Tag: achieve

Science at Bright Futures Secondary School

Some great photos from an S2 practical science lesson at Bright Futures Secondary School. Will you help us provide more equipment please?

Advertisements

Sarah’s blog 31/10/24

Thanks to our donors and supporters, we have achieved a great deal on a relatively small budget. There was only a very small amount of money for supporting practical science experiments at Bright Futures Secondary School.

We are grateful to one of our supporters who bought some