5/15/09 An Update From Monkey Bay to St. John's:

Hope this finds you well, and looking forward to summer!  Monkey Bay is jammin’ this time of year, as you can imagine.  I stopped by Democracia School this morning and talked with Mr. Garcia and Ms. Pech.  The kitchen project is underway, thanks in huge part to St. John’s cash donation.  The pictures attached are still in the working stage, but it has come a long way.  They still need to hook up the electricity, and obtain the stove, dishes and food promised by the government.  Running water is working! 

 

 

The Outside of the New Kitchen                                         The working kitchen sink!

The computer room is also under construction, with priority on securing the ceiling and then adding worktables.  The desktops from another donor have arrived in-country and are working their way through customs.  Ms. Pech reported that each teacher is responsible for one laptop, and keeps them safe by bringing them home each night.  Each classroom then has one laptop to use at the teacher’s discretion.  Ms. Pech has incorporated the computer in her room by using it mainly as incentive and as a classroom management tool.  Another area that she has found it very useful is in Reading Comprehension, where she uses the programs on the computer for students who need extra practice in that subject.  And, of course, the students LOVE to watch the videos that they made with the St. John’s students.

                 

              Construction on the Computer Room                   Local volunteers working on the kitchen

 

Ms. Pech also reported that the teachers of the younger grades have been more hesitant to use the computers in class, fearing that they may need to use more discipline, and it will lose it’s fun factor.  I suggested that if possible, the older students could hold tutorials with the younger students.  With only a few more weeks of the school year, it may not be implemented in time, but plans to incorporate computers into the curriculum for next year are under way.  The teacher’s themselves most likely need a tutorial, as many do not have experience using this type of technology in the classroom. 

 

Happy end of the school year!  Thanks for all of your continued support, these projects truly are making a difference.

 

5/8/09 Some more final projects are in:

Kirby's Movie:

                         Click HERE to read Robbie's Story

 

Kieran's Painting                                                      Madison's Colored Pencil Sketch

 

Ryan's 3D Model:

 

Courtney's Movie

 

4/24/09

Final projects have begun to trickle in from our Belize trip students. Here is Sarah's Photostory:

 

April 20, 2009

Our school trip was in our regional newspapers, The Olney Gazette and the Montgomery County Gazette. The article, "Taking the Classroom to Central America" was published Wednesday April 15, 2009.

 

March 28, 2009

These are the final videos from our classroom time with La Democracia school. Just click the right arrow after each video to see the next one:

 

March 27, 2009

Around 1:00am this morning, most students were finally tucked into their own beds back in Maryland. When we awoke that day, we were on an Island hundreds of miles away. We took a boat to the mainland, then a bus to Monkey Bay where we collected our suitcases and ate lunch, then boarded another bus to make it to the first plane, and then in Miami we caught another plane, until finally...whew!...we arrived home to another final car ride. Talk about modern technology! We have a snapfish group account to which all students have been invited to add photos. Mrs. Berman-Dry has added hers already, and hopes that everyone will be able to add theirs soon.

 

Belize Trip Photos on PhotoPeach

 

Click HERE for a link to another group slideshow.

 

March 25-26th, 2009

We spent the last two days on Tobacco Caye, a small island off the coast near Dangriga. After an early afternoon arrival, students were taken on a tour of the island and then quickly changed into their bathing suits. We were probably in the water pretty much continuously from that point on. It was the first time snorkeling for many of the students, and learning how to float without resting our fins on the fragile coral was the first order of business. We snorkeled all around the island, seeing many of the most common types of coral-dwelling fish like Parrotfish and Sargeant Majors, but also some less commons ones like a flying barracuda and stingrays. Later that evening, we retired to the Tobacco Caye's Marine Station classroom, in which we completed the "marketplace of ideas" activity, in which students "marketed" their ideas for how we could create a sustainable relationship with La Democracia school in the future. It was a tie between "Postcards for Profits" group, and "Staying Connected." One group felt we could have students in La Democracia make images in Paint on the laptops we just donated, that could then be made into postcards or greetingcards. Those would be sold at both our school, and in Democracia at both Monkey Bay and the fruit stand on the corner in the village. The other group wanted to raise money to purchase projectors for the school, so we could use Skype video to have monthly videoconference meetings.

