Literacy by Lamplight

Last November, I came to N'Zerekore to write a proposal for literacy classes for children and youth in 58 Guinean communities. By February, we finally managed to get the proposal approved, and last week, I got to visit two of the literacy classes. After picturing the students (75% female, 100% under the age of 25, young mothers, refugees, displaced persons, OVCs [orphans and vulnerable children; gotta love these acronyms]) in my head via the proposal for so long, I was so excited to who was sitting in the benches and what they were actually learning about.

Surprises:
1. The students work all day, so the only time they can have classes is the evening. There is no electricity to light up the schools so the project bought lanterns: One lantern to light up the chalkboard and two for the 40 students. This might be a little problem.... :)

2. Young mothers come to class with their babies strapped to their backs. In one class the front center bench was filled with a mother and her three young children.

3. They were learning about the baton and the pumpkin. Hmmmm... the line and the circle and how you combine them to make letters. My mom taught me when I was 4 and I have no idea how she did it... but I don't think it had much to do with batons and pumpkins. :)