So far so good. We have all started our placements, at various schools and community groups.
The Sport In Action peer leaders and site coordinators have been incredibly welcoming and helpful, teaching u some of the local traditional games and songs to help us interact with the children. The counseling students led a workshop on Saturday with a group of 30 peer leaders, who are young people who volunteer with Sport in Action. We discussed active listening, confidentiality, building trust and relating to the children. It went well and we will be having follow up sessions every other Saturday. The peer leaders are between the ages of 13 and 20 and have been selected for their natural leadership skills, both on the sports field and off. We were very impressed with their maturity and passion as well as their eagerness to learn and share.
Each counseling student has been partnered with a sports student for the duration of the project. Stacey and Jenny are working at Mtendere Community School, in one of the most impoverished areas of the city. Stacey is helping to coach netball,whilst Jenny is leading classroom-based sessions on life skills for a kids club.
Nathan and Mel are working at Chibolya, with mix of football, PE sessions and counseling providing individual support and class activities. The majority of children are single or double orphans, with an HIV rate of approx 60% within the area. Kieran and Isla are also at one school, Munali, where Kieran's football team is training for a Fifa tournament (East Africa Cup U13)at the end of the month in Tanzania.There is a healthy rivalry between the boys' football/ rugby teams. Isla has been working to integrate messages into the PE lessons, using games and sport as a less formal way to present key health and skills education.
Lauren and Kevin are splitting their time between a special needs PE programme and Badminton classes with deaf students at Munali. Lauren is picking up sign language fast. Working with a range of abilities is challenging, but the children are enjoying the relief that sport provides them from their daily life.
Jenna and Fiona have been at Chaisa Basic School taking tag rugby sessions, as well as PE at Lusakasa. They also join Ceri and Ali one morning a week, with Fi and Ali joining up to take a large rugby coaching session and the two counselors teaching a range of ages life skills such as; communication, teamwork, drug/alcohol abuse, HIV/AIDS info, overall health/hygine, peer pressure, etc. Ceri and Mel also supported Jenny in some counselling sessions at the Kids Club where timetables allow.
The rest of the week, Ceri and Ali are working at Burma and Emmasdale Basic Schools. Burma is one of the largest schools, with approx 1700 children. At Burma, PE and counselling sessions are often intergrated to build trust and create a fun learning environment. Emmasdale will play Chaisa at rugby later in the summer, so Fi and Ali are training their teams for a competitive match.
A few students have also found time to visit local adult HIV/AIDS support groups. They run fitness and well-being sessions, as well as providing a chance for women affected by the disease to discuss their issues. Although we are assigned to one/two schools each on a regular basis, we are all helping each other out and seeking out more opportunities when our timetables allow.
We took a break to visit the British High Commissioner this week, who was very welcoming and provided a useful insight into current development programs and issues in the country. We have also been lucky to tour the new Zambian Olympic Youth Development Centre. The team have made good contacts within local communities, including invites to join both the Lusaka Rugby Club and Polo Club for training and socials. We are also enjoying mixing with the Wallace Group, from a mix of UK universities including Stirling, Bath, Northumbria, Loughborough, Durham and UWIC (Cardiff).
The days are tiring but rewarding and despite a few hospital visits, everyone is ok & enjoying the experience. Stacey has perfected her bartering skills at the markets, whilst Nathan has organized a team PZ World Cup sweepstake. We sadly say goodbye to Steven Stewart this weekend, but Rob Warren is filling his shoes (and we look forward to his turn on the cooking rota, as a trained chef!). Ashley has been working hard researching for her PHD, meeting some very important people along the way, including a UN official on one of the famous blue buses...She is also providing us all with a plentiful supply of tea in the house!
All the best to everyone back at home
We will be in touch again soon (internet allowing). We are currently unable to upload photos and video here but will try to remedy that asap - so watch this space.
The PZ Team
Visiting our placements on the back of the truck.
Wooden scaffolding
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