Hello everybody!
We have just reached the beginning of our final week here in Tanzania, and are looking forward to continuing our projects for these last seven days. The previous week has been a change of scenery, as we moved from Boma to Moshi and began working with Foot2Afrika, Tumona Secondary School and KITAYOSCE. To keep you all up to date, we’ve summarized some of our projects and adventures here in Moshi thus far below:
One of the education topics that the Tumona headmaster had requested we work on with the kids at the secondary school was basic physics concepts, since they currently do not have a physics teacher at the school. So far, we have worked with the Form One students and introduced mechanical forces and the units and equations related to that topic. With the Form Two students, we worked on pressure (specifically atmospheric pressure) and began to introduce work and energy. One of the best examples we came up with relating the topics we were covering to the kids’ lives was when we were talking about atmospheric pressure and how it changes with elevation: we solved for the pressure difference between the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro and down here in Moshi. We were reminded of this concept a few weeks ago when we were climbing down the mountain and our empty water bottles started deflating!
The other subject we have been teaching at Tumona is computer skills. After ridding the school’s computers of numerous viruses, likely caused by unsafe internet use, we started teaching the students about computer basics, such as the physical components of the PC and a few simple applications such as File Explorer. Some more classes that we are planning to teach include how to use SD cards, how to explore the internet safely and how to search for and get rid of any viruses that may have been downloaded accidentally. This will hopefully reduce the amount of viruses that take up residence on the laptops in the future.
After school, we have also been working with KITAYOSCE in the evenings. KITAYOSCE stands for KIlimanjaro TAlented YOuth Sports CEnter (find them on Facebook here), and is a local organization dedicated to helping underprivileged youth discover their potential as football athletes. In recent years, some of the youth in the program have gone on to play professionally for national Tanzanian teams, and KITAYOSCE’s older athletes recently brought home the East African Cup. The team has been working primarily with the 17-and-under age group, helping coach them through their drills and practices, as well as guiding them towards better teamwork and communication. Last Friday, we held a nutrition seminar, and (with the help of a translator) talked to the youth about proper nutrition and fluid intake guidelines, centered around preparing for a large workout or big football game. On Wednesday, all the kids had an after-school program, so the team went with Ellie (the director of KITAYOSCE) to a local football matchup between the two powerhouse clubs in Moshi. It was very interesting to see the different culture of sports-viewing in Tanzania; they are very passionate about their favorite football clubs! The team looks forward to continuing to work with KITAYOSCE throughout this upcoming week.
Wrapping up the first week in Moshi, the team traveled to the village of Mto wa Mbu to partake in a walking safari of the local culture. Mto wa Mbu is about a five hour drive from Moshi. The name literally translates to “River of Mosquitos”, and even in the non-rainy season, there were plenty of them. During the walking safari of the village, we saw many different local homes made of sticks, mud, and banana leaves. The main crop growing in this region is 27 different varieties of bananas, all serving different purposes. We had the opportunity to try red bananas, which taste very similar to the ones we are used to back in the States. We also witnessed the wood carving of the Makonde tribe and the beautiful paintings of the Chaga tribe. The following day, the team traveled another hour to explore the Ngorongoro Conservation Area and had the pleasure of participating in a game drive. A game drive is a term used to describe what Westerners would call a safari. The beautiful landscape as well as the abundance of animals within the caldera (collapsed volcano) was stunning. We were able to see lions, hippos, hyenas, jackals, wildebeest, zebras, cape buffalo, and many more species of large mammals and birds in abundance. Overall, this was an amazing experience that no picture can fully describe. It is definitely something to put on a bucket list!
Thank you all for reading, and please feel free to share and comment; we will answer any questions you have!
Team Tanzania 2017