Week 11 - Cultural Blog - 14/04/13

Over the last 11 weeks Joanna and I have met a lot of the local people, some old and some very young. This week in particular, we have spent a lot of time with the children of Uganda.

“A nation's culture resides in the hearts and in the soul of its people.” (Gandhi, 1882)

At the weekend we travelled 4 hours outside of Kampala to a visit a charity called ‘New Beginnings’. It was set up 5 years ago by Rodger Annett, a man from Kilkeel. New Beginnings works primarily with orphaned or abused children. There is a mixture of girls and boys between the ages of 1 and 16 who all live in the circular shaped huts in the ‘New Beginnings Children’s Village’. 

Myself with some of the kids.

Helping each other!

There were a number of children with ‘Special Educational Needs’ (SEN) such as autism. I noticed that a very inclusive environment was created where by the all the children participated in the same activities and the children were very respectful of each other.  This environment was ideal as, Allen and Cowdery (2005) explain that this is natural, inclusive environment is best of children with SEN to
                                                            interact with their peers. 

One of the girls with Special Needs.

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During the week Joanna and I also paid a visit to one of the Watoto Babies Homes called ‘The Bulrushes’. The home consisted of many rooms filled with cots, baby toys and clothes. There were approximately 40 babies in the home, all who have been brought there by the police who have found them abandoned on the streets or in bins, by the local hospitals or by Watoto’s social workers. I found it very difficult to understand how such adorable children could be abandoned like a piece of rubbish.

* Babies in the home

Godfrey doing a word search

Over the last 11 weeks we have been volunteering with a charity called Tomorrow’s Heroes.

This Sunday was our last time working with the charity and the street boys. I have found that there is a significant difference between the children who are from the slum areas and those who sleep on the streets. Obviously there are exceptions but the street children are seem to be unbelievably mature and independent for their age. This is due to the hard life that the live, their daily fight for survival. Without charities like Tomorrow’s Heroes, children like this would have no home and continue to live a hard life on the streets.

Building a bridge from scrap material.

Say...Ahhhhhh!!

Dwelling Places (DP) was the charity that Joanna and I both worked with in the summer. We have visited DP a number of times since we have been in Uganda and have tried to help them out in whatever way we can. We have built a strong relationship with the children over the last few months and I just love it when we arrive up at the home and they all run towards you shouting, “Auntie Karen! “Auntie Karen!”

It is great to see how happy the children are and the great support system they now have through Dwelling Places.

Working with the children of Uganda has really made me fall in love with the country. I am so glad that I have had the opportunity to work with so many children over the last 11 weeks. They have all played a significant role in making my International Experience so amazing.

Two happy girls

References:

Allen, K. E, and Cowdery, G.  (2005) Resources for educating children with diverse abilities. Clifton Park, NY, Thomson Delmar Learning.

Gandhi, M. (1882) ‘Mahatma Gandhi Biography’, available at www.mahatmagandhionline.com (accessed 13/04/13).

* We were not allowed to take our own photos in the babies home so these are from www.watoto.com