We have already started testing for the year!

While I will be the first to say testing is not always the best method of determining how someone is doing in school, I also recognize that it is difficult to change a culture that only understands testing.  Testing is a time consuming process that takes up a half a week of classroom time every month. I still enjoy recognizing the students that do well with testing.  I console those that missed getting a prize by a mere point or less.  I wish I knew a better way, but until we can scan the brain to see what people have learned I guess it is testing.

The girls continue to rule in our highest grade, Standard 3.  Though there was a slight change in order.  Teresia (far left) was 1st place this month.  Gladness in the middle was second and Grace was third.  The boys just cannot hold ground in the top three it seems.  That is their teach Twaha with them.

In Standard 2, Nice (left)  took back 1st place from Dorice (middle) who kept the pressure up after breaking into the top student category.  Baraka Enock has returned to the top 3 and hopefully will do the boys proud by holding onto his place.  Their teacher is Mvungi.

Standard 1 is our largest class with 34 students.  Top place went to Elisha Erasto (middle) with  Minaeli (left) 2nd and Gertruda (right) in 3rd place.  Their teacher Augustina is one of our newer teachers at the school.

Pre-Unity (our version of Kindergarten) is actually taught by Sangwa but he left early for some of his wedding plans as he is getting married in March.  Josephine filled in for him with the picture.  1st place was a tie between Elisha Juma and Samson both on the left side in order.  3rd place was also a tie between Zoe and Marium continuing from the left.

This is Josephine with her actual class, Middle Pre-school.  Ester (left)continues to be dominate as 1st place. Cute store is that she was one of the first students to recognize me as I drove back to the site when I arrived and was running to the road waving to beat all.  Wilson (middle) is in 2nd place and Ramadhani (right) is in third place.

The Baby class is where we had the most new faces for the new school year.  However 1st place is one that returned from last year, Innes (left).  Ester is 2nd place and then Yassir is 3rd.  Both Ester and Yassir are new students.

Honorable Mention to Elibariki in Standard 3 for improving his grade by 14 points between the end of last year and the beginning of this year.

Some of you have asked about the rains and roads this year.  Yes we continue to get out of season rains leaving many baffled about the weather.  Everything is green which it normally does not get that way here even in raining season.  But the trees and bushes are full of life which causes one to question why the cattle are still so skinny.  The roads have been flooded and were when I went to town on Saturday.  This was a big problem for some.

One of the smaller projects I have undertaken finally is to correct some misspellings that were painted on the walls of the school.  Such as exctmation back to exclamation.  And I have painted over nstayed so I can repaint instead.