Before I tell you all about the school day, I have something equally important to share about… mice! Yes, those of you who know me well, know that I have a horrible fear of mice. Well, this experience is meant to push me in ways I never imagined, and one of those may be to overcome my fear of mice, because they live in our kitchen. More specifically, this morning in the kitchen, bags were rattling and moving and those who have lived here awhile calmly said, “Oh yeah- that’s the mice running around the kitchen.” I shouldn’t be surprised knowing the poverty here, but I’m still adjusting to the idea of sharing my house with mice. However, I feel much better that I live on the third floor (as the kitchen is on the first floor), and I can somehow tell myself that the mice would rather be on the first floor near the kitchen then up here with me on the third floor. Whether true or not, just let me believe that so I can sleep at night!

Now- on to the school day…. The day is broken into two sessions- one in the morning from 8-11 and the other in the afternoon from 3-5:30. Some of the kids’ families are able to afford public school (which costs about $200 USD/ year), and these students come to Hilo Rojo (the name of our school) for the other half of the day. Students who cannot afford public school have the option to attend both sessions. The kids are divided into 3 groups (ages 4-5, 6-10, 11-13), and I have been mainly working with the 6-10 year olds. Being here really makes me appreciate the education system that we have in America. Not only do all our children get to attend school, the quality of education is far superior to anything here. For the students who do attend public school, while at Hilo Rojo, they have the option to do their homework. In helping in this area, I have seen how basic the schooling is. Homework often consists of copying words in cursive (which is not even taught anymore in America) over and over. As for skills, most of the students in this age group (remember 1st-4th grade) can do basic addition (1+3) but not 2 digit, and they still struggle with even single digit subtraction. Work that I thought would be too easy, such as a dot to dot with the numbers 1-20, have proven to be challenging for the students. Most are still learning to read very basic texts and writing, again, is mainly copying as opposed to any higher level thinking. And, if a child is not able to keep up with the work, there is no remedial work or “extra help”, so the kids just fall behind and eventually stop attending.

This is the same cycle that their parents had so most of the parents (especially the moms as this is still a culture where men work and women raise the children) are also not educated. As a result, they cannot help their children with their schoolwork, even though they are very involved in trying to improve the lives of their children. More specifically, many of the moms stay at the school cooking breakfast and lunch for the kids (see the photo below and yes- they do cook over an open fire right outside the classroom) while we teach them. When they are not cooking, I often see the moms trying to teach themselves to read the basic books that we have for the kids. I find it even harder on my heart to see these women, women my age, so wanting to do something which I take for granted- knowing how to read. It’s so easy to forget how blessed we are until you see people desperately wanting to learn to read- a skill we take for granted- and having no way to achieve it.

So, it’s a really tough situation, because obviously these families value education, but there just aren’t the opportunities to learn. For example, pictured below is a great kid who I can tell is smart as he learns everything quickly and takes so much pride in his work. His family cannot afford public school so he attends both Hilo Rojo sessions which are taught by volunteers like me who stay for a few weeks and then change. There is no curriculum (we just teach whatever we want) and no consistency so his chances of getting a good education and a better life are slim. It’s a tough cycle that is going to be really hard to ever change.

But, as we all know, children are resilient and amazing. Despite their tough lives, they are happy and loving and just kids… As the saying goes, “We all smile in the same language” and this little girl proves that! I truly am lucky to get to share a few weeks of my life with these amazing kids! More to come…