Lessons Learned
Yesterday we taught the second and third graders the hand-washing lesson. I think they got something out of it, and the third grade teacher offered us some advice that we were able to incorporate into our lesson. This is what we have been hoping for all along; we want the teachers to engage in meaningful dialogue with us about what we can do to help them and teach the kids well. Dominique, the founder of the school’s daughter, asked us to take on another project and we are very happy to oblige. We have been asked to teach English lessons to the teachers after their computer lessons. We think it will be a great opportunity for us to do something useful and improve our rapport with the teachers.
After school Joseph, our translator, showed us around Terrier Rouge with the explicit purpose of taking us to many different water pumps across the village. It was very interesting to see where the people get their water. It is gross, but the situation could be much worse. They use pumps. On our drive yesterday we passed through towns where people got their water from rivers, which is also where they and their animals relieved themselves, where they washed their clothes, and where they bathed. However, it was still appalling. Some people here use chlorine to purify their water, but not everyone can afford it. Water pools around the pumps. Typhoid and malaria are common.
On our walk, we passed the funeral home and morgue, noticeably the nicest buildings in town. It would seem that business is good. We also went by the cemetery. The Haitians bury their dead above ground in brightly painted cement buildings. While there, I noticed a recently dead dog partially concealed by a black plastic bag, covered in a swarm of flies.
We will be able to incorporate the information we learned into our lesson plans on water purification and disease transmission.
Today we taught the first and sixth grade classes. The first grade was very fun to teach. They were very cute and listened well. At the end of the lesson when we are leaving the classroom, we always ask the teachers for suggestions/comments. The first grade teacher thanked us for helping to improve the health of the children.
The sixth grade lesson was a little more challenging, as we purposely designed it to be. We added in skits about how you get germs and what germs do to your body. They did not understand the one about what germs do to your body; Jocelyn and I realized that they do not understand abstract concepts. They take everything very literally. We will have to keep this in mind while designing our future lessons. While there were a few miscommunications, the sixth graders asked very good questions at the end of the lesson and we feel like they learned a lot. They asked things like “can you get germs from wearing dirty clothes?” and “can you get germs from going to the bathroom close to your house?” The teachers also did not know the answers to these questions, so we think we cleared up a lot of lingering questions. Also, we really enjoyed hearing them form questions. Students here are taught by repetition; they hear something, repeat it, and that is that. By asking them to ask questions, they had no choice but to process the information we gave them.