Day 100 and start of Ethiopian Choir!

4 January 2008

Today is my one hundredth day in Ethiopia!

Progress so far includes:

• Writing action plan.
• Sorting out model classroom in college and having college students visit during open hours.
• Adapting to the Ethiopian climate.
• Adapting to the Ethiopian work Ethic.
• Some teacher training, observations and training follow-up.
• Learnt how to read Fidel (Amharic) characters.
• Begun once a week teaching of English to college trainee teachers.
• Begun once a week teaching of music and English to a local class of primary
  children (see below).
• Can speak about 160 words of Amharic.
• Made a cardboard handle for my saucepan lid.
• Made curtains for my room using a bed-sheet, string and clothes pegs.
• Have stopped termite dust falling on my computer and on me at night using
  plastic on the ceiling.
• Can wash thoroughly and completely in a 50cm bowl!
• Have only had one vomiting incident.
• I have not got a cold this "winter."
• I have not got malaria.

Yesterday I observed an Ethiopian teacher using number cards very effectively in her class. This is real progress as some training I have done is in actual use in the classroom. Next week I will be training and then paying college students to make number cards so that more classes can have access and hopefully more teachers will teach using them. Then we expand to the other schools...

Also, I was really missing actually teaching children so I have arranged to go to the local school once a week and teach a grade 2 (8-10ish) music and English for an hour and a quarter. I started last Thursday, but yesterday I switched to my regular time, before lunch, and had a breakthrough with "London's Burning" - I managed to get them singing a round through one whole time before they began singing the same as each other. They're even pronouncing "P" in "pour on water." What really showed it working was that they were singing it on the way home. I also have started "one, two tie my shoe (there are no buckles here!)" which works quite well and have begun teaching them rhythm with "tat tay tar." Also this by hand gestures as I cannot speak enough Amharic.