Barack stood in the middle of the room, he was the sun. Mercy slowly moved around Barack, pretending to be the earth while Anna span as fast as she could around Mercy. Anna was the moon trying hard to keep up with the earth as Mercy rotated around the sun but it was hard work. Anna collapsed into a chair as the world spun around her. 

"So what does orbit mean?"

"To spin around!" the class called back.

Science lessons don't always involve getting dizzy but this was a fun way to explain the orbiting planets. Our students have just completed the first term of the current school year. Without the Fountains of Hope School, these young people would not be in school learning about stars and planets. Most would be at home caring for siblings, out working or on the streets.

Thanks to a great response to our microproject, we are setting up a computer lab at the school. We have 11 new desktop computers packed with learning resources and apps. We are busy doing repairs, wiring and fitting furniture while the students are on a two-week break. They will find the computer lab set up and ready to go when they return to school. 

The lab will mean our students will gain the I.T. skills that will open the door to many more jobs in the future as well as boosting their learning across the board as they can access rich and varied digital learning resources.

Thank you so much for your support to the Fountains of Hope School!

Last month we met a new family, three girls who were all out of school and a baby girl who was very undernourished. We were connected to the family by a local youth group whose members were deeply concerned about the family. The youth group helped the oldest girl go back to school while we welcomed the two younger siblings into our programmes. The girls were in such poor health we have been giving them extra porridge each day as well as the two meals each child receives in our programmes. The mother also brings the baby along to join in the porridge. Slowly, we are seeing improvements in the girls’ health and strength and slowly they are coming out of their shells as they play with the other kids in the programmes. The girls are now on a new path, back in school and getting stronger everyday. Thank you for helping to make this life-changing work possible.

Beatrice had been out of school for two terms and was nervous about going back to school, she didn’t know any of the other kids at the school. Would she make friends?

Jeff was looking forward to being a student again, wearing the uniform, walking to school with the other kids but he was not looking forward to meeting the teachers. He was sure he would get into trouble a lot, he always did at his old school and the punishments were harsh.

On Makau’s first day back in school he looked for a seat right at the back of the class, he did not want to be picked to read, he would rather do anything than be called to read in front of the class.

Returning to school after a long time can be a nerve-racking experience. Our School Transition Programme aims to make the journey back to school a smooth one. Over the past few months, we have been listening to children who have gone through the Transition Programme and their teachers to understand what is working well and what needs to improve. We’ve also been learning new skills from other organisations.

As a team, we’ve developed a new design for our Transition Programme and we’re rolling it out this new school year. The main change is that instead of the Transition Programme students learning in a separate centre, they will join the Fountains of Hope School directly while getting extra support to settle in.

When Beatrice joins the Fountains of Hope School she will be paired up with a student buddy, a student who has been in the school for a while who can show her around and introduce her to some new friends.

Jeff will meet regularly with a mentor teacher who will help him to set goals for the term and work towards those goals. Jeff’s mentor will be a safe person he can talk to, together they can get to the bottom of why Jeff tends to get into trouble and what changes he can make to see an improvement.

Makau will have extra classes before or after school to help him catch up on his foundational reading, writing and maths skills as well as extra help on any subject he’s fallen behind in. The teachers will help him to grow confident in reading.