6 months, 6 quotes

Jumpstart! is about transforming nurseries and their communities. Therefore, we are working together with children, teacher and parents. Within the next few weeks, we will upload 6 quotes here of those who take part in the Jumpstart! programme to give you an idea of the Jumpstart! experience. They will come online, one by one, so keep your eyes open for facebook posts and tweets and enjoy !

Quote #1:  Here is a quote of Doreen, 25, who is one of the ECD teachers working at Nowya Public Nursery School, explaining why she thinks ECD is important. It is truly inspiring to work with teachers like Doreen.

“ECD is important to children so that at least they know how to start writing, know how to work, to share with friends, to know the best in education when they go to primary. Education is important, to make them feel at home; to develop their minds; to start living in the community, and share with friends.”

Quote #2: As part of our Jumpstart! Project, our education team have introduced open days in African Revival supported schools, where each term, nursery school parents are invited to visit their children’s ECD centres. Here’s what Sarah, who is the parent of Emmanuel, a K1 student at Purong Hill ECD centre, told us:

“I have really enjoyed visiting my son’s classroom, and actually seeing what he is learning. I can see now just how much the teachers do for him. I can tell that nursery school has been good for Emmanuel, because at home, he is always telling me about the things he is learning; he now knows the names of most household items.”

Quote#3: As part of our Jumpstart! project, we are enabling 10 of our 36 caregivers to receive formal teacher training in order to obtain the official Certificate for ECD. Irene, a teacher at Anaka pre-primary school, is one of them and we are happy to hear about her positive experience:

 “My name is Irene, before joining to teach pre-primary school, I had only completed senior six and had no training in ECD. I am glad that 2 days after reporting, I was selected for a certificate course at Gulu Core PTC. My two days were blank. I did not know where to start from. The training made me learn to scheme, plan and make Daily Routines, among others.  I am now also very creative in making teaching/learning aids. My classroom is attractive and the performance of the pupils in my class has since improved a lot. I love my job.”

Quote#4: Denis is a teacher at St Kizito Bidati Nursery School. He has has fully submerged himself in all our Jumpstart! activities; he recently joined a teacher-changer network, where he was even recognized for his excellent ideas for his classroom. Denis told us that being part of this network has helped him as a teacher:

“We really want to work together, and support one another because we all have the same goal: to see our pupils succeed. Through these meetings where we can discuss our ideas, I feel like I am already becoming a better teacher because I have grown in confidence”.

Quote #5: Parents are quintessential for a child’s development and for a sustainable change in children’s education in Northern Uganda. This is why the Jumpstart! programme puts emphasis on engaging parents through e.g. community sensitization meetings. It’s all about promoting understanding of the importance of ECD and establishing a partnership with parents and care-givers. This is why we always get very excited to hear feedback such as this – which is from a parent of Anaka Pre-Primary School after a meeting:

“I am looking forward to telling the people at home who weren’t at the meeting about everything we are learning. I can see how important my role as a parent is towards my child’s development; I am looking forward to being more actively involved in my daughter’s education and tracking her progress more carefully”

Quote #6: Every wondered what a day at a nursery school in Uganda looks like? Here’s Alice, one of our teachers at Koch Goma Central, telling us about their daily routine:

 “So first we have what is called morning circle – although when they come in the morning we first greet them, and then take them to morning circle. And from there we ask them how is mummy, how is daddy, what did you do on the way… So they will be able to respond to us. After morning circle, we come to class for mathematics. So from there, we introduce them how to use the mathematical concepts, like using numbers – if they’re here for the numbers, we use some bottle tops to practise counting. So after that one, they will outdoor activities. Here we also try our learning best – our best to give them what to do outside, how to play, we are sharing some information, having friends, how to play with their friends. So after that one, after outdoor activities, you’ll find them now, as they are now, ready for the snack time. In snack time, they take porridge. So after porridge, we got to class again for listening speaking writing. After that one we give them free choice, for example using the small board, practising how to write. So after free choice, they now go for goodbye circle, where we give them information about some hygiene, how to clean to their body, washing their bodies, they should come when they’re clean the next day, how to clean their bodies, shaving their hair, cutting their nails. And then we send them back home.”

Thank you for your support!

Happy 6 Month Jumpstart! Anniversary!