During the
last four weeks of our placement in Rwanda we will be teaching at a nursery
school from 7.30am to 10am every Tuesday morning. The headmistress has
requested that we follow the schools normal curriculum throughout our lessons, the entire team of eight will be splitting across all three levels. In
total across the classes – baby, middle, top – there is about 65 children.
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| Playing games with the children |
The
headmistress also asked us to try and make sure that our lessons are as fun and
interactive as possible; focusing on activities like music, games and arts and
crafts.
The first
sessions that we ran on Tuesday the 19th of August had a central
theme of animals; with the top and baby class focusing on domestic animals, and
the middle class on aquatic. Before each individual session started we played
some group games outside, so that the children would feel comfortable around
us, and also so
that they would be energised and ready to learn.
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| 'London Bridge is falling down'... |
Once we were
finished with the outside games, we took the children into the classrooms so as
to begin teaching them about the animals. We taught them songs that we had
written about each animal. The top class learnt about: cats, dogs, goats and
pigs. The middle class about: fish, frogs and octopus’. Finally the baby class learnt about: cats and
goats. Each song was incorporated with actions to help them to remember them,
and also to keep them active and on their feet.
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| Some of the posters we used as visual incentives |
Throughout
these music sessions we also played an animal stretching game, whereby the
children would have to pretend to be a certain animal. In the baby class for
example we used animals such as: giraffes, frogs, cats, birds – so as the try
and keep the children as engaged and active as possible.
In the top
class during their indoor session they went on to do arts and crafts. Chinwe
and Henry who were leading that class go them to draw each of the animals that
they had learnt about, as well as trying to label them.
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| Chinwe leading an arts and crafts session with the top class |
Our second session at the nursery also had a central theme of animals, this time focusing on wild and aquatic! We had a really great time interacting with the children, playing games, making them laugh, teaching them new songs. They particularly enjoyed making conga lines and doing the Hokey Cokey.
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| Playing follow the leader |
Next time we will be focusing on fruits, and hope to get the children really engaged by bringing in practical examples that they can touch and see and smell!
Overall we have had a fantastic time at the nursery, and have really enjoyed getting to work with the children for extended periods of time. This has been a really rewarding project and one that we have all looked forward to going to each week - despite the stupidly early wake up!!
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| Henry teaching the top class about cats and dogs |
