Today started with a good run with Mike and Kevin. I’ve been especially regular here in Uganda so I’ve been jogging the return trip at a break neck speed. Just keeping it real.
I showered up and headed down to Gulu SS. We attended the morning assembly and we were introduced to the students. The kids seem to enjoy the novelty of have muzungu on their campus. I hope we get past that. I’ve got 7 classes with 70 students each so I’m going to need to work hard to get to know the kids.
I’ve been enjoying a friendship with Justin and Ritta who own a coffee shop called Café Larem. It is a great establishment. The place is clean and the internet connection is sweet. It is the hangout for NGOs and church groups. I think it will be the place where I do my prep work in the morning this summer. I’ve brought some AP World stuff to work on and I’m hoping to come into next year really prepared. David and I met later at Gulu SS. He was about a half an hour late. It turns out that it take him 2 ½ hours to ride his bike to school each day, not to mention the ride home in the dark. He isn’t well paid, but he is committed to meeting his obligations. We worked on the lesson preparation and we had lunch together. Lunch was posho and beans. If you don’t fill your plate it is noticed, so I had my fill. I was wondering what the kids would think of me and how I will fit into their experience. David was great about including me in the lesson. Our topic is the geography of East Africa. The lesson was a pretty simple straightforward introduction, but it took a while to get started. The students seemed distracted by me at first, but as we got into the lesson they were very responsive. The information is very basic, but that is good, because I really don't know much about East African geography. It's been fun learned. I shared the concept of a KWL with David and he really enjoyed it. Students seemed more concerned about drawing a chart with straight lines than they were about the content within the lines. I asked the students what they knew about East Africa and one student volunteered that "Black People live here" :) It's a start. I asked the students who the most famous East African in the world is. They love Obama around here so that was a big hit.
At night we (the IC teachers) sat around and played name that tune. It was fun to get some r and r together and let out a few gut laughs.
In the morning there is a kid named Jonanon who has been running with me. We are hatching a plan to start a small business. My goal is to give him a hook and not a fish. He is doing research today to see what kind of market exists among the Acholi for family photos. We have a good idea, but I'm being very careful not to give him too many details or make any promises. At this point I am planning to try to start the business while I am here and to sell my digital camera to him once he has raised enough profit to buy it. If we can create a partnership with a local taylor, we may be able to use her fabric as the backdrop.
Funny story. Last night I was attacked by a flying ant that nested in my hair and then tried to find a home in the back of my throat. It didn't work out so well for him.
