supporting holistic HIV & AIDS education in grades 4-7

These teachers all facilitate Window of Hope clubs at their schools.
Here they are presenting one of the songs from the WIndow of Hope
program to the rest of a group of teachers gathered for a refresher
course.

The week after visiting Hoachanas schools I helped put on a refresher
course for the Window of Hope teachers. Window of Hope is an
excellent, holistic, after-school, HIV & AIDS education program that
was developed by UNICEF for grades 4-7 in Namibia. The program uses
songs, games, stories, art, drama, and discussion to teach kids about
self-esteem, goal setting, their own changing bodies, and many of the
issues around HIV & AIDS such as transmission, stigmatization,
prevention, and positive living. It is supposed to be in all primary
schools in the country. I cannot speak for the rest of the country,
but in Hardap Region that is true. All 47 primary schools have this
program up and running. This year we (WOH Trainers and RACE
Coordinator) brought all of the facilitators for Junior and Senior
WOH clubs together to discuss the successes and challenges of
facilitating the clubs, to answer their questions that came up along
the way, and to plan for the future of the program in their specific
clusters (groups of schools in one town or area/village). The formal
training of facilitator for Window of Hope is one week. This
refresher was one day, so we had to be pretty efficient with our
content and use of time. Overall, the feedback from the teachers was
really positive. They seemed to enjoy the opportunity to discuss
challenges, come up with solutions, and share ideas with teachers
from different schools and different towns. Hopefully this refresher
course will help to not only continue Window of Hope, but improve its
implementation in our region.

Welcome to Hoachanas

You would have to look carefully at a map of Namibia to find
Hoachanas (pronounced "Wa-ha-nas"). You would also probably need to
know exactly where to look. It is a tiny, little village seemingly
in the middle of nowhere, but many places in Namibia feel like that
because the country is so vast with such a comparatively small
population. This is where I spent nearly a week working in the local
schools. As you can see in the photo, it is mostly open road and
open sky as you approach Hoachanas.

As I have written about before, I have a wonderful counterpart,
Heidie who is an Advisory Teacher for Lower Primary. I help her with
supporting the teachers in grades 1-4. At the schools I also get to
promote the TRC, present information of promoting a reading culture
in schools, and meet with the principal, secretaries, or other
teachers who are in need of support. These school visits are the
perfect union of working with a counterpart AND doing TRC outreach/
promotion.

Hoachanas surely does not look like much, but I found the school
atmosphere to be welcoming. The teachers and principals expressed
much gratitude for our visit and the support that we were able to
offer the schools. I was able to visit 12 classes with Heidie in
grades 1-4. At PJ Tsaitsaib Junior Secondary School the grade twos
were being introduced to the number 15 in an excellent math lesson
(see photo of kids working in pairs). The grade fours were learning
about culture in Namibia and performed a song that they had learned
in a previous lesson for us. In addition to visiting classes and
supporting teachers at this school, I assisted the secretary and
principal in establishing a system for organizing and distributing
the incoming mail so that information gets to the teachers. At each
of the three schools (2 in Hoachanas and 1 outside-even more rural)
we held meetings with the teachers where each of us presented
information in different areas such as administration, lesson
planning, lesson presentation, classroom management, continuous
assessment, learner centered education, classroom environment, the
resources available at the TRC, and strategies/ideas for improving
reading and promoting a reading culture in the schools.

Unlike any other school visit trips, Heidie and I stayed in a lodge
just outside of town since there was no other accommodation nearby
and Hoachanas is too far to drive back to Mariental each night. This
lodge is run by very hospitable, kind Germans. Besides running the
lodge and flying center, these Germans developed the "Hoachanas
Children's Fund" which provides a percentage of students at each
school with school fees, school uniforms, and materials for school.
In addition, the Germans sponsor the school's textbooks, notebooks,
paper, pencils, etc and food for the kids to have at break time,
usually porridge. For being in such a poor area, it was nice to see
how the folks from the local lodge have reach out to the schools. It
would be really easy for this lodge to just pretend that the village
isn't even there, but instead they have stretched out helping hands.
Many of these rural schools have up to 4 kids sharing one textbook
and there is usually a constant deficit in school supplies. In
Hoachanas the kids all had enough up-to-date textbooks, notebooks,
new pencils, and other school supplies. It was nice to see both the
involvement of the Germans from the lodge and that the resources were
being put to good use at the school.

