Monthly Update: February I

Kids from Khula Nomathiya enjoy a fun game with
a tasty reward!

The second month of 2013 has passed! We have had volunteers from all necks of the wood; Sweden, Holland, Russia, American and Britain with ages ranging from 19 to 70 proving that age is no barrier. We are incredibly proud to be working with such a fabulous group of people whose enthusiasm and commitment to projects produce stellar results. 

Read on to hear how February panned out...

Crèche

Our first week of February was our final week at Khula Nomathiya Crèche, before rotating onwards to our next crèche. Volunteers spent the week working on lessons surrounding oral hygiene and domestic animals. Not to mention having a stack of fun when it was playtime. 

Through our final week at Khula Nomathiya Crèche, we carried out child assessments with the school's teacher, Slindile, and the children who will be attending primary school in 2014. The aim of these assessments is to see what level of learning the children have attained so that by the time our rotation brings us back to a crèche, we can reassess the learners and see what improvements have been made. It was an incredible sight to see the amounts of information the children had absorbed as a result of the work volunteers had put into their lesson plans. 

Volunteer coordinator Monique carrying out assessments.

Slindile was taking notes as the assessments were carried out. It was special to see how we can empower the teachers to be better not just for themselves but for the welfare of the children. We look forward to our return to Khula Nomathiya, so that we may see the results of Slindile's lessons with the children in our absence. 

There was one child in particular who stood out during the month of February: Malwande. Malwande is a disabled child, and one of our home based care patients, who has trouble walking and speaking. Khula Nomathiya welcomed her with open arms to start attending classes, which was a great accomplishment for Nokwethemba and her volunteers, who encouraged Malwande's family to send her to crèche. Education volunteer Marie made it her task to tend to all of Malwande's classroom needs, much to her benefit throughout the month. 

Upon leaving Khula Nomathiya, our next stop was Simunye Crèche. Volunteers were not at all intimidated by the large number of children in the classroom (38) or numbers of babies in the baby room (29). They got straight into a week of review, followed by lessons including 'my self', ABCs, 123s and farm animals. Malwande came along, and was welcomed once again by the staff at our second creche. She simply thrives in the classroom environment and her fellow classmates adore her. 

We continue to visit Inkanyezi Creche every Friday afternoon. Mama Gumede and her children are thrilled with the lesson plans that our February volunteers have compiled. 

Afterschool Club

Our afterschool club is going well, and our February group spent a total of 25 hours with the children at Senzokuhle in Khula Village. They played games, coloured, participated in sports and much more. 

The children's highlights were learning about the colours of the South African flag, followed by having it painted on their faces! Bead making was also a big hit with the children. It is lovely to see them proudly donning the results of their time with us. 

Gardens

As part of our 10 Families Project, we visited the Zikhale family and planted seeds with Gogo one afternoon. She and the children of the family were ecstatic to have our volunteers assist them in their garden, which is really thriving as a result of the family's dedication. 

Ezwenelisha Support Group have their garden ready for planting, and we have lots of seeds to plant at the beginning of next month, which everyone is excited about. 

Volunteer Katia teaching HIV education.

HIV Education

Volunteers were thrilled to hand out 21 Primary School HIV Education Certificates and 11 Adult HIV Education certificates during the short month of February. 

These education lessons are highly rated amongst volunteers as their favourite project. Students and adults alike are pleased to undertake the courses, and there's nothing more gratifying than handing out certificates to the graduates. 

Volunteers spend time with each class educating about HIV transmission, how one can protect themselves, and the importance of empowering each and every member of the community to live positively - regardless of their HIV status. 

Support Groups

Our Khula and Ezwenelisha Support Groups gathered this February and spent entire mornings catching up and learning about various topics. Volunteers prepared topics including snakes, spiders, alcohol abuse, depression and crime.

The groups were also treated to a morning at yoga instructor David's house. Members enjoyed lounging in and around the pool, using water pistols and snacking. Members were most thrilled at David's jacuzzi and did not want to leave!

Our Mother’s Support Group was also graced by the presence of volunteer Kristina who used to be a midwife back home in Sweden. One afternoon was spent with Kristina teaching the mothers about baby massaging techniques. Not only did the mothers enjoy the session, but the babies will surely reap the rewards of Kristina's teaching. The mothers were also taken on a trip to the beach. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed themselves and were not deterred by the wind. 

Remember to check back on our blog for more updates from the month of February!