I'm not entirely sure when I last wrote, but I feel that it has been a while.  My time at Gede Special School has been a black hole into another dimension.  Everyday goes so fast that I hardly know where my day ends and where it begins.  In the past few months I have been teaching grades 4-6 English, KSL, PE, Art and Science. My kids are amazing and I love of every moment of working with them and seeing them start to think outside of the box.  The problem with education in Kenya is that it lags behind by about 50 years.  Every child's future is based on two examinations KCPE which is the primary exam and the KCSE which is the high school exam.  If children don't pass the first exam they are eligible for secondary school and if they make it to secondary school they must pass with certain marks to be able to go to college (which is not affordable) or to get certain jobs.  The lowest marks make you eligible to become a teacher!!!  With such a heavy emphasis on passing exams you can only imagine what a classroom might look like and the quality of education that children are receiving.  Some days teachers just don't show up to and other days they just sleep at their desks if the are lucky enough to have one.  I have made it one of my goals to try and differentiate my instruction as much as possible and encourage creative thinking but it has been so ingrained for them to be single minded that thinking outside of the box is nearly impossible for them.  My hope is that by the end of the year they will be 1/10 better then they are now. 

School ended about a month ago and I have been busy with Peace Corps meetings in Nairobi and designing next terms lessons.  Ideally I would like to have a very regimented term that allowed me to do progress monitoring of each of my students so I might be able to make so suggestions to my head teacher about educational changes that would benefit the students.  One of the largest challenges I face is a lack of care and motivation from my counterparts and the educational system as a whole.  Many times I feel like I am just spinning my wheels and never going anywhere.  I'm hanging in there though.

One of my secondary projects is getting an art coop started that will eventually provide jobs for Deaf students who don't make it to secondary school.  We are looking at targeting the tourist community and making original crafts from recycled fabrics, wire and paper.  If you have any ideas let me know.  I'm also trying to get a small library going at my school to give my students some books to read. I'm looking for culturally diverse books that have simple language and lots of colorful pictures. 

I guess it would be nice if  I mentioned myself.... honestly, I feel so overwhelmed  with everything  I need to do that many times I just shut myself inside my house and read or watch a movie.  The beach has been a lifesaver for my sanity and I am happy to say I just finished my Open Water Certification for SCUBA.  Next season I will be going for my advanced!!!  It has been so amazing to escape to 18m below the ocean.   I will have pictures soon enough.  I'm also spending some reviewing a handbook written by a women who is doing a pilot study on Autism in Kenya and the cultural differences that need to be taken into account when diagnosing.  Her husband is one of the founding researchers and doctors at the Kenya Medical Research Institute (KMRI).  We have spent some time discussing my options for after Peace Corps and I feel like I might be interested in helping her with her project.  There was one day that she took me to the hospital to look at a little girl she had just rescued.  Her name is Mpenzi and she is five years old.  Mpenzi had been tied to a tree for years and was left outside like an animal.  When Karren found her she barely alive.  Her parents had left her that way because she was "different" then their other children. Mpenzi was born with Cerebral Palsy and was never given medical attention.  After Karren found her she brought her to KMRI and started her special diet and 24 hour care.  Now that she has gained five kilos her mother doesn't seem to be as frightened of her.  Our goal right now is to get her to go my school so she can start receiving and education.

Wow I went off on a tangent there... ok I'm attaching some pictures of my students and myself miss you all!
XO