Time Capsule Letter – October 2016
Our second group this summer was certainly the most diverse, with students coming from the US, Lebanon, Columbia and the UK. They were also diverse in their personalities all offering their enthusiasm and wide range of expertise to the GLA program.
They met every experience of the program head on with great energy. Their flexibility with respect to the Ghanian way of life was key to the success of their program. When the rain poured down, they danced in it; when the van broke down, they all piled into the other one; when the bricks collapsed, they started again ……. you get the picture! Their individual positive attitude was infectious for the collective vibe.
Down time you ask??
There really wasn’t any as all the students LOVED to fill in the curricular gaps with games – Mafia being the most favorite!
Recollections of the second program which put a smile on my face:
- Atoosa, Emilie, Eva and Rory leading the Grade 6’s in ‘Doe a Deer’ (as well as MANY other songs) complete with actions
- Adreanna always having a fun game to lead
- Edith extending thanks to all who taught, helped and inspired us
- Daniela teaching the song ‘We are the World’ and the game of ‘Hungry Wolf’ to the children at Asitey Park
- Emily, Sophie and Cara face painting with the Grade 4 students
- Abby and Paola dancing in the rain
- Sam playing soccer (football) with the students every day at Asitey Park
- Aina giving ALL her energy to her Grade 5 class and finding more to give at the park
- Zoe with her caring stories of the nursery
Summer Blog Posts
7/15/2016
Hi All
This blog is short as our day has been long!!
Great news – everyone arrived at their scheduled time about 24 hours ago and are settling in beautifully.
This morning we woke up to a delicious breakfast by our kitchen crew.
We participated in our GLA Orientation – including a tour of both service sites as well as the village.
From 4-6 while some students rested, others went to Asitey Park and played various games (including soccer) with the neighbourhood children.
To our surprise after supper, the 82 year old Krobo linguist joined us for a very informative narrative of the history of the Krobo people. Hearing the history passed down from generation to generation through the elders is definitely better than searching for that information through the internet!
As I sit on the verandah writing this blog, many students have already tucked themselves into bed. A few are still up playing cards and eating home made popcorn.
From now on you will be reading the blog through the words of our GLA student bloggers Cara and Zoe.
Thanks again for sending your sons and daughters to us for 14 days.
They are a great group of young people.
Cheers,
Wendy
GLA International Director
7/16/2016
Here are some photos from our trip so far!
Started at a good pace… We had the History of the Krobo people yesterday. I think the kids loved it. Today will be even greater because we have a fabric workshop and local market visit.
-Henry, Local Director
7/18/2016
Hello GLA families!
Hope you are all well because we are having a blast in Ghana! On Saturday we had a more relaxed morning while waiting for a seamstress to arrive at the home base. She brought a selection of her different handmade clothes and showed us the different styles and fabrics in Ghana. Then, we went to the market to select fabrics so that the seamstress could make an article of clothing of our choice. After coming home from the market, we took our daily trip to the park to spend time with the local children. As we left the home base we found that the excited children were already waiting for us at the bottom of the driveway. Although it rained while we were playing, we still had a fantastic time playing with the kids. Later that night we had a bonfire which we all really enjoyed.
On Sunday, we woke up early to attend a Ghanaian church service to experience this important part of the local culture. The church was far different than any kind of church service you would see in the U.S. It was full of singing and dancing and a level of energy that we had never before seen. Despite the rain delaying our planned activities, we had a good time bonding and playing games at the home base. Later, we were finally able to take our trip to make a type of fabric called Batik. We learned how to stamp hot wax onto the blank fabric and then dye it the color of our choice. We then split into groups based on the grade that we would be teaching the next day and finished up our lesson plans.
Today, we started the day by heading to our chosen schools. Abigail, Edith, Zoe, and Adreanna went to volunteer at the nursery while the rest taught 4th, 5th, and 6th grades at the elementary school. The elementary school volunteers started by learning how to make bricks out of sand, water, and cement. Then, after changing into our teaching attire, we split into our classrooms and began to execute our plans. Despite the detailed plans we all came up with beforehand, the lessons didn’t go exactly as planned but were still enjoyed by the kids. Meanwhile, the four at the nursery, split into two groups, Adreanna and Abigail went to help with the babies and Zoe and Edith assisted in classrooms with the 3, 4, 5 year olds. Afterwards, all 4 of us were able to teach the older children a lesson on anatomy. With the rest of our day, we plan to go to the park with the kids, visit a host family, and do an workshop on African crafts.
Your GLA Bloggers,
Cara and Zoe
New Program Photos:
(Elementary school teaching)
More Pictures:
Class time at the elementary school
Asitey Park Below
Krobo sunset – AND – Krobo moon
July 19, 2016
On Tuesday, we started the day by visiting the girl’s senior high school next to our home base. We took a tour of the campus and had the opportunity to talk to students our age and learn how schools operate here. We also talked with the headmistress who talked about the school and even gave us mugs as souvenirs. After this we went directly to our service sites to teach our classes. The classes went much smoother once we had figured out how the classes worked and how the kids reacted in different situations. Later in the day, we went for our first visit with our host families who taught us a lot about life in Ghana and the Krobo language. Directly after that we went to Asitey park to play with the kids.
Yesterday we spent the morning at a bead workshop. We learned about the long and difficult process of making beads. We also had the opportunity to design and create our own beads. We then proceeded with our normal schedule which consisted of visiting with our host families and playing with the kids in the park. After dinner we had African dance lessons from teachers at the school. We all had a great time and were also able to teach them dances from our own countries.
Today, we all split into our service sites. Those of us at the elementary school were able to make twice the number of bricks we made last time as well as have very successful teaching sessions. At the nursery, everyone also had a successful day of teaching and playing with the kids. We’re looking forward to more host family and park visits as well as a Krobo naming ceremony tonight.
-Cara and Zoe
7.22.2016
This is Benedicta — she is one of the teachers at our school!
Hiking to Umbrella Rock
Boti Falls
After the Krobo Naming Ceremony, the fun begins!
Nannama – the Grade 6 teacher we have the privilege of working with.
ONE BELATED LAST POST –
Hello GLA Families and friends!
On Friday we went to service as usual in the morning, then after lunch, we got lessons on cooking and hawking (carrying stuff on your head) from Frances and the kitchen crew. We then went to Asitey park to play with the children and had another delicious meal of… you guessed it rice and chicken! After dinner, Monica, the owner of the nursery, came and lead a discussion on women’s roles in Ghana as well as wedding customs.
On Saturday, since there was no school, we spent the day hiking to Umbrella Rock and Boti Falls. We had a blast! When we returned home, some went to the park but didn’t stay long because there was a rain storm.
On Sunday we got to sleep in finally! Then we packed our things and went to the Sajuna Beach club (it’s not actually a beach haha) . We went swimming in the pool, played volleyball and soccer and got to go kayaking and take a boat ride on the Volta River. The scenery was incredible!
Today, we got back into our early morning service routine, but left a bit early so that we could go to the Krobo Girls Senior High School. At the school we got the opportunity to each sit in on a different class of our choice. It was a great experience! Later we went to the park and after dinner we got a special presentation from Henry.
See you soon!
