PE Soundtrack

So since we have been in PE I have been exposed to Pop music at it's finest. "This is Algoa FM..." jingle plays in my head almost constantly. So you guys are lucky enough to get a link so you can listen to all the biggest hits of all time. http://tunein.com/radio/Algoa-FM-942-s6390/. On Valentine's Day we had an all school assembly. In the wake of Whitney Houston's passing, she became the subject of our current events moment in class, and Whitney was played back to back the first five songs at assembly. I swear the faculty was on the verge of tears the whole time.
Karaoke nights and house bands have also broadened my scope of "lekker" music, and narrowed my range all at once. I have a playlist on my iPhone that I update each time a song comes on I swear I heard five minutes earlier.
So, here you go...my South African Playlist of songs I hear at least twice a day, and every south African belts it out like it's been in the vault for years.

This and That, But Mostly This

Everyday I'm Shufflin' - LMFAO (cool band name...)

Tonight, Tonight - Hot Chelle Rae

It Wasn't Me - Shaggy

I'm Gonna be 500 Miles - The Proclaimers

Titanium- David Guetta

I Need A Dollar - Aloe Blacc (I thought this was a Big Gigantic original till I made it here)

Set Fire To The Rain and Someone Like You - Adele (Rashad our cabbie has the latter as his playback tone)

Paradise - Coldplay

Ball So Hard - Jay-Z and Kanye West

The Motto - Drake feat. Lil Wayne (My kids LOVE Lil Wayne.)

With Arms Wide Open - Creed (not as common, but loved so hard by the locals)

Let Her Cry - Hootie and The Blowfish

Have You Ever Seen The Rain and Down On The Corner - CCR

Moves Like Jagger - Maroon 5

Waka Waka (This Time For Africa) - Shakira /link to my school singing it : http://m.youtube.com/index?client=mv-google&desktop_uri=%2F&gl=ZA&rdm=4psit66xs#/watch?v=2g0JiQ4NekA

Baby - Justin Bieber /link to my class singing it : http://m.youtube.com/index?client=mv-google&desktop_uri=%2F&gl=ZA&rdm=4psit66xs#/watch?v=N_nZLTcK5sU

Those Were The Best Days of My Life - Bryan Adams

Don't Stop Believing - Journey

Fire Away - Rhianna

And last, but most certainly not least, the most played song in Port Elizabeth and my least favorite of all....

We Found Love - Rhianna

So there you have it. My music library for first six weeks in South Africa. I'm sure there will be additions as the weeks roll on.
Cheers!

Beautiful.

            Ooooh yesterday was H-O-T-T. I felt it coming on at 6:45 am as I was walking downstairs to meet our ride to school. By the time the first bell rang I had a constant stream of sweat dripping down my face, neck and back. No AC, no natural AC (PE winds), just still, muggy air and 60 children who don’t know even the social importance of good hygiene. The farts commenced around 8:30. And I’m telling you I sprayed down that room with Oust air freshener like it was my job. Faces cringed as the chemicals hit their tongues. Sorry. That’s what you get for not excusing yourself to release wind.

            Luckily, Ms. Joseph was feeling about as menopausal as I was so P.E. (the class) was canceled in favor of math. We were not taking any funny business today—and the heat seemed to take it out of the students too. The room was very quiet as we got into teaching how to halve and double numbers. Though it took a while, some of the students began to catch on. As I looked around the room I noticed Vuyeka staring blankly at her fingernails while the rest of the class was attempting the exercise. She doesn’t speak English so I knew she wasn’t paying any mind to the lesson. After copying work from the board, the students began their routine of coming up to us so we could check their work. Vuyeka brought hers up with everything copied exactly as it was written on the board. She did not, however, answer any of the problems she was supposed to complete. Mrs. Joseph and I sent her back to her desk on three separate occasions telling her she must answer the questions for credit. And each time she returned, showing us the same work as she had the time before. I couldn’t stand it anymore. I kept her at my desk in the back of the room and attempted to explain the concepts to her, turning away any other students who wanted me to check their work.

            Vuyeka is a character. She is jolly and dramatic and wants to act and entertain any chance she gets. I knew she loved pizza so I used that as an example to explain halves. I drew two stick people on the page; pointing to one, then pointing to her, pointing to the other and then to myself. Hand gestures are key in this classroom. I drew a pizza with 6 slices. I said, “Mmmm, I’m hungry! Are you hungry?” patting my belly so she would catch on. I told her I was going to have a slice and drew a line from one piece to my stick figure. I imitated the act of eating the pizza and told her how good it was by smiling and patting my belly. I passed the pencil to her and told her it was her turn. She understood what step was supposed to come next, mimicking my actions and looking soooo excited to be eating such yummy pizza. I hoped that this would stick, but today I found myself missing break so that I could review the same concept with her using bottlecaps instead of drawing circles for pizzas. The one thing she did remember was how she was supposed to act when she ate a slice. At least I know if she doesn’t make it as a mathematician she will definitely have a future in entertainment.

