Empower, Engage, Educate in Rural Kenya!

Our fabulous new Library Learning Center has a wonderful Makerspace! You may be wondering, "What is a Makerspace?

"A makerspace is a collaborative work space inside a school, library or separate public/private facility for making, learning, exploring and sharing that uses high tech to no tech tools.  These spaces are open to kids, adults, and entrepreneurs and have a variety of maker equipment." (makerspace.com)

The Kenya Connect Makerspace is equipped with art supplies including paints, glueguns, beads, tissue paper, popsicle sticks, and colorful paper; games and puzzles; a photo printer and tools; and sewing machines. Students who participate in the Saturday Storytime program and school break camps come to the Makerspace to create, play games, and make puzzles. Most days we have 6-10 LitMoms visit the Makerspace to use the sewing machines to create laptop cases, kimono vests, table runners and dresses. The space is usually filled with laughters and smiles and the sound of women chatting as the sewing machines hum.

One of the volunteers on a recent trip brought a portable photo printer. During the Saturday Storytime, each child had their picture taken which was then printed out. The children were fascinated when watching the printer whirling away and seeing their image come to life. The children then decorated frames for their pictures.  Mentor David shared, "When I was in the market, one of the children ran up to me to show his picture. He was so excited to have a photo of himself."

Sometimes the children create a group project. Recently, the learners made unity flowers by tracing their hands on paper. We put them all together as a flower to show unity! They loved seeing the power of creating as a group!

Our staff loves using the Makerspace too. During a monthly staff activity, the team played games. They had fun, as the children do, in playing games and learning together.

Having a makerspace that is equipped with a plethora of resources is thanks to donors like you. We greatly appreciate your support that is helping children and adults in rural Kenya to rich learning and income generating materials.

We also wanted to let you know that the 9th Annual Kenya Connect 5K is being held Virtually and LIVE on Saturday, April 1. We would love to have you join us by signing up HERE

We hope you find time to create too!

Teachers are at the heart of education. A great teacher inspires and creates an interactive environment of learning.

For the last decade, Kenya Connect has been dedicated to working with teachers in our partner public schools to provide ideas and guidance for new modes of learning. Historically, Kenyan classrooms were based on rote learning. Today, teachers in Wamunyu are shifting to student-centered learning and are incorporating techniques that include students working together to make a sense of the materials presented. As a result of our training, teachers are incorporating the techniques of “turn and talk,” “group problem solving,” “students learning through inquiry,” and “mistake making” by teachers to see if students can catch them because they have understandings of the material. As teachers have incorporated these methodologies in their classrooms, they are seeing a more engaged classroom, students learning on a deeper level and improved test scores.

New to the Kenyan curriculum is computing and coding. We applaud this addition, however many teachers in our community do not know how to use or teach computing. This, compounded with the lack of devices in school and the lack of knowledge of coding, is detrimental to rural learners like ours.

As a result, Kenya Connect began a “Computing in the Classroom” program last year. This year, thanks to our partnership with Team4Tech and the Raspberry Pi Foundation, we are expanding our work to train teachers on how to teach computing and coding. We begin our coding program in a non-tech way. Teachers learn about coding through explaining the logic of coding. This helps them understand the foundation before they even use a device. We then move to the next level using "Go Robot." Once the teachers are firm in the concepts and in using computing, they can be teaching computing and coding in their classroom.

Your financial support is helping us to purchase additional computers, resources, and the staff to train teachers. Whether it is helping train with teaching methodologies or providing computers, it is assisting us to strengthen education with resources and tools to help our teachers be not just great, but inspiring! Thank you for your support for our many programs to strengthen education. We could not do it without education champions like you!

2022, our 20th Anniversary Year, was outstanding! We opened the Library Learning Center housing the first community library for over 100km, a maker space, staff offices, workshop space, and a sound studio. We also opened the Dr. Isaac Minae EdTech Hub in our Learning Resource Center for coding, robotics, and graphic and web design. These facilities are providing 21st century tools to our students, teachers, and the community. Our amazing team in Kenya grew to 20 with passionate and creative individuals working to break down barriers to education while providing stellar enrichment and empowerment programs. We launched the Girl/Boy Empowerment program to decrease teen pregnancy and gender-based violence while significantly expanding our library and technology programs. New initiatives to support parents were added and our Professional Learning Coordinator led programs to support teachers at our 63 partner schools. In an effort to strengthen STEM education, we launched the Science Extravaganza. 

As you will see in the Kenya Connect Highlights 2022 report we accomplished a great deal as seen through the "numbers." However, at the heart of our work are the individual lives we are changing. Nellius, a girl in grade 6 comes to the EdTech Hub to create robots when her school is closed. She loves learning how to code and create and wants a career in the tech world. Our Director of Technology and Education, Patrick Munguti shared, "We have groups of students who love to build robotics. Using the lego guidebook, the students are learning how to create the robotics. We are grateful to the donors who have supplied these materials."

Each Saturday we have 50-60 students visit the library for the Saturday Storytime. These students enjoy a Read Aloud story from one on the Library Mentors and then they do a fun activity like creating a badge with their favorite activities or describing and drawing what they see from their window. Students, parents, and teachers are borrowing books from our library of over 30,000 books thanks to BookAid International, Books for Africa, and individual donors. One father said, "I don't read very well, but I want to be part of the Village That Reads."

We celebrated student graduations from our Secondary School Expanding Horizons program and our primary school Girl/Boy Empowerment Program. These programs are helpng students build confidence, learn about difficult topics like consent, boundaries, respect, teen pregnancy and gender-based violence, and how to be successful in school and beyond. 

As a donor to Kenya Connect, we are deeply grateful to you for your past support and we encourage you to keep us in your 2023 giving plans. Our locally led team is doing extraordinary work to lift children and their families out of poverty thanks to your generosity. If you haven't done so already, follow us on social media to follow the latest activity.

We hope your new year is off to a fabulous start. Please read our 2022 Highlights to see how you helped to make a difference.

Warmly,

"Through the Girl/Boy Empowerment Program, I have learned how to stand up for myself and how to use my voice to get help" ....Cindy a student at Lema Primary School.

Over the last week, the first cohort of 180 girls and boys graduated from the Girl/Boy Empowerment Program. This program for 5th and 6th grade students at four primary schools has been meeting weekly for the last year to help decrease teen pregnancy and gender-based violence. Mentors Jackie and David conducted lessons on respect, boundaries, peer pressure and using their voice along with providing information on sexual reproduction. Through interactive lessons and by reading books like, "I am Enough" by Grace Byers, "Celebrate Your Body"  by Sonya Renee Taylor and "Consent" by Rachel Brian, students engaged in lively discussions to help them know their rights and how to protect their boundaries and bodies.

Madam Purity, the Head Teacher at Wakaela Primary School shared, "I thank Kenya Connect for launching the Girl/Boy Empowerment Program at Wakaela Primary School. Last year we had four cases of teen pregnancy at my school. However, this year, we've recorded zero pregnancies. In addition, we have noticed positive behavior change and discipline. Thank you, Kenya Connect."

In developing the curriculum and program for The Girl/Boy Empowerment program, our team headed by Faith Doucette, met with local stakeholders to discuss the rise in teen pregnancy and solutions to help our youth. A local pastor, Rev. Benjamin Musyoki was part of the stakeholder group. He attended the graduation at Lema Primary School and shared, "Wow, what an awesome achievement to see such wonderful kids empowered with life skills of great value! I was blessed to be part of this noble endeavor! Thank you, Kenya Connect, for your life impacting programs such as this Girl/Boy Empowerment Program. I am looking forward to more partnership opportunities."

Our Girl/Boy Empowerment program team is aleady planning for 2023 with more primary schools involved, a targeted program to visit secondary schools once a term, and a new parent program on how to talk about sex with their children, how to keep them safe, and ways to support them in school. 

We are able to offer these programs thanks to support from donors like you! Thank you for selecting Kenya Connect for this important and life changing program. This month, we have a special MATCHING CHALLENGE! Two donors have provided a $20,000 match (outside of GlobalGiving) through December . Any gift will be matched 100% until the funds run out. We invite you to make a donation to help us double dollars so we can reach more students.

Faith from Kikaso Primary School shared, "Before the Girl/Boy Empowerment Program, I was shy, but now I am courageous." Thank you for helping us empower students like Faith!

Links:

• Girl/Boy Empowerment Program

It's been a thrilling week of Tech for students, teachers and our staff! Thanks to our partnership with Team4Tech, we are bringing chromebooks to the classroom, and students are learning basic computing, coding, and they will be even creating their own games. Words do not even begin to describe the pure joy that students are experiencing through these classes. When it is time for the Kenya Connect Tech Team to depart, students cry out, "Don't go, stay longer!"

Later in the week, our Partner Team4Tech was joined by educators from the Raspberry Pi Foundation to teach us how to use the Raspberry Pi devices. The workshops conducted on our Learning Library Center Rooftop were educational and fun. The training designed to "train the trainer" provided tips for becoming good trainers that included understanding your audience’s needs, building confidence, making students feel at ease, and inspiring others. The participants were also introduced to Raspberry Pi resources that they can use to learn and teach students. It also involved an introduction to Scratch block coding, moving blocks and creating games. Participants also learned about electricity and how to connect circuits using the Raspberry Pi 400 GPIO pins. Lastly, the participants created projects as a team. Some of the projects created were ambulance sirens, traffic lights, games and disco lights.

Some comments from the participants:

Trainer Marc C, Raspberry Pi Foundation: This was the most engaging class I have ever met. The participants wanted to put more work into learning and having fun. Creativity is when your intelligence is having fun.

Trainer Marc S – Raspberry Pi Foundation: I am amazed at how quickly the participants formed teams and how they made the projects work. Physical computing should be fun and we should strive to have this in the classroom with our students.

Mwanthi – Kilembwa Secondary School: I have always dreamt of learning coding and now I can code. The trainers made it so easy. As a teacher of physics, I have never thought of making physics so easy to learn through a game. I will now be able to teach resistors and diodes so easily.

Benjamin – Kituiu PS: The training was captivating and learner-centered and I wish as teachers we can make the learners eager to learn as it was with us. We should also involve our learners in practical learning as opposed to theoretical.

Patrick – Director of Technology and Education, KC: I have learned new methods of teaching from the Raspberry pi foundation facilitators. I will now incorporate the skills in teaching coding to young students. I am grateful to Team4Tech and Raspberry Pi Foundation for training our teachers. I am confident that the teachers will train more teachers and students to code and do physical computing!

These partnerships allow us to bring the joy and innovation of technology to rural students in Kenya. Your support means that we can continue to fuel these important programs that are bridging the digital divide for teachers and students in Kenya. Many thanks for being part of our family.