Jun 28th, 2009
by Joanne.
Three MCLC staff, Benaja, Feronel and I attended an Etoys training on the XO laptops that was held at a school in Petite Riviere, in the southern part of Haiti. Although the teachers spoke some English, it quickly became obvious that they would understand the lessons more fully if translated into Haitian Creole. I offerred that we could help teach and translate. Bill, Benaja and I became a great XO training team. We are planning to run a pilot of the XO computers next February 2010. This is perfect for us because we learned how to make animated books with the Etoys software. This will furthur our ability to create Haitian Creole books on our website for our Mother Tongue Books project.
A Rotary Club is being formed right here on Lagonave! If all goes as scheduled they will be able to start receiving projects by this August. This will enable us to start our next Rotary funded library expansion and book publishing project.
I just trained staff from Limyè Lavi and 24 women from KOFAVIV in Education is a Conversation, Children’s Rights module. see www.Kathleencash.org <http://www.Kathleencash.org> . In turn each of these KOFAVIV women will be implementing the program to a group of 20 people in each one of their communities. KOFAVIV is a solidarity group and clinic for victims of rape.
We are really excited by the potential of these recent events.
Chris
Posted in: Monthly Updates, To our Donors, Updates.
Tagged: Etoys software · Kathleen Cash · KOFAVIV · mother tongue books · Rotary Club · XO computers
May 24th, 2009
by Joanne.
May 18th was Flag Day. Parents, teachers and students prepared a day of festivities starting with the whole school parading up and down the Matènwa road.
Ezner leads the 8th graders for the Flag Day parade.
Bonise and Chrislene line up their kindergarten class for the parade
- “Flag Day makes me think of how we used to be enslaved but we broke those chains of slavery.
- “Even though we are free, we are still not totally free because we are dependent on other countries.”
- “We are an occupied country.”
- “Perhaps we are physically free but not mentally free.”
- “Our French education system is still colonizing us.”
After much music and food everyone moved outside to watch our soccer match. The sun set with clouds moving in, promising rain.
MCLC Soccer Game
Through The Haiti Twinning Program of Richmond, Virginia MCLC has a partnership with Lynchburg College. Kona, studying development, from Brown University (center)was visiting to see our arts programs.
We hosted a Lynchburg College group, and one student from Brown University. We welcomed back Owen, a Lesley College student doing cultural and language immersion for the next 3 months. He is volunteering in our computer lab.
Matènwa artists and popular theatre performers for child rights: ( front to back)Maculese, Luciane, and Sonit, previously restaveks themsleves, attend the Mwen Se Ayiti Tou conference.
Members of Courageous Women, Women Artists of Matènwa and MCLC attended a conference of over 500 people called “Mwen se Ayiti Tou” (I am Haiti Too) sponsored by the Jean Robert Cadet Restavek Freedom Foundation and the Maurice Sixto Foundation. The conference was a call to action to end the Restavek system in Haiti. This event encouraged us in our work to promote dialogue and non-violence in our communities.
Sincerely, Co-directors Chris and Abner, Secretary Millienne
Posted in: Courageous Women, Monthly Updates, School Partnerships, To our Donors, Updates, Women Artist's of Matenwa.
Apr 27th, 2009
by Joanne.
Dear Friends of MCLC,
It is always a pleasure for us to write to you to thank you for your gifts. We also want to say hello to you and your families and tell of our last month’s activities.
We felt hopeful that rains would come earlier this year as the first evening rains came the last week of February, but then they dissipated. Many people have prepared garden beds for vegetables and have gotten their corn and bean seeds into the ground. Now we wait for sufficient rain. In addition to the doubling of food prices, President Preval says that we are about to face real inflation. We want to send a special thank you to our breakfast sponsors: you keep our children from severe hunger each month.
Teachers Lisa Brown and Valerie Bell from Nauset High School (Massachusetts, USA) gave seminars on class management, brain gym, and geography for our staff.
We said goodbye to three teachers from Segen after their 10 week teacher training. They learned to teach without hitting, dialogue with students, use Reflection Circles and Open Space, and make their own books and games. They saw how a school could help the whole community work together for change.
Our Local Arts Collaborative was awarded a grant from the Women to Women Committee of the Episcopal Church Women. The collaborative will expand their products that can be locally produced, bought, and sold with home grown materials. The artists are presently making straw hats that the children will proudly wear to promote local goods at our Flag Day celebration on May 18.
We end this month’s report with a Haitian expression of praise: Ayibobo!
Co-directors Chris and Abner
Secretary Millienne
Posted in: Arts & Crafts, Monthly Updates, School Partnerships, To our Donors, Updates.
Three MCLC staff, Benaja, Feronel and I attended an Etoys training on the XO laptops that was held at a school in Petite Riviere, in the southern part of Haiti. Although the teachers spoke some English, it quickly became obvious that they would understand the lessons more fully if translated into Haitian Creole. I offerred that we could help teach and translate. Bill, Benaja and I became a great XO training team. We are planning to run a pilot of the XO computers next February 2010. This is perfect for us because we learned how to make animated books with the Etoys software. This will furthur our ability to create Haitian Creole books on our website for our Mother Tongue Books project.