            As a part of the 25^th Anniversary fund, Sapphire hosted a breakfast for past sponsors of the school. Coca-Cola has been a loyal supporter of Sapphire for many years and I got to experience Coke Day! This was way cooler than I can explain on paper. The kids patiently waited in line for their lime green Sparlita Cream Soda and excitedly ran away with their ice-cold soda. “THANK YOU COCA-COLA!!!” could be heard all over the schoolyard. Brought a tear to my eye seeing how happy this made them. It’s the little things…

Most of these kids truly enjoy being at school. Where home is oftentimes a place of instability and stress, school provides them with a sense of order and security in a controlled social setting. Sure, they don’t like to copy notes from the board, and of course they get hyper and distracted at the drop of a pin, but don’t we all? I want to allow them the opportunity to retain ownership of this environment—to have a place that they can truly call their own. Cara (the other student teacher from Ole Miss; i.e. “the other one” –the other what, you say? The other teacher? Ohhhh, the other white girl that everyone calls my sister. It’s quite funny, especially when you call them out, they get so silly and embarrassed and quietly say, “yes, teach-ah. With the clear hair.”) and I have started an informal clean-up campaign. The school grounds are strewn with trash, and each day we make an effort to clue the students into the fact that the trash does not belong on the ground. After less than a week of badgering them to pick up litter our efforts have shown some success! Today I noticed three of the troublemaking boys were not in class, so I went outside to call for them. “AYAKHA!!!”, I screamed in a stern teacher tone down toward the boys bathroom. Figures came running up to my left and I looked down to find all three boys frantically picking up trash and putting it in a black bag as big as they were. How can you get mad at that? I can’t wait to continue and expand this project to include much more than just picking up trash. Bradley mentioned taking a before and after shot of areas we get the kids to clean up so that they can actually see and appreciate the difference they have made. Before shot: Check.

            Active engagement is the best way I can think of to capture the attention of the students. I want them to DO. Nearly three weeks ago I asked the students to bring in a stick shaped like a slingshot stick, bottle caps and soft wire so we could create and paint noisemakers. Fail. “I don’t have a tree, teach-ah” was the most common response to why they did not bring in their materials. Not to worry, I know with enough time and reinforcement they will pull through, and I honestly cannot wait to paint some sticks. I want to promote learning through art! We will be painting rocks soon, which will line our plot in the clinic garden and (hopefully) will depict elements of health and nutrition that will be covered in their Life Skills section. Murals and mosaics made out of recycled glass, jewelry made out of twigs and seeds, a garden they can watch come to life so they can say, “I did that!”. Anything to give them a connection to the place that is their portal to success.

            Can’t wait for the rest of the week. We will start tilling the land by Friday. Meanwhile, I have a math lesson and a poetry lesson to plan. Where is Dr. Seuss when you need him? He’s not as famous down here but I’ll change that. “And it feels like his new life can start—And it feels like heaven.” Thank you, Noah and the Whale for my Leap Day theme song. Loving life. FILSA.

Sapphire Projects

            Our driver, Gadija, arrives at 6:45 am each morning and we embark on the 50 minute trek out to school. As I am always the last one out the door we really leave closer to 7 am. At 7:45 we arrive at Sapphire Primary. Women from the neighborhood have set up booths outside the school. Cheetos, sweets and other unidentified brightly colored substances are the daily specials. At 50 cents a pop, (about 10 cents U.S. dollars) these treats are their first meal of the day for many children. It’s a sad cycle. The ladies can’t get a job, so they sell what they can; in this case it’s junk food.

My first morning at Sapphire, a boy in my class quietly said to me, “Toilet, Teacher.” I said, “OK, let me walk you out.” The minute he stepped through the doorway he blew blue chunks everywhere. What did this kid eat for breakfast? Mrs. Joseph, my teacher, suspects it was the “Blue Smurfs”, a sugary substitute for porridge that many of the kids in this neighborhood eat for breakfast. Another student was called upon to clean up the mess in the open-air hallway. I listened to the liquid drip down to the ground floor and wondered what it was I had gotten myself into.

