So here i am, six weeks into my time here in Malawi. I really couldn't be enjoying it more. Time has already flown by and i really can see myself not wanting to leave this amazing place. I really feel like i am part of the community, everyone knows our names and greets us wherever we go. It's lovely.
I am now officially the standard 7 teacher along with Mike Kadaya (also the headteacher). Before, me and Clare were really unsure of where we were supposed to be teaching and it was really confusing and stressful for quite a time. I love my class to pieces, they are very rowdy and have so much energy but i feel that i am finally getting through to them. At the beginning it was clear that they were pushing their luck to see just how far they could go! The children now respect me much more and work really hard in my lessons. At Maveya if you are naughty at school you either have to do what they call 'manual labour' and go dig up the teachers gardens, get caned or in the worst senario the parents get called in. Clare had the unfortunate experience last week of walking into her standard 6 class to see a row of children getting the cane for being late for lesson! Ouch!
I am teaching 5 subjects: English, Mathematics, PE, Music and Creative Arts. My favourite subject to teach is obviously music. One lesson i taught them a song called 'Pirate King' and i dressed up some of the pupils with a bandanda, an eye patch made of cardboard, a sword and a moustache. Today was a really fun lesson. I introduced my trumpet to the class for the first time. I did this by hiding outside the classroom and playing the Pirate King tune and walking into the class. They all went absolutely wild to say the least! I showed them how it worked and a few of them really managed to make a good sound of it! Probably a better sound than i ever could!!!
I even enjoy teaching them mathematics, however it takes me quite a long time to remember how to do some things! Like for example adding and subtracting fractions! My letter writing club to Galley Hill has been a very big success, some of the letters they have written are lovely and really very funny. One letter begins: "First i want to say. Hello my friend. How are you? I am very well thankyou." Bless.
I am not only volunteering at the school. In my precious free periods i go down to Bloomfield Daycare centre which is about a 20 minute walk away and work with the little ones, aged from about 2 to 4. They are sooo sweet, i love them.
Outside of my school days i am also very busy doing lots of exciting things. Last weekend me, Clare, Jen and Kate (the volunteers on the Ruo tea estate) went to stay at Ken and Heathers house, they are ex-pats from south africa. They have 2 bushbabies that live in there house, They are the cutest things ever! We also went part way up Mount Mulanje and swam in mountain pools. There are two smaller pools which cascade over a waterfall you can slide down into a big pool you can swim in properly.
For the weekend after my birthday, not this weekend but next, us and a few of the otehr volunteers are going to a place called Cape Maclear on Lake Malawi which is supposed to be beautiful. At Easter i am going on a 9 day safari through Zambia which will end up at Victoria Falls. Lets see if i can pluck up enough courage to bungee! There is so much for me to see and do here i just hope i don't run out of time!
Anyway well i must end here, i have ran out of time! I will update you all very soon! Thankyou to everyone who has left me lovely comments, they really make me smile!
Much love to you all.
