Another Update Of The Week From Jess

Hi everyone,

Jess emailed me an update of the week the group had, but it was in point form. The text below is just me rounding out what she sent.

Sunday, May 12th - The group once again attended church in the morning. This time, the congregation did not refer to them as visitors. Youth from the group and from the church met afterward to have a discussion on matters that can affect youth in both Zambia and Canada. The meeting went well, followed by an attempt by the Zambian youth to teach the Canadian youth a song. Everyone involved tried their hardest, but it just didn't quite go right. Fun was had by all in the attempt, and everyone enjoyed the meeting.

Monday, May 13th - Monday was the group's first day at the Chipembi Girls' School. They met with the teachers, and took part in a school assembly in which the group was introduced to the students. The group helped finish off cataloging the rest of the books in the library, and then had lunch. After lunch, they helped make bracelets to bring back with them to Canada for Emmanuel. Next, a few members of the group helped with herding the goats at Omega's house from one field into a smaller field. This was very funny, and resulted in at least 6 goats getting loose and having to be sought after in and around Omega's yard. To finish the day, the group split up into smaller sub-groups to make their lesson plans for the students at the school the next day.

Tuesday, May 14th - Tuesday was the group's first day teaching at the school. Each ran different seminar groups on various topics, such as peer pressure, self-esteem, study skills, time management, and education in Canada. There was also time for students to ask personal questions of the group at the end of the day. The group worked with grade 8 girls this day, and things went really well. The girls asked some really good questions, and were engaged in the topics of the seminars. After lunch, some of the group returned to the school to teach a Powerpoint lesson to the grade 12 girls. The rest of the group went on a tour of the Agricultural College. The staff at the College explained each of the different programs that were offered, and how each worked. That evening, everyone went to bed very early, around 7:30 pm Zambia time.

Wednesday, May 15th - On Wednesday, the group spent the morning together at the school and taught similar seminars as the day before, only this time to grade 9 students. After that, Ryan and Jess stayed at the school, and ate lunch with some of the faculty. Since Jess was the only woman present, all of the men waited for her to begin eating before they began themselves. Lunch was good, with lots of variety. The girls that served lunch did so on their knees. In the afternoon, Jess and Ryan taught several of the teachers how to use Powerpoint. The teachers were extremely interested in learning about the software, and were very grateful to the group for showing them how to use it. The rest of the group went to the basic school, where they played football, made kites, and had lots of fun with the younger children. Alice came back to the school to teach some of the grade 12 girls how to play Ultimate Frisbee. They had a lot of fun, and it was very entertaining.

Thursday, May 16th - On Thursday, the group went to the school to teach the grade 11 girls. The seminars were mostly the same, except for a few subjects that were changed. The two new subjects were substance abuse, and political structure in Canada. The older girls were more engaged, and asked questions that were more to the point. Substance abuse was the most engaging topic for the students, and asked some very difficult questions of the group, who answered to the best of their ability. After lunch, the group enjoyed quiet time at Omega's house. They painted some boxes for bees to live in, spread manure, watered plants, and caught up on laundry.

Friday, May 17th - Today, the group did their last day of seminars with the grade 11 and 12 girls. Both groups of students were very engaged and asked more great questions. Again, there were some very difficult questions, and the group tried to answer them as best they could. After lunch, the group once again had a quiet afternoon at Omega's. Most took naps, while others finished the painting and did more laundry.

This concludes the update from everyone in Zambia. The group has a cultural exchange, and then church on Sunday. After that, they are leaving for Kitwe, and then on to Livingstone for touring. Exciting times were had, and more exciting times are to follow! Stay tuned!