Over the course of the past three weeks, I have seen snot, drool, scabies and sneezes; these kids have it all. But germs are just this invisible concept to kids whose families use their new bathrooms as storage areas and rely on dirty wash basins for showers. Hygiene has yet to become a priority in P.E. townships. Bathing is rinsing your arms and face in a basin; but they don’t know anything else, nor do their parents who either lived through the fall or the aftermath of Apartheid rule. Most of the kids in my class don’t even know what the Indian Ocean is; they live less than 10 miles from the coast.

I know it’s a bleak picture. Peering past the façade you are see a different world. Volunteers (emphasis on Volunteer) are registered with the school to perform tasks that could only be regarded in the U.S. as salary-worthy, TA’s in every room, young men cleaning up the grounds, Emmanuel House (HIV Haven), a clinic (the only one in any township school), gardeners and cooks. NO PAYCHECK. Only providing their services to better the community in which they live. These people are out of employment and using their free time to benefit their community. Now honestly, how often would this happen in the American Public School system?

My project with Sapphire Primary will revolve around the grounds surrounding the clinic. As of now, the cement-block clinic is enclosed by a dilapidated fence and no real border to call its own.  Even though these children are generally unaware of the dangers of germs, I hope that my lesson and project will allow them, and myself, a new perspective on self-care. I hope to develop a lesson plan that will assist in the beautification of the area surrounding the clinic by use of indigenous healing plants and herbs. You have a cold? We have an herb for that. Allergies, sunburn or stomach ache? Everything you need is right in front of the clinic doors. With the help of the Clinic caretakers, Bradley, and the teachers, I hope that my plans will give the students the opportunity to take ownership of their environment and respect all that it has given them.

Granted, respect is not something that is achieved overnight. But I honestly need to believe that my time here will be spent creating something sustainable and good. Ole Miss will fund the herbal clinic project in hopes to expand it into a more wide-reaching concept that will allow the clinic to provide more services to students over the years. What I hope to do is give the students a sense of community as I felt in my grade schooling. These kids deserve so much, but they must appreciate what is placed before them so that the project can make a lasting impression.

Upcoming events include a Fun Day to Summerstrand (where I live) where the kids will be able to experience a part of their city they would otherwise not see. Two weeks ago the students were given a chart for the collection of 50 Rand (The equivalent of just over $7 U.S. dollars). Today my teacher told me that most of the children would not be able to collect the money and therefore would not be able to attend the field trip. This breaks my heart. As much as I want to give every child the money to attend this field trip, that is not why I am here. My purpose is to give these children a purpose in a world where “purpose” revolves around making enough money to get you through tomorrow. How can I create a system by which they feel the need to give themselves to their community?

Most don’t know their alphabet, how to read the words they copy from the board, or basic math skills; But one thing they do understand is love and emotion. These kids feel more than any students I have ever know in Mississippi.  Many of these kids have been through more than I could ever imagine going through as an eight or nine year old child. Sapphire is embarking on their 25^th Anniversary Campaign, one by which they hope to raise money for the school, teachers and volunteers so that it can continue its mission to becoming the benchmark for other township school systems.

Later this week I will be setting up a PayPal system through Sapphire Primary for anyone who reads this blog and wishes to donate to the betterment of this community. My ideas may be big but my expectations are reasonable; something along the lines of what has made me appreciate my own education. It can be as small as creating an art project that the students can take home, anything by which they can make pride. We want to work with the community and with the students to create an environment in which they can feel comfortable enough to make it their own. We hope to create opportunities for these children and in turn enhance their commitment to success.

In a little less than a month, this experience has altered my perspective on life and my purpose in it. Sure, I get frustrated and I feel as if I can’t handle what has been placed in front of me. But when I think about these kids and how much they have to learn, how much they have riding on their successes, all I want is to give my whole self to letting them believe they can succeed. These children don’t know life that exists outside their township, but I want them to believe that getting there is an attainable goal.

Waka Waka on V-Day

Valentine’s Day in South Africa ROCKS. First of all, Sapphire had a Wear What You Want Day (They call it American Day here, haha) where the students could dress out of uniform for R2. It was so fun to see the kids in their play clothes--and their play attitudes. All the students gathered in the central courtyard at noon for “Assembly”, which really just means lots of music and a short message, followed by a long round of chaos. The kids were ushered in single-file and sat according to class, although the sitting did not last very long. The first few songs were in tribute to Whitney Houston, they LOVE her over here. I started a lip-sync serenade to my class when “I Will Always Love You” came on. They just put their heads in their hands and laughed.  With the first hint of electronic pop music these kids started movin’—and so did I! I did my moves like Jagger in front of the crowd and it didn’t take long before I heard the kids chanting, “Go Teach-ah! Go Teach-ah!” It took me a second to realize that they were actually chanting for me…haha, I guess I do have moves after all. Even if my lack of rhythm and Rage with Gage style moves were just making them laugh, at least I could make them smile!              

