Cyakabiri School

A Day at School

A typical day at school means lining up to sing the national anthem and other songs to show pride in their country and to praise all the blessings they have. Daily sorghum porridge is served for the preschoolers as studies show nutrition is important for focusing and learning. For some this may be the only meal until dinner.

They learn hygiene by cleaning up before and after snacks. 

Listening skills are emphasized during storytime. 

Time for play is important to show education is fun.

The curriculum also includes creative arts, writing, math, history, science, French, English, Kinyarwanda and time in the library.

Opportunities for teaching in and outside the classroom abound!!!

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Celebrating our Teachers

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Our teachers are making a difference in so many lives. For each child as well as for their families. We LOVE our teachers and so do our children!!!
David is one of our amazing preschool teachers who is also taking university classes. He asked the children to greet recent visitors to their class. He shared, "It is important to teach them to be respectful and to grow to be good citizens of Rwanda."

Louise says, "One-on-one time is important to develop opportunities for children to be creative and use their imagination."Cesarie one of our Primary 1 teachers has been teaching for 11 years. She shared some of her thoughts on education. "School is essential to improving your knowledge and sharing it with others. At school children learn to be responsible and to take care of their materials. They learn to play, be creative and take time to think through things. Each child comes with different skills so it is important for teachers to improve those skills and sometimes reorient them to improve other skills. It is also about working with our parents so they understand the importance of their child's education. Parents are encouraged to help with homework, clean their uniform, reinforce good behavior at home and help the teachers to know their children to help them grow."

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Teacher Training

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Carol Falke on teacher trainings: 

Each time I come I bring teacher supplies, materials and books. It is important to weave these together to form a curriculum and themes for teaching. You can’t just give teachers what we “think” they might need, without sharing the possibilities for these teaching tools. 

Next we worked on leveled reading books that were donated by two publishers as well as BIG books. Teachers learned how to introduce a new book and the steps to use when reading it - prereading, reading, responding, exploring and analyzing. Again we used role playing to teach the basics of beginner reading.

So in August we held 3 days of trainings and just this past April another 3 half days. A great starting point in April was for each teacher to teach the other teachers about their “classroom to classroom” partnerships. They showed what materials went together and why, how they taught their class and what they and the children learned. Role playing is so important and was a lot of fun. 

*** Urukundo always has a need for preschool or primary teachers to come to Rwanda for a few weeks, a month or longer. Teachers interested in working with the teachers on curriculum development as well as working in the classrooms. Please email Arlene if you want to discuss this further.

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Visit from Teachers Training College, Muhanga

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Wednesday the 20th of February saw much activity at Cyakabiri Preschool. 38 students and 4 teachers from TEACHERS TRAINING COLLEGE, MUHANGA came to spend the day observing at our school. These are young people preparing to be the teachers of tomorrow.
A very handsome group.
Our little students teach the the bigger students. Every one learns.
Our teachers answered questions.
They learned about lesson plans.
Lesson plans - the teachers guide for the week.
Sitting on the mat for a reading session. It was good to see these young people become interested in education for 3 and 4 year olds.
The students finished their day by joining with our teachers for question and answer session. It was a full day.  The students learned there is more to teaching young children than play. This early teaching sets the pattern for all future education. Their impact is so important for students of tomorrow. 
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First Day of School

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Opening day at Cyakabiri Preschool and Cyakabiri Faith Primary School was a very busy day. Parents and children gathered. Many new to our school and all new to Faith Primary School. To add to our joy Claudine, our special child, started preschool. We were not sure how she would react but to our surprise and pleasure she fit in just fine and the teachers encouraged us to keep her in school.

After the opening ceremony the parents and kids visited both class areas. The final total enrollment for the schools : Faith Primary 56, Cyakabiri Preschool 140.

What a wonderful sight. The official opening and dedication of the schools will be in March. You are all invited!

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Inside the Classrooms

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The Urukundo Faith Primary class rooms are bright, airy and cheerful for the students. Each child having a desk and chair is unique.

Pictures on the walls are both cultural and educational and add to a pleasant learning center. The seating arrangement makes access to every student easier for the teachers.

The view from the front of the school from our place on the mountain is spectacular.

 

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Graduation Day at Cyakabiri Preschool

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What a wonderful day for 47 kids and their proud parents with the wearing of the robe and mortar board as the first graduates from Cyakabiri Preschool.

The kids lined up for the march from the school to Hope House was spectacular.  Led by the teachers they paraded in line for all to see followed by parents and friends.

A vision of blue and gold

Presenting  diplomas to the graduates was the highlight for the Director of Cyakabiri Preschool.
The speakers were Felix, the contractor who built the preschool and is building the primary school, and one of the parents.  The kids put on a skit about education.  Songs were sung and two of the students gave a speech.

Now the younger kids want to know when we will have another graduation. That is so great because it gives them something to work toward.