It’s Kirsten here. We are currently on a long vacation for the month of July. The end of the year was very eventful and busy with teacher transitions, numerous volunteers, our first field trip, and another round of exams.
The transition of teachers has gone smoothly although it took some getting use for the students and myself. The students had to get use to a new Madame's teaching and communication styles. As for myself, I had never had a full teaching job. Despite having had experience teaching specific topics, I had never been fully in charge of an entire range of subjects. It has challenged my creativity, patience and intelligence, and is more rewarding and life changing then I could have ever expected. I am so grateful and happy to have not only taken this position, but having decided to stay for the full year. I believe it is the best decision for all of us!
During the months of May and June we had many volunteers from the United States come and work with the students, primarily the cheka-cheya (kindergarten) class. It was a real treat for all the students! The first volunteers were an amazing group from Champlain College, in Burlington, Vermont. Champlain College students have been working with Uhuru Youth Center for the past three years, and it is a wonderful blossoming relationship. For over two weeks they came and worked with our students every morning, assisting on basic addition and word association. They also provided lots of fun during daily recess! The second volunteer we had was an individual named Kaitlin. She was a major help while our cheka-cheya teacher,Godfrey, was sick. Kaitlin was a real joy to have at Uhuru and provided us with a variety of different lessons. As an experienced yoga and swimming instructor, Kaitlin taught the students their first yoga moves, something they greatly enjoyed. She also provided us with good fun ways to help the students improve their swimming. 
Our first field trip was a real success and fun filled day! We went to the local Shamba la Mamba (Crocodile Ranch). For lunch we had sodas and chips mayai (french fries cooked in eggs), a local specialty. We ended the day swimming at the local hotel. We were able to keep the price at 5,000 TSH, which is approximately 3.00 US Dollars, making it affordable for every student! We all had a blast!
Finally, the last week of school was filled with exams, a birthday celebration, and a special treat on the last day of class. Exams went well for all students. On the last day of class we were able to have some chicken from Michelle and Aladdin’s farm, a real treat! After our nap we had a great birthday celebration for one of our students who is turning 7 over vacation. There were songs sung, cake, ice cream and our daily bananas! It was a wonderful way to end the school term!
I’ll be back with more soon, before school starts again! It’s time to start coming up with new lessons and gathering supplies while visiting in North America. We have been getting lots of generous support from family friends, which is so touching.I sure miss these smiling faces!
ASANTE SANA- THANK YOU VERY MUCH! Bye for now!
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