A faculty member (I cannot remember her name to save my life) gave a message to the school. Reading that verse from Corinthians that they always read at weddings (yeah, I know—how do I not remember this) in English and then Afrikaans and speaking to the children about the importance of all the elements of love. The kids were surprisingly good during this portion and I was impressed with their attentiveness. Not five minutes went by before we got back to dancing—this time the kids were allowed to get up and dance. So I rushed upstairs with my camera so I could get the aerial view. This is when the pandemonium set in. Kids pulling, running, screaming, jumping and toppling over one another. I mean, I felt like my mother, or my grandmother even. I was yelling down to anyone who could hear me, “Please! No! Be Careful!” When I looked around and saw none of this phased any of the adults in the area (or the kids for that matter—my voice didn’t stand a chance against their echoes) I tried to chill out a little bit. Sure, there were some spills and a few tears, but none that weren’t almost immediately wiped away in favor of the party. I decided to relax, passed my camera to Troy, a volunteer who was more than thrilled to take pictures. He became to photographer for the afternoon and I went down for some more dancing. Bombarded by children saying, “Dance for us Teach-ah! Dance!”, I got back into the swing of things. I felt slightly hesitant and more than just a little silly, but the enthusiasm that came from everyone in the school erased it.

By the time school was out less than an hour later, I was dripping sweat from head to toe and couldn’t have felt better except for the fact that everyone at the school LOVES hugs. I had to use my standard response to their hovering over my neck, “Space. Space. Teacher needs space.” It was easily the best Valentine’s party I have ever been to at school.

Next came the adult Valentine’s party. Our advisor planned a party at the Red Location Community Center in a black township about 20 minutes from our apartment. This was really cool. It was set up at a cooperative run by 16 previously unemployed “Mommas”, who hosted an absolutely fabulous evening. It started off with girls from the neighborhood doing some of their dances for us outside. Then a group of dancers, dressed head to toe in traditional South African festival beads and jingly bottle-cap anklets that I HAVE to recreate for festival season, put on a show that was really amazing. I had the best fried chicken of my life last night, by the way, but somehow I missed the sheep tongue and chicken livers! A few glasses of boxed South African wine later, we said our goodbyes and got back on the bus headed for home. I didn’t realize how exhausted I was until I fell on my couch at home and fell asleep twenty minutes into “Breaking Bad”. Days like this make me feel like there is a reason for being who we are, where we are, when we’re there. I can’t wait to get started on my project with the students where we will hopefully be painting the fence around the school clinic with fruits and veggies, and hopefully planting a variety of indigenous healing herbs and plants by the front of the clinic! Details to come; as soon as I can figure them all out. Till next time, I’m headed to a soccer match at Nelson Mandela Bay stadium. Super-stoked.

The Real PE

It’s been two weeks and I’m loving PE more and more every day. Despite the fact that we’re cursed and glass windows and doors break at the snap of a finger, everything else is falling into place. The initial culture shock is finally subsiding and we are getting into the easy groove of beach living. Internet is up (although it is taking a big chunk out of my bank account) and living without air conditioning is not as bad as it sounds—life is good! (“It’s Lekker!”).

That brings me to our school, Sapphire Road Primary. It is located in a colored township (refers to those who have mixed heritage) about forty minutes away on the outskirts of town. When we first visited it was hard to control my emotions. I felt this emptiness in my stomach as we drove through the barbed wire fence to a dry, infertile and run-down schoolyard. Of course, I asked the obvious questions to myself, “How can these poor kids live like this?”. But no sooner than we stepped out of the van did my attitude change. The kids were so excited to see new faces and their joy was magnetic—all I could think about was how I would plan trips for the future. We were introduced to volunteers from the community, local moms and dads who donate their time and love developing a positive and safe environment for their youth; working in the garden, cleaning the grounds, assisting teachers…and all for the benefit of giving back to their community in hopes of giving their children a better life. On school grounds is a clinic run by members of the community where it seems the most effective remedy for a hurting child is a little bit of love. There is also an area of the school called Emmanuel House where students with HIV are provided care and a positive learning environment. And we think America has issues…

