Tag Archives: writing

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Oh, those telling eyes!

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And the stories behind them…

They come in various sizes and attitudes – dressed, buttoned, tied, and tucked with hopeful fingers  – walking to school on barefoot paths. Children from the townships in South Africa live in extraordinarily challenging environments, yet they convert those challenges into creativity wrapped in endless smiles. Each has the raw potential given any child at birth. Every face confirms that potential, building a world out of whatever they have  – able to play and laugh and dream without limits. Their imaginations surpass their realities.

The appetite of the children I have encountered in the crèches and grade R classrooms to learn is heart rending and without agenda. Every moment, every bit of information is taken in with relish – smiles filled with I CAN DO THIS! The life given to a mark in the sand or on a chalkboard when it is from the hand of a child writing a word by sounding it himself or herself is magical. That spark slices right through the moment revealing eyes exploding with, “I AM ABLE!”  There is little that can match that look.

From preschool (left) to Grade 1 (below), Souns is working for these children. This Rotary literacy project between D6900 and D9400 is doing wonderful things for South Africa township children. One week of working with teachers and children from a range of crèches differ only in venue. Each opportunity was met with eager teachers and enthusiastic little people, ranging from 2 to 5 years of age. Most of the children referred to here began working with Souns last March. In those eight months they have beautifully achieved the target goals: letter-sound information for children to three; building words by listening to the sounds in spoken words for children who know their letter-sounds, usually four year olds; reading words for children five years plus. I can’t wait until our next visit in March.

Each of these children is a promising story unfolding, and the ability to write and read is a critical building block for their undiscovered dreams.

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Where Is The Dirt?

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What is a kid without mud pies?  What if there was no dirt for digging holes, building ramps for little bridges, making designs, or planting a seed. It is so sad to visit preschool sites and train for Souns, suggesting the teacher write letters in the dirt on the playground, only to receive that vacant look that says, “There is no dirt on the playground.” Not even a spot of dirt.

A child’s construction! Tomorrow’s yurt builder or city planner.

Literacy began on a cave wall and progressed with playing in and with the dirt. We may live in different times and wear different clothes, but children are quite the same. They need to use their hands to move and shape and create worlds from their imaginations. Dirt is the natural medium. Creativity is, indeed, being stripped of its roots.

Our lives are so busy and our children are captive in our harried schedules, spending their days on playgrounds that are plastic coated, shrink wrapped, and stamped “sterile.”

Children need a spot of dirt to dig and play and build their world!

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One Story – One Child

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One story at a time!

This little one became a Souns kid when she was barely 2 years old. She is now five. She is reading and writing. Creative writing for a young child means creative spelling….and research confirms that children who write creatively early are better spellers in school  (Souns White Paper  page 8). More important than spelling is the absolute joy a young child has in written expression. The work of it disappears, morphed into the confidence of “I can do this!” Head down (with mouth almost touching the paper), little hand moving to encode the sounds in the words the mouth is quietly saying.

It is magical! It is mysterious! It is freedom!

(the daddy is asleep; do not wake the daddy up; I like the mouse; I like the daddy; the mouse is gray)

 

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The Writing On The Wall

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So THAT is how much fun a Souns kid can have? Meet Prince, and his marvelous mother Nikolai. Prince has had Souns since his mother and I met on TWITTER  and she ordered Souns materials (January 2011). The journey has been furiously fast moving and engaging. Within two weeks of  Nikolai seeing the impact Souns had on her young child, she was compelled to change every child’s life in Puerto Rico. She  spoke to everyone, trying to build a resource for getting Souns into the hands of the children in her community. Finally, a Rotarian from Rotary District 7000 heard of the effort and suddenly, a Matching Grant was in the making.

Where are we now with this vibrant mother and one little boy who loved his Souns? Mix such passion and commitment with Rotary and the world really does change. Currently, the Head Start program of San Juan Municipality is the recipient of a grant from The Rotary Foundation, a Matching Grant sought by Rotary Districts 6990 and 7000. One mom and the experiences of one little boy on a mission now impact 4000 children in Head Start. The ultimate goal is to change the world for children in all of Puerto Rico. That mission is not to be denied, at least not for Nikolai .

And what about the star of this story, our little Prince? Prince is now building words with Souns letters, writing words with his hands, and sounding out phonetic words in two languages. He is not even old enough to be in kindergarten. What do you think his world will be like as he enters school? He loves learning. He is curious and inspired. Family matters to children. Souns has powered a relationship with a family and their community and has spawned a future for 4001 children. Nikolai is taking that even a step further – surprise! She has written, published, and is traveling and speaking about the power of family. Ring the Alarm: The Hope of Black and Brown communities: A Zero to Five Parenting Guide for Low Income Black and Latino Caregivers.   Nikolai Pizarro (Author)  http://www.amazon.com/Ring-Alarm-Communities-Parenting-Caregivers/dp/1468146963

It started with a TWEET between @counterpane and @Be_Pure! It is now a major literacy project in Puerto Rico thanks to The Rotary Foundation and the support of Rotary Districts 6990 and 7000 (inspired by the dream of one very passionate mother and her child). Today’s communication tools combined with service-above-self organizations such as Rotary build amazing opportunities, linking minds, hearts, and purpose.

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Impromptu Moments!

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While playing in the sand at the beach, my 4-year-old daughter grabbed me and said,

“Look Mom, I made a sound.”

“Wonderful!  What sound did you make?”

“/w/,” she answered.
It’s the unprompted moments of demonstrated understanding that illustrate
the power of the Souns® for Literacy program.
Thank you,  Della of @sensablelearning in Apopka, Florida, for this entry!
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Peace Corps Reflections (from the field)

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Volunteers in the Peace Corps have the option to use Souns in their communities in South Africa. This opportunity is the result of a collaboration between Rotary Districts 6900, 9400, and Africa Peace Corps. The work is promising, even compelling when one considers the difference for children that is being made. It is a wonderful thing to see organizations join forces for building a literate world, which is the only route to a peaceful one.  Please enjoy the collection of quotes from the field. Keep in mind, Souns works in any language using the Latin alphabet symbols. You associate the sound of the symbol for the child’s language. What a bridge between differences.

“I really like the simple, realistic ideals of the souns program. The individualized program meets the learners where they are and provides small group interaction that is often missing in the regular classroom setting.” 

“It was nice to see despite the different language barriers how fast the children pick up on the idea of the program and the different activities you can do with it.”  

“One simple technique that I had not thought of was asking the kids to exchange souns with another learner.”  

“I am going to start grouping the students more as they progress, since I don’t want the students who are progressing to get bored.”

“Things are going well!
I’m learning that
writing must be done in smaller groups!
I recently had a little guy [who wasn’t feeling well] – but he
still participated… only afterwards did I realize [how badly he felt]. Poor guy! But he still was working hard.

I’m trying to get to every kid at least once a week. I’m seeing
progress. Using local words has been especially effective.

Souns is a great way for me to get to work with the younger grades,
otherwise I wouldn’t have the opportunity to interact with them.”

“Souns is doing well in my area! Before our training I had thought we needed to perfect each cluster of 4 sounds before moving on so I wasn’t as far into the sounds as the other volunteers. But now that I am on track things are looking really well! Just the other week we started our first combination of sounds to form short words. It was amazing to see the lightbulb go off in the kids head when the put together sounds to make simple words.”