   

After a hearty Belizean breakfast of johnny-cakes and refried beans, with Happy Cow cheese and fresh fruit, we embarked upon a day-long snorkel trip. Our first visit was to Carrie Bow Caye, which hosts the Smithsonian Marine Research Station. We were treated to a tour of the station and learned how scientists use the station to study phenomenon as varied as deep-sea worm reproduction and sponge populations. Students learned that the island was shrinking because the reef no longer protected the island from storms, because the sea levels were rising, and because the previous owners of the island had misguidedly removed some mangroves, which held the soil in place.

After Carrie Bow Caye, we snorkeled on the great Barrier Reef. Students remarked about the visible signs of coral bleaching, and were stunned at the variety of sea life they observed. We then stopped on a small island for lunch, after which we turned over rocks to see what kinds of shallow-water creatures we could find lurking beneath. Our students were able to compare their Wallops Island, Virginia visit with the ecosystem there in Belize. Our final stop of the day was to a mangrove island, at which we strapped on lifevests in the water to keep ourselves completely afloat. Cauliflower-like upside-down jellyfish populated the sea-floor and any change in currents could make them rise to the surface and find us! So, we were all very careful as we poked into the root systems of the mangroves to see a whole different world that few get to see underneath the roots...who knew they weren't even attached to anything at all?!?!

At the end of the day, we took very brief showers (the island relies solely on rainwater for washing and drinking!) and reconvened in the Marine Station for a recap of our trip and for a "candle circle" at which everyone shared their favorite memory, and how this experience will change who they are as a human being. Teachers were pleased and surprised at the gravity of some students' words and feelings.

 

March 23, 2009

 

Today was a "heart-warming, rewarding, satisfying, emotional accomplishment" to paraphrase the words of our students in our "one word" summarization at the end of the day. Our students spent 6 hours in La Democracia Government school's Standard 5 &  6 (7th and 8th grades) classroom, teaching them how to use their new laptops, and making short videos highlighting elements of the Belizean Culture. Although the speed of the internet here precludes the upload of all the videos at this moment, we will do so when we return on Friday. The topics the students covered included Belizean Garifuna Culture (an indigenous culture), Creole Language, Belizean Sports, Homegrown Foods and Occupations of La Democracia. They worked in groups of three students from St. John's paired with three students from La Democracia for the project. At the end of the day, we were treated to a tearful thank you from the teacher, Mrs. Pech, who remarked that this was almost a year in the making that she has been telling students we would come. Today, we made her words ring true.

 

 

 

Please note that tomorrow morning, we will depart Monkey Bay for the Tobacco Caye, where we will not have Internet access. We will call parents from the airport in Miami, or perhaps even the airport in Belize City if we have time before departure.

 

 

March 22, 2009

Today, we went on a 4 mile canoe trip on the Sibun River and we then went to the La Democracia community center, where many community members were awaiting our arrival. The trip leaders were so very proud to see just about every child jump right into either a basketball game, frisbee game, card game or board game. St. John's students were friendly and set a wonderful tone for our work in the school tomorrow teaching computer skills. Here are a couple more photos from today.

 

 

March 21, 2009

We have finally returned from the mountains to Monkey Bay. Here are two photos from our day hike to Big Rock Falls. Please check your child's page for their own blog entries: 

 

 

 

 

March 19th: You can download a short video at the River by clicking here. The zoo last night was AWESOME and we'll post a photo or two shortly. Happily the bugs are almost nonexistent compared to when the teachers were here this summer. Mostly just no-see-ums here at Monkey Bay and no mosquitoes during the day at all! We'll see how it is in the mountains, today.

 

March 18, 2009

We made it here! It has been such a long day, and yet we're not tired. Most of us had to get up at around 3:00am or earlier, but now that it's 5:00pm here in Belize, we're still going strong. The flights were mostly uneventful and we're happily settled in Monkey Bay Wildlife Reserve. Here we are on the bus from the airport to Monkey Bay:

Today, Courtney is going to blog:

Today we flew to Belize! This morning, my mom and I woke up at 2:45 and drove to the airport. When we had gotten our tickets and were ready to say gooodbye to our parents, we were filled with excitement and enthusiasm for the trip. When we got off of our 2 hour flight to Miami, we had a short layover and boarded our next flight to Belize! We landed in Belize at 11:00 am and we rode on a bus to Monkey Bay. We put on our swimsuits and swam in the nearby lake. Next, we came back to camp and had free time. Now, we have just finished eating dinner and are very excited to see the zoo at night! I am so excited for this trip!   

