For the past two weeks, we have been teaching at our host’s church, Victory Church in Kabuga, Kigali, Rwanda. They have recently started a nursery school, for those member’s children, ages 3-5, in preparation of primary school. Basically, preschool, with only a small chalkboard, a piece of chalk and one poster board with the alphabet with pictures. Myself and two of my teammates, Tom and Jessica, took on the 3 year old class.
Tell me, how you teach a group of 3 year olds with a chalkboard and an ABC poster board who know no English? Basically, it was one of life’s biggest challenges and one of my favorite experiences in Africa. We realized after our first morning with them that, yes, they knew there ABCs, but they only had a rote memory of the letters. So if they messed up, they had to begin all over again. “A, B, C, D, E, J…no, no, no. A, B, C, D, E, F… Neither could they could recognize what the letters looked like. We made flashcards out of construction paper and realized that our children could learn no more than 3 letters a day in a one hour period. This included an every 5 minute break to sing a song, do a little dance, make a little noise. Never have I missed my days of working at an American daycare, which has plenty of toys, imagination stations, books, and resources aplenty. Three year olds, do not sit still. Lessons in patience were aplenty, but hugs were limitless.
We left having made it through the whole of the alphabet, in 2 weeks, they don’t know it well, still can’t recognize most of the letters, and don’t know how to sit still more than 3 minutes. What they do know, is that they are loved, they are precious, and they will one day know more English than, “Muzungu, how are you?”
