Hey Linda, tried to use the chat function with you but to no avail. I'm Excited about all the connections being made through the Year 9 project - together we can all make a much bigger difference. Fingers crossed for the night:)
Hi Linda,
What a fantastic idea the girls came up with. I teach at Kunyung, am an 'old girl' and my daughter finished Year 12 at Toorak in 2007. I'm always impressed by what Toorak achieves and how the students respond to issues and I must mention the teachers and their dedication. This is another example! If you would like an assistant at your 'sleep over', I'm available. Cheers Nina
Today we had a visit from the Toorak IB person. Her name has gone out of my head. She walked in when we had the ning up and I showed your name. She knows you. We displayed and explained the ning to our children and then talked about Africa- I'm working with Wonderwoman (member of this ning). We showed a video of the Daraja Academy. Silence, the students were so engaged! The post discussion was amazing. My prep students have joined a Year 5/6 class to do this. That is such a great thing to start with. We'll skype next and then work out we're we are heading. It was a very successful start. Cheers Nina
I just wanted to say how excited I am that you are taking such an interest in Daraja. I have been following your correspondence with Mark, and seeing that he seems very busy with his upcoming fundraiser, I wanted to offer my help in anyway you may need.
I have a very intimate knowledge of the school and its philosophies and vision. I can answer most questions and have direct access to any that I may not be able to answer.
I am headed back to Kenya for the first week of April, so I can begin to connect the schools in a personal way if you are ready for that, but no pressure. Take your time and get your students engaged however you can.
Linda - I'm thrilled to hear that you're fired up about Daraja, and thanks for the nice comments about the Skype conversation. For now all I can say is keep me in the loop! I want to do whatever I can from over here in the US to help support what you're doing with your students. I was just editing a video for Daraja last night, and one of the girls was saying that most high-school aged girls who don't get to go to school in Kibera, which is a huge slum in Nairobi and where this student is from, end up either as underpaid housemaids or prostitutes. You could tell that she KNEW that going to Daraja was saving her from that lifestyle. I'm working on getting ready for a big fundraiser at my school in around 2 weeks, but after that I plan on putting a lot of this footage about our girls up on youtube so that you and your students can further get to learn about the school and our Kenyan students.
Thanks for being in touch and supporting Daraja!
Hi Linda,
Great to read what you've been doing. We're starting our inquiry/making a difference for the Daraja Academy this week. Then we'll skype as well.
Cheers Nina
Thanks to everyone who particiapted in our classroom survey -
The kids were excited that we received responses from all over, but even more impressive was the discussions we had ... discussions about people and community, how they would help their…
It's so inspiring to read this Nina. I know how hard you work at your craft and you can see the effect you have had with this wonderful effort from your student. It is amazing how much kids take in when we don't 'dumb down' the curriculum. They are…
I was wondering if that was the word being used there! That's such a tough word for kids of that age--what a great example of how our use of language helps them adopt it earlier than they might. I just had this conversation with a teacher last week.…
I have a whole class of wonderful young writers. One comment this child wrote was about being balanced. As a PYP candidate school balanced is one of our values. This child understood this concept. Balancing life & being a balanced person. Our learne…
Wow! I think I need to take some time to absorb how selfless this young child is. This is truly one of the most spectacular and inspirational pieces of writing that I have ever seen from a young student, especially a 6 year old! Thanks for sharing t…
Carolyn, this is an incredible story that I will be sharing with my students tomorrow! A food drive is a concept that students of all ages can understand and connect to, so it's a wonderful idea as an in-school service project. Congratulations to yo…
Congratulations on a job well done! I'd love to hear from other schools who did drives like this....wouldn't it be something to keep track of the collective "good" that was done through food drives inside of schools this year? It's always wonderful…
"I would like Santa to look after the people..." Wow. That pulls my heartstrings! Such an engaging assignment for them Nina, and it's also a beautiful way to assess their developing writing skills too.
Can First Graders work to make a difference? I've seen it! In our school (50% free/reduced lunch population), my 20 first graders overwhelmed the Deck the Halls for the Hungry project at our school.
How did this happen? Just a few sentences a day a…
This child wrote quietly for 40 minutes. It hasn't been edited yet and will be by the child. I was blown away by the content. I sure this child will grow up to make a difference! Cheers Nina
Comment Wall (11 comments)
You need to be a member of Working together 2 make a difference to add comments!
Join this Ning Network
What a fantastic idea the girls came up with. I teach at Kunyung, am an 'old girl' and my daughter finished Year 12 at Toorak in 2007. I'm always impressed by what Toorak achieves and how the students respond to issues and I must mention the teachers and their dedication. This is another example! If you would like an assistant at your 'sleep over', I'm available. Cheers Nina
I have a very intimate knowledge of the school and its philosophies and vision. I can answer most questions and have direct access to any that I may not be able to answer.
I am headed back to Kenya for the first week of April, so I can begin to connect the schools in a personal way if you are ready for that, but no pressure. Take your time and get your students engaged however you can.
Regards,
Jabiz
Thanks for being in touch and supporting Daraja!
Great to read what you've been doing. We're starting our inquiry/making a difference for the Daraja Academy this week. Then we'll skype as well.
Cheers Nina
View All Comments