One of my favorite parts of the school is the volunteer-led food program. (duh) Each morning, women from the community arrive at the school early to prepare a warm lunch for the students—Kindergarten-7^th grade, four to five classes per grade and 30-40 kids per class—you do the math, because I really don’t feel like it right now. And in a township where this might be the only meal these students eat in a day, it is a true blessing to see such commitment to building up youth in a township that would be seen by most Americans as hopeless. This place is anything but. The school also has a few gardens, which obviously caught my attention right off the bat. Prime harvesting season has passed, and the soil is very poor, but with the help of the volunteers they plant what they can—they even created a make-shift hydroponic garden house—although it was blown down by the strong winds. I’m hoping to bring my green thumb to the school and get things going for a fall garden! The community has rallied together to make Sapphire “A True Gem” (Yep, I said it-and I meant it.)

 I am teaching in Ms. Joseph’s Grade 3 classroom of 37 rambunctious nine and ten year olds. She is a blast! Just the other morning I walked in and the kids were singing hymns. They proceeded to lead the rest of the class in traditional African dances and we ended with freestyle pop-hip-hop dance. For REAL. That’s how I got to start my morning. I have only taught for two days, but I’m already falling in love with the students. They start the morning with the Lord’s Prayer. All the students chime in together, “Good Morning, Teacher! Good Morning All!” Another Grade 3 teacer then says, “And what kind of vibes do we feel today?” In unison, the students did a right-to-left wave motion with their right hands and sing, “Good Vibes!!!” How cool is that. It’s really cool.

 Most of them are these little sponges just dying to soak up everything you have to say. One of my students (names are still a struggle—but I assure you after this week I will be on top of it) came from another township school where she only spoke one native language (again, I can’t remember the name of her language). After just four weeks at Sapphire, she is picking up on English and Afrikaans and absolutely amazes me with her talents. While her academic skills are obviously behind those of some other students, her ability to take control of a room is just fantastic—she led the students in a song and dance the other day and killed it! I can’t wait to see where she ends up at the end of this term.

Bradley, our advisor for the term, is a local Port-Elizabethan and I couldn’t ask for a more positive role model for this experience. He has HUGE ideas…and they all revolve around the community coming together to appreciate what they have, and to use positive and well thought out plans to help these communities succeed. Handouts? Hell no. Bradley is all about building up these townships through working with what they have. The first day, I wanted to give them supplies, give the class my rand—but Bradley has helped me see that is not what they need. They don’t need to be of the mindset that they are entitled to handouts. They are entitled to everything they can work for. In a town where unemployed people make more money begging for handouts than some working double-shifts for next to nothing, the last thing we need to do is lead them to believe handouts are a way to success.                  My favorite part about Bradley is his purpose. He says everyone needs a purpose, and his purpose is to serve. And boy does he do it—ever so humbly. I can only strive to be as selfless and confident as he is. We need to create smart business plans to give the communities what they need, not what they want. Money works for a time, but we need to develop plans, successful plans, to put this money into action where it is needed most. They want a police station? What good will that do if we don’t work on the infrastructure of the town surrounding that police station? Build up the community in a smart and concise manner and if this succeeds, the rest will follow. I don’t explain Bradley’s ideas as well as he does, but all I can say is it makes sense.

My goal is to plan a way to create a dining area for the students (they currently eat their community provided lunch in the open-air hall outside their classrooms). Nothing big, just some picnic tables and thoughtful planning—hopefully with the help of Bradley!. But I know as long as I keep my mind focused I will at least play a part in pushing the school in the right direction. Bradley brought up the spekboom (spelling?). It’s an indigenous bush/tree that is a favorite among the local elephants. It can even be grown by cutting off a branch from one plant and shoving it in the ground elsewhere. Now that is AWESOME. How much cooler does it get? Hopefully we will be able to plant some of these around the clinic so that the area is more aesthetically pleasing. And it’s bringing back indigenous plants to a nation that has been bombarded with alien plant life over the past two hundred years. I REALLY want to bring a bunch of art supplies to the school and have a class project where we paint the fences surrounding the clinic as well. Who doesn’t like painting? And who wouldn’t light up with a smile upon seeing the amazing artwork of beautiful children. My brain is churning with ideas. Three months doesn’t seem so long anymore…

Pictures and videos are coming! I have to go to a coffee shop for downloads because the internet is ultra-pricey down here. But if I can say one thing about this experience thus far, it is that I can already sense the affect it is having on my soul. Africa truly is the heart of humanity.