The First Week of School

The first week of class is over for the little ones in the Philippines! The kinder students were so happy to see their friends again and the nursery students are just excited to start school for the first time

Nursery AM

There are two sessions of nursery school. One in the morning and on in the afternoon. They spent the first week getting to know each other, learning songs, practicing writing their names, and in the picture the the left we see them learning names for different body parts (some of them were a bit distracted by the photographer), and so much more. It was a very busy week for the children.

The teacher for the nursery classes is Eve. Last year Miss Eve was a Her Star Scholar scholarship recipient. Her Star paid for her exam preparation classes and associated exam classes so that she could become a licensed teacher.

Teacher Eve

PM Session

The Kinder 1 classes also meet during the morning session.

These are the Kinder 1 students. 

Five of the girls who have advanced from Nursery School have their uniforms from last year, but the other children are still waiting. The uniforms are sewn by hand by an elderly woman in the community who is so excited to have the income provided by sewing uniforms. Each school chooses its own uniform which is distinct from other schools in the area. Because the children wear uniforms every day, parents don't need to spend money on new school clothes.

 Later this week I will add  pictures of the Kinder 2 students.

First Day for the Kindergarten Students in the Philippines

This morning 45 Her Star scholars started the school year at the Alviola Christian Learning Center. The children and their parents attended a meeting over the weekend where the children were presented with plastic folders containing notebooks, pencils, pads of paper, art paper, and a pencil sharpener. I'm so excited to see pictures of the first school day!

 Parents who are new to the Her Star Scholars program received an orientation and were introduced to other families.

School is Starting

On June 6 classes started for Her Star Scholars' first group of First Grade students in the Philippines. They've all had their registration and PTA fees paid for them by our generous donors. The day before the children and parents met to receive a Book Bag, notebooks, pad papers, pencils, pencil sharpeners, and sets of colored paper. This year we will be sending seven children to first grade. 

Never doubt how much this means to the children and their parents

Thank you to everyone who made this possible!

Special Dangers Face Poor and Uneducated Girls

The BBC today covered a story about 2 Swedish men who have been arrested and given life sentences in the Philippines for running an  internet pornography ring. This particular operation was not far from the city in the Philippines where Her Star Scholars is sending girls to school.

Rampant poverty and girls with no schooling or hope for employment create a dangerous situation where girls of all ages are vulnerable to abuse. Parents are often convinced that they are sending their girls to work in respectable high-paying jobs in other cities.

Arrests over internet pornography

An important part of the Her Star Scholars model is to educate the parents to the dangers their daughters may face. Social workers familiar with the risks that these girls face talk with the parents one-on-one and explain the different types of scams that are operating locally as well as talking about abuse faced by  overseas workers. Girls are taught how to protect themselves and how to seek help in dangerous or scary situations.

Education of the girls in the Philippines and the around the world provides them with the self-esteem needed to be willing to stand-up for and protect themselves.

Parents At Work

It is hard to believe that the summer break for children in the Philippines is almost over. Registration begins  the last week of May.
Parents are already putting in volunteer hours to get the pre-school put together. Some are cleaning inside, some are painting tables while others prepare the school grounds and make repairs to the building.
One teacher has spent the summer preparing Kinder 2 graduates to begin 1st grade; another has been taking enrichment classes to help her learn new techniques in the school room.
The children are so excited that classes will be starting again soon!

Burkina Faso's Political Troubles

Violence in Burkina Faso

Biba, the Her Star Scholars local contact in Burkina Faso, has been writing since the end of March to ask for prayers for peace in her country. Apparently these nightly shootings in Ouagadougou have been going on sporadically since the ned of March, but in the past weeks have become an almost nightly affair. I've been told that people are now afraid to leave their homes after dark or to travel home from work after dark. Please keep Biba, the children, the city and the nation of Burkina Faso in your thoughts or prayers.

Ellen

Ellen is 8 years old and hoping to enter the second grade this May. She lives with her mother, father, and six siblings aged 1-14 in a one room home in the middle of a rice field. In rainy season the house frequently floods. Ellen helps her mother by sweeping the floor, folding the family blankets in the morning, and running errands. At night the family sleeps on the floor with 4 sleeping mats, 9 blankets, and 8 pillows.

By growing rice her father earns approximately US$50 per month. Her mother also helps with farming when she is able to do so. This family is described as generous and helpful; they attend their Catholic church weekly.

Neither of Ellen's parents were able to complete their educations; her father attended some high school and her mother some elementary school. They know that education is the key to a better future for their children, but are struggling to send their three oldest children to school.  Ellen loves math and English and hopes to be a teacher some day.