Six days after arriving on Kenyan soil, Esther and Ben were thrust into a strange new world of school in the busy city of Nairobi. The change of school and the new system proved to be a huge, difficult challenge. For the first few weeks, I battled my children's tears, tantrums and even running-away-to-hide tactics on most school mornings.
It was hard for my children to accept that they had to go to school here. The original plan was to home-school in Juba but, suddenly, we found ourselves in Nairobi for longer. Just 3 days before we left Tanzania, Esther and Ben discovered that they would actually be going to a new school.
Intimidating news for anyone.
Even more intimidating when you are not expecting it! They barely had time to process the idea before walking into a classroom full of strangers, in a country that still felt brand new.
Many were the mornings when I drove back to our Nairobi home after stressful partings at classroom doors, tears streaming down my face, wondering if we were doing the right thing sending them to this new school so soon into their move to a new country. It hurts a mother's heart to see her children so upset and struggling.
Happily, nine school weeks later, Esther and Ben have finally settled into a rhythm and are happy to attend Braeburn School. We are so glad we persisted! It is an excellent school. The academic progress they are now making is wonderful to see.
Ben positively bounces into class each day!He comes home full of news and stories of all he has been doing with his classmates and teacher. He has presented us with a model of a castle and art work galore that he is proud to have made in class.
Esther comes home with a huge smile. She talks about Ancient Greeks and drama lessons, doing fractions with chocolate bars (that she can later eat!), lessons in Literacy where they learn about instructions by making popcorn (and, of course, later eating it!!). She even enjoys her Wednesday French classes, despite a rocky start! She is enjoying netball in Games Lessons- which is far more to her preference than the hockey lessons that she hated in February!
They both have kind, supportive teachers and are gradually making friends that they feel comfortable with.
These are some of the contrasts Esther and Ben have had to adapt to on the schooling front:
Dodoma Nairobi
No uniform and they rarely wore their shoes! School uniform, PE kit uniform, shoes + socks
School finished at 2pm after a 07:40 start School finishes at 3:30pm, after starting at 8:05am
One class per year group Three classes per year group; so many people!
Class mates mostly Tanzanian, with Swahili Vast international student body;
as their 1st language, which meant a slower learning is faster paced
pace of learning, necessary and expectations are higher
to accommodate the majority.
School bus with good friends: 10 mins max Car journey with Terrifed Driver Mum,
through traffic jams + scary roads!
Journey time depends on traffic:
can be 20 mins or up to an hour!
Lighter homework amount Homework much heavier
and less time at home to do it!
Sporting events few and far between More emphasis on Games and Sports.
Joel +I have spent several afternoons
watching E+ B in sports events!
Christian school with strong teaching of Secular school. E +B miss Class Devotions, Christian values Assemblies, Bible teaching + class prayers,
which made them feel secure
and very much cared for in Dodoma.
Fewer facilities for children to use. Well resourced private city school.
The much drier climate meant The rainy climate lends itself to the
that the sports area vast, green sports field.
was a dusty, hard surface, There is also more wealth in the school;
exposed to Dodoma's hot sun. the music, computer, theatre facilities are evidence of this.
There is even an on-site cafe for parents!
It is just a different world, but one which our kids had to adapt to very soon into their transition.
Here are a few pictures...
1st Day at Braeburn:
Swimming Galas, complete with delicious, free refreshments for spectator parents! Here comes Ben:
Ben's super effort with backstroke!
World Book Day- kids in costume for a fun day of literacy activities: Here are The Gruffalo and Dorothy!
Esther, after finishing 20th out of 50 in her year-group Girl's Cross Country last Thursday:
Ben took English cucumber sandwiches for the International Food Festival in the afternoon!
The International parade:
The food tents, with flags from many nations, where many languages could be heard as parents and families from all over the world congregate at this very international Nairobi school:
Ben poses with his class display of India while Little Brother looks admiringly at Big Brother!
It is a huge blessing to have this schooling opportunity in Nairobi, as I start to prepare more seriously for Home Schooling. I think Home School will be our best option in Juba for the next academic year. It will be sad to take our children out of Braeburn after so much effort has gone into helping them settle there!
However, we are en-route for Juba. Nairobi is a temporary stop for us. If all stays calm in Juba, we should be on our way there from early July, at the end of Esther and Ben's academic year. While we are here, we will do our best to make the most of the education opportunities Nairobi has to offer!