Hoachanas is probably not on your list of places to see if you visit
Namibia (unless you are German or part of the flying club), but I
enjoyed my time there visiting classes, supporting teachers,
assisting the schools in general, and getting to know the Germans who
contribute to the schools.

Kalahari Plaas Visits

One of my favorite features of Namibia is the Kalahari desert which
is not exactly what we think of when we think desert.











It's not just
sand, but trees, shrubs, grasses, and all sorts of animals. Maybe it
is more of a savannah, but whatever it is, it is beautiful! I think
that I have previously written about visiting farms in the Kalahari
before. Even when my mom and sister were here we went to a lodge in
the Kalahari for one night and they were able to experience the
beauty of the Kalahari themselves.

Last November I visited a farm near Leonardville in the Kalahari. It
is Jaco's uncle's farm and the visit brought a few new adventures for
me. First was fighting veld fires (field fires) in the night. The
farmers in the area have radios in their houses and vehicles, so when
one's farm is burning the others jump in the land roovers and
bakkies, fill their water tanks, and drive to whichever farm is in
trouble. Fortunately, the time that I went along to see this
process, the fire was only that size of a campfire by the time that
we arrived. Oom Kobus (Jaco's uncle) hosed down what was left of the
fire and we were on our way back in no time. Well, between the veld
fire adventure, sleeping outside in the Kalahari, and the upcoming
kudu hunt in the morning, I really didn't sleep that night.

Yes, kudu hunt. I went along on the kudu hunt. This involved
driving around the Kalahari farm until you find the bull kudus and
then shooting one. However, it is not really that easy...there is a
hunt, a chase, a lot of risk as the vehicle is flying over dunes and
across open velds of tall grass where there may be huge holes or down
trees. Oh yeah, all of this as the hunter is standing in the back of
the bakkie with the rifle trying to get a shot! This kudu met his
end while running full speed across a veld with a land roover right
alongside of him! Not all of the hunts turn out like this, but this
one left my shaking with so much adrenaline that I could barely climb
out of the back of the bakkie where I had been holding on for dear
life as we chased down the kudu. This was definitely an experience
that I will never forget.

Then there is the Aranos Kalahari farm of Oom Bucks (another of
Jaco's uncles, but on the other side of the family). I visited this
farm for the first time nearly a year ago. It was my introduction to
the Kalahari and I absolutely loved it! This time I had the
opportunity to feed some of the orphaned sheep, find ground water
with a stick, and again sleep under the night sky of the Kalahari, in
the yard of course safe from leopards and snakes with two guard
dogs :-) Each time I visit the Kalahari I appreciate the beauty, the
adventures, and the peaceful feeling of being on the farm.

How could I forget? The food is also one of the enjoyable, memorable
aspects of visiting a kalahari farm. Wether it is a steak braai on
top of a red dune or a potjiekos in the backyard of the farm house or
a dinner of sheep intestines and other interesting parts that have
been well clean, cooked, and prepared in a delicious sauce or a pig's
neck braaied and served with salad...it is all delicious food and a
nice time of sitting around a fire enjoying good company and
conversation (well the parts that are in English or the Afrikaans
that I understand). Hopefully there will be some more of these plaas
visits to come.

Sponsor a kid for Camp GLOW

What is Camp GLOW?

All over the country of Namibia there are bright potential leaders waiting for the opportunity to grow to their full capabilities. The Gender Awareness in Namibia (GAIN) committee of Peace Corps Volunteers is ready to give them that opportunity with “Girls and Guys Leading Our World (GLOW).” Camp GLOW is a week-long leadership development camp offered to eighty students, ages 13 to 16, from around Namibia. These learners will come together in the capital city in May 2006 to learn about gender awareness, promote self-confidence, explore future career choices, fight the AIDS epidemic, and develop leadership skills. Most of the campers will never have another chance to work with Namibians from the other cultures within their own country, visit the capital city and historic landmarks of their nation, or interact with successful Namibian professionals on a one-on-one basis.
This is the opportunity of a lifetime for them!

What can you do to help?

The cost of the camp for each student is US$ 50.00. We are asking for your help in sponsoring these children to attend Camp GLOW. For US$ 50, a child will gain a lifetime of experience and growth. If you do decide to sponsor one or more students, each child will send you a picture and letter from camp, telling you about his/her experiences during the week.

How do I donate?

Please send your money (cash or check) to Peace Corps Volunteer, Beth Phillips, through her family at:
Beth Phillips
6302 15th Avenue NE
Seattle WA 98115

The money will be deposited into the Camp GLOW account upon receipt. With the money, please send your name and address so that we can send you a picture and letter in the mail. If you would like a receipt for your donation, please let us know and we will send that with the letter. (Remember, the camp does not take place until May of next year, 2007, so you will not receive your letters until after that time.)

Thank you for your generous support and contributions! We look forward to hearing from you!

If you have any questions, please contact Beth Phillips at bethinnamibia@yahoo.com.

Want to donate books?

Dani, my fabulous colleague, sitemate in Mariental, and the "ultimate Peace Corps Volunteer" as I often call her, signed Danie Joubert up for The Library Project.  This project was started to help volunteers is acquiring books for their school libraries and to help people in the U.S. know how about the school and how they can help.  Below is the link to the website for Danie Joubert's Library Project.  On that site is a link to an Amazon.com wish list, so you can chose from the list and have the books shipped directly here for the school's library.  

http://www.thelibraryproject.org/volunteer_display.cfm?VID=1003

Even if you are not interested in donating books, it is still worth checking out the site to read more about the school, Mariental, Namibia, and the project.  Thanks!

Track and Field Day in Mariental

Even though I am not teaching at Danie Joubert, I like to volunteer
to help with school events. This is the school where I run the girls
club. Also, the principal there and his family have been so
welcoming and helpful to myself and other volunteers in Mariental,
past and present. One early Saturday morning (6:45) Megan and I
walked across the street to help out at the Danie Joubert In-House
Athletics. This means it was the school's track and field day.
Megan and I were timers for the grade 1-9 event. It was a long, hot
day, but a lot of fun. We enjoyed getting to know some of the other
teachers and some parents that we worked with. By quarter past five
when the final relay was finished we turned in our stopwatches and
headed home for cold showers and some rest. This was only the in-
house competition. Megan worked the next weekend at the zonal junior
secondary schools' competition and I worked again the weekend after
that at the primary schools' zonal competition. Each day hot, but
not as long and each time feeling like we are a part of a school
community and able to give back to the schools that we work in or with.

fresh paint

It's unfortunate that I do not have good "before" photos to share of
the sitkamer (living room) and kombuis (kitchen), but trust me when I
say they were depressingly ugly.

The cracked, dirty, mint green walls against the heavy, brownish-
yellowish curtains and random, some broken, chairs in the sitkamer
made it almost unbearable to be in there! Now, with a fresh coat of
paint, some different drapes, some fabric over the chairs, a donated
bed to serve as a couch, and a few borrowed chairs for the table it
is an entirely different room! I even felt inspired to decorate
using the ribbon and paper clips that Amy sent for stinging up photos
and cards. The room is much lighter, so the plants are even
happier. Instead of avoiding going into this room, I enjoy spending
time in there when friends come over or watching a movie with Megan
or sitting in the quiet of the morning reading and enjoying a cup of
coffee. Agh, what a transformation!

The kombuis was a dark, gray color with many holes in the walls.
Even with the morning sun coming, it was still dark and gloomy. The
fresh, bright, blue paint makes the room more alive. It even matched
Megan's shirt as she was making tortillas for a Mexican dinner a few
days ago. We only just finished the painting and still need to put a
few things on the walls, so it's not totally complete, but already
better.

It is amazing what a little paint can do to change not only the look,
but the whole feel of a room!