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It's 29th June 2008 and this must be the longest time I haven't kept the blog up to date. but we were away for three weeks so I'm sure you will forgive me. It's just after nine on Sunday morning and it's hot again. We are in the middle of the rainy season and we certainly have had a lot of rain especially in the last few days. Yesterday, going to the market as you do on a Saturday, I was as wet as if I had stood under a shower for ten minutes. But so was everyone else, so it didn't matter.
Life is certainly very busy for us and will be until the end of our placement in February. Mary has been working with Meg on the National Literacy fast Track Initiative. They have been training people (some teachers, some students, some members of the general public) to teach reading in after school clubs. It is an enormous workshop and they have to train the whole country in three day workshops so their work is cut out for months and then they will have to monitor and do follow ups so there will be no let up.
On the other hand, I'm not training at the moment. All that will start again when the course starts in September. Then I'll be off to the deepest parts of the country. Currently, I am a bit office bound because I continue to write the programme. Now on to Module 4 of 9 which I must finish by Christmas. Tall order considering all the other things I have to do. This one is about the curriculum and is probably the hardest because it will need a complete rewrite. It mainly deals with secondary education and needs to be slanted towards nursery and primary as well. What do I know about nursery schools? I know that the children hang onto your ankles an awful lot but that's all. So I will have to be a fast learner.
Social life as always has been good but I have opted out of one or two things but Mary is up there with the best. She went to the FIFA world cup match played at the new Providence cricket ground (I though the pitches were different shapes!!!) and saw Guyana beaten 2 - 1 by Suriname, the Dutch speaking neighbours but she said the second half was really great especially when the crowd turned up. I think they expected it would be like most Guyanese things starting 2 hours late but it seems to have started on time because it was World Cup and so lots would have missed the start.
We went to the Brazilian Embassy June Festival yesterday evening. it was packed and a great atmosphere. we followed the theme by going to the Brazilian restaurant afterwards - wonderful barbecue meat!!!! We met with Meg's friends, Maureen and Brian who are over for a week or so.
And that's all our news for the moment and I'll try not to leave it for a month next time.
It's 31st May and another month has almost come to an end and we've been in England for almost a week. Stayed with Dad and then came to Swindon to visit Peter and Angela. Made us unbelievably welcome as always. Going back to London today and the tour continues!
It's 24th May and we're flying off to England via Trinidad in just 4 hours! Yippee. Hope to see some of you there.
It's 17th May and we are seriously into the rainy season. So far not as bad as last year but little and often. Never mind, that's the way Guyana is.
Since we came back from Barbados we have not stopped, especially Mary. Working alongside her VSO partner in NCERD Meg, they have delivered a five day workshop on the new National Literacy Project to Educators (teachers) from the north of the country, given a presentation to Jamaicans on the Literacy Hour (including one hour video they produced), given a two day Fresh Start Literacy workshop and on Monday, they will be off to the East of the country to do another 3 days on the National Literacy Project.
On the other hand I have been plodding away at the rewrite of my Headteachers' course. Writer's block has definately gone and now making good progress. Hope to complete another module before we go home next Saturday for a well deserved break, although I don't think it will be a rest. I have completed the preparation of the next set of HT exams and presented it to the exam board as well as all sorts of things such as working on the Education Strategic Plan.
Looking forward to seeing any of you who may be around at the time. See over to the left for some photos of the last few weeks.
It's 6th May and Barbados is already history. We had a wonderful time - aquamarine seas, white sand, perfect weather, wonderful food and and and..........
Back to work today and a lot of frustrations for Mary and Meg, but that's another story. My Education Management Certificate results were the best ever - 99% success. So I must be doing something right.
