...It’ll be me so I’m not sure that will happen but I’m planning that most of the noise will at least come from the children!

I’ve just finished some more rice sacks. I’m quite pleased with the results. It’s nice to have an excuse to be creative…

Random…

Something else I love is all the time I have to read. At home, I wasn’t that bothered but here I can’t get enough. Am reading Frank McCourt’s ‘Teacher man’ at the mo, an autobiography – a bit cliché and predictable (imho) but it’s easy reading. Anyway, in that he says that he has just read some of Krishnamurti’s work. Well so have I. Krishnamurti is some kind of ‘guru’ although he wouldn’t want you to consider him as such because you’ll start assuming all kinds of things about him and indeed might even look to him for answers blah blah. In fact, Mr K suggests, or invites you to consider, that ‘you’re on your own’ and when you accept this in life, rather than accepting ideas from other people ( be they teachers, politicians, priests- all the other baddies + the rest of society) but really see things for yourself, you’re free. It’s probably really obvious to everyone but I liked the way it questions all of society’s structures/hierarchies which we construct because we think that someone/something holds the answer when actually we’re all just human beings trying to get by (Oh and I do see the irony/hypocrisy that I am one of these baddies-what can I say, I’m working on this…) I’ve really simplified things and I’m not sure that little review will convince anyone to dip in to it but there you go. Tiga gave me one of his books ‘Inward Revolution’ (yeh, I know, sounds beardy weirdy) and I can honestly say (without sounding like I’ve been coerced into joining some cult or anything) it spoke to me. I won’t go on though, Krishnamurti wouldn’t approve…

…I also quite like the way his name sounds like that nice man who used to read channel 4 news – Are you still with me?



Kigali (15th-16th August)

Another weekend in Kigali but not just any weekend, this was the Serena Breakfast weekend that we’d all been looking forward to for ages. The eating extravaganza started at 8 and we were still stuffing in the sausages and bacon at 11am when all eating had to stop. 3 hours just wasn’t enough but there was lunch to serve so we left, clutching jam and the cakes we’d managed to hoard (yes we got our money’s worth), much to the relief of the waiters who had patiently kept up with our constant demands for more hot tea/coffee please. It was the best 9000rwf (about £10) I’ve spent here. I didn’t eat again that day but the glass of red in the evening just about finished me off as I drifted further into my food coma and dreamed about nutella filled pancakes and scrambled eggs with slithers of salmon…How do you write the sound that Anthony Hopkins makes in Silence of the Lambs? Just thinking about that feast makes me do it…

This weekend is another trip into the capital, this time to celebrate Ruairi’s 50th. As is usual here, food is often a hot topic mainly because things can get a little bland when you’re on your 4th day of ibitoke and sauce. So, when Ruairi announced that his birthday would be at Haandi’s Indian restaurant squeals of delight could be heard from the VSO contingent and when ice-cream was confirmed as pudding we could hardly contain ourselves and rushed to accept the invitation and secure our places at the table.

The other exciting thing is the arrival of the new vols (around the 29th). I can’t believe it’s over 8 months ago now that we arrived. It’s gone crazy fast. Have said I’d help out at the ICT (mainly because I’m nosey) so will be running a work specific session with Amy, Bruce and Chritianne. There are lots of primary methodology trainers coming this time so hopefully I’ll be able to offer some words of wisdom-mainly expect things to happen very, very sllllloowwwlyyy.