Today we delivered the OMS zebra herd (zebra pictures colored by OMS students with messages to Kenyan students on the back) to a school, along with books, and 4 bags of school and craft supplies sent by teachers from Tabernacle and Mt. Laurel. The teachers here want you to know that their students are happy to receive these things and they say “thank you”!
The teachers wanted us to meet their students, so we visited every classroom. There are 200 students at the school in grades 1 through 8. The school has no electricity or running water. Each classroom is the same. There are no shelves or closets to store anything, but then they have no supplies to store. The students sit 2 or 3 to a wooden desk; in one classroom we noticed there were not enough desks and some students sat on the floor. At the front of each room is a worn slate blackboard. There are no bulletin boards, but hand-drawn posters, such as a diagram of the human heart, are pasted on some of the walls. The students use paperback text books, which are well-used. Some are in Swahili, and some are in English. We didn’t see any paper or pencils. Sometimes they will use the same paper over again by erasing what they’ve written. Can you imagine going to school and having so little to work with?
The students were all quite shy when they met us and we broke the ice by taking pictures. We’ve discovered that the Samburu children enjoy getting so see themselves when we take their pictures with our digital cameras (well, who doesn’t?). We also had several disposable cameras that the teachers helped the students take pictures of each other with. I’ll have those pictures developed when I get home and send them back to the school.
A highlight of our visit was when the seventh graders sang for us. Their songs are very different from ours, with beautiful harmony. I wish you could have heard it!
9 Responses to “Samburu School”
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About me
- Hi! My name is Shayne Russell, and I'm the Library Media Specialist at Kenneth R. Olson Middle School in Tabernacle, NJ. Come along with me on an adventure to Kenya, Africa! We will be working as volunteer researchers, side-by-side with scientists who are studying the endangered Grevy's Zebra. Let's see what research looks like... outside of the library!
Photos from the Field
A herd of Grevy's Zebras grazing.
Zebra Day 3/2/06
Leader of the Herd
Mrs. A and Mrs. Havers
Mr. Stecher wore his zebra tie!
A good time was had by all.
I can't even imagine what those kids in Kenya go through in school. It must be a difficult time there in one room with one paper and pencil that is used over and over again. I think you must have put smiles on their faces. It must have been a great experience for them (and you)!
It’s great that the Samburu school was thankful for the school supplies. I can see by the picture that they don’t have very much, and no, I could not imagine having so little. It really makes me appreciate my school. I can’t believe they only have 200 kids in grades 1-8. We have over 1,000 students in just grades 7-8 in Mt. Laurel, NJ. What grade were the children in the photo? Do many of these students go on to high school and college?
I feel very bad for the Samburu children in this school. Our school has a couple of computers per room, we all have updated books, and we have activities and projects to help further our education. I guess that I will never really know how fortunate I am until I see children who are in very poor living conditions.
How long is the students' school day? Do the students have lunch, and if they do, what do they have?
Dear Mrs Russel,
In the picture their does'nt seem to be a teacher in the classroom if their isn't a teacher how do they learn? Their classmates arent even half of ours, is that all that is in their?
- Mike & Matt
Dear Ms.Russell,
Do Kenyan people have to pay taxes ? If so why don't they pay a little bit for students
to have school supplies?
In places like this, it really shows how lucky we are in the US and how much we have. I'm glad that you donated goods and school supplies to the less fortunate. We have a desk for every person, and in some classrooms, more than what we need, when they only have two to three desks per classroom! Speaking of desks and students, there are only 200 kids in Samburu school! Thats not even half of our eighth grade! I feel bad for those kids. Can you just imagine what it would be like to possibly have to sit on the floor if their were too many kids. I know I wouldn't want to have to sit on the floor in school!
In places like this, it really shows how lucky we are in the US and how much we have. I'm glad that you donated goods and school supplies to the less fortunate. We have a desk for every person, and in some classrooms, more than what we need, when they only have two to three desks per classroom! Speaking of desks and students, there are only 200 kids in Samburu School! That’s not even half of our eighth grade! I feel bad for those kids. Can you just imagine what it would be like to possibly have to sit on the floor if there were too many kids. I know I wouldn't want to have to sit on the floor in school!
It must be hard to go to school with no electricity, no running water, etc. The thing that shocked me the most was that there is only 200 students in 1-8th grade.My school is only 7-8 and there is over 1000 students. I just can't imagine using one piece of paper for the whole year, just earsing everything that you wrote.