 

 

Final Project

Belize Climate Change/Service Trip

After you return from your trip to Belize, part of your responsibility is to make a presentation to your class members. This will be done in advisory, but you will also receive a grade for it in Science class with Ms. Becker and Ms. Smedira. Here are the guidelines for how this project could be completed:

 

1. A short movie (3-5 mins) using film footage and pictures from your trip, as well as music you may have purchased there in Belize.
2. A work of art depicting many symbols of our trip. You will have to present your picture/sketch to the advisory class and explain what the symbols or images mean.
3. A written story or play describing the events of our trip. It must be fun and engaging, not simply a list of things we did.
4. A 3-D model of the ecosystems of Belize showing how climate change effects each area.

 

 

Each project must include detailed facts about:

1. Climate Change in Belize and the US
2. Community Service we completed in Belize
3. Wildlife and natural elements we saw
4. Observations about the people we met

 

March 12, 2009

Students have read excerpts of Three Cups of Tea for today's meeting and will have taken the  Kiersey Temperment Online Test:

http://www.keirsey.com/sorter/register.aspx 

We will also finalize our computer project for La Democracia today, as well. Students will reflect on what Rischard's Twenty Global Problems are in High Noon and select one as their #1 issue, then explain why.

http://www.theglobalist.com/StoryId.aspx?StoryId=2653 

 

February 26, 2009

Today, we watched the first half of a lecture by Jared Diamond, author of the book Collapse, on why societies fail. This relates to our visit to the Mayan ruins we will visit at Xunantunich in Belize.

 

Jared Diamond theorizes in his book Collapse that the reasons why societies fail can be summarized in five points:

1. The human impact on their environment.

2. Climate change occuring naturally.

3. Trade relations with friendly societies nearby.

4. Relations with hostile societies.

5. Political, economic, social and cultural events.

Students will blog about what they feel America's standpoint on these are.

 

Feb 12, 2009

Students today are meeting to discuss readings, but are also going to design t-shirt logos for our trip. Their blogging topic today is coral bleaching: is it manmade or a natural cycle? Here are the logo designs. We chose one to be the winner...you will see which one when we arrive next month!

 

January 22, 2008

Students at St. John's are meeting to discuss the readings from our last meeting, to watch the second half of the video about Climate Change in Belize and to blog about the readings as well.

 

January 7, 2008

We've returned from a long holiday break and are ready to start biweekly after school meetings with the students headed to Belize in March. Our first meeting is this Thursday January 8th, where students will be given a chance to get to know one another better, receive readings about climate change, and discuss our community service plan of raising funds for laptops for La Democracia's school. Our meeting schedule is here.

 

December 15, 2008

At St. John's, we have selected our students who will travel to Belize in the Spring and have begun the preparations. We will be meeting after school beginningin January to begin learning about Climate Change in Belize, and to discuss our community service project. Here are two videos we will watch:

     

 

October 16, 2008

Today, St. John's Episcopal School's technology coordinator and Monkey Bay Wildlife Sanctuary's Coordinator are working together to determine if Skype video will work for live, real-time communications between students in Belize and the USA. The internet connections don't always work the way that they are designed to. We're experimenting to see if the problem is Skype by trying out Yahoo Messenger instead. The problem may just be the broadband connections in Belize.

St. John's is also exploring ways to bring technology with them, when they come to visit La Democracia in March 2008. Although we looked into the One Laptop Per Child Initiative, we soon realized that you cannot purchase them with a specific school in mind..you simply donate funds and then the foundation decides where the laptops will go. In the meantime, we're exploring similarly designed, durable laptops to bring with us. We heard abotu EEE Pcs and the Classmate PC and then, we heard about the Acer Aspire One Mini Notebooks. Now, we just have to decide which one is the right one for La Democracia.

October 28th, 2008

Today, we will meet Mr. Delmar Garcia, Principal of La Democracia school in Belize. We will have a Skype session to talk about how we can connect our children in curricularly relevant ways.