What's new...

Hello from Mzuzu where we continue to enjoy blue sky and sunshine although it is beginning to cool down a little. I have been reliably informed that I have not yet experienced anything like the cold that is to come. Suddenly I have a yearning for the boost button on my central heating panel in Coleraine!

So what is new in Mzuzu for the Monitoring & Evaluation Officer for CCAP's Early Childhood department? (that's me by the way!)

Well, I continue to learn more about my job and the variety of tasks it brings. As I am building up the pre-school database I am getting to know names of people in each area and very importantly the geography of the Northern Region is becoming clearer. This will be really important as I begin to travel a bit more to visit and monitor some of the pre-schools in the outlying areas. Already I have found out that the most well used direction usually given as we travel is simply 'Go straight', definitely a problem when one is at a fork in the road!

As well as the database I do all sorts of other tasks such as turning the piles of paper seen above into the neat pile of handouts below.

Sorry about this, a slight technical glitch when uploading the photos. No, it has not snowed in Mzuzu this week!

Here are those neat and tidy handouts.

I also went out to do some monitoring in Ekwendeni Presbytery with Diane and 2 of the team of trainers in ECD, Nicolas and Memory. It is still a bit of an adventure for me to find these places but the journey at least at this time of year when it is dry is enjoyable and the scenery is lovely.

When I go out to do monitoring it is in the car but when the trainers go out to do their monitoring they go on foot or by bicycle. They often have to travel for some hours to reach the schools and in some cases as we discovered the schools have not been open that day. Would we be prepared to do that in the UK? I am learning that this is life for the ECD trainers in our presbyteries here.

Finding our way to the nursery!

Not open today!

Memory, Nicolas and Diane finding out that the nursery is not functioning. By car, 2o-25 minutes drive from Ekwendeni. Usually Memory would have to make this journey on foot
or by bicycle. She would not normally have much time left in her morning after making a visit to this place.

We did however have a successful visit to another nursery in the presbytery and here you can see some of the children. It is good to see what is happening in different places.

How different the nursery settings are here but the potential for doing good things with and for the children is tremendous. I was sorry to see the children sitting in rows learning days of the week and months of the year especially as they are 2-6 years old.

We found that they did have some play resources but they were packed away in a sack. After chatting with the caregivers we were able to talk to them about letting the children play with the resources and learn through their exploration.

It is hard for untrained caregivers to know what to do with small children but that is why CCAP has this big vision - to equip the caregivers in its' pre-schools to give the children in their care the best possible start. What a privilege to be part of that.

I continue to teach 1 day per week in pre-school. Here are some pictures of the last days of this term.

Playing with friends

Playing with the water bucket, minutes later it became a hat...!


Enjoying the bouncy castle, socks off please teacher!

My home continues to be an animal haven. Think Dr Dolittle would feel most at home here. I would certainly be asking him to talk to the animals about relocation!
This small frog helpfully leapt off the curtains and onto my head...


A beautiful praying mantis.
It is about the size of my index finger and is living in the back porch.

Lizard enjoying the sunshine on the ledge of my outside kitchen.

And to finish...

Here is one of my new small friends. We found this very big dandelion 'clock'
just outside the fence and she had never seen one before. Look at the concentration on her wee face as she works out what this new thing might be and do!

I hope you have a great week where ever you may be and can take some time to enjoy a 'dandelion clock' moment!

Blessings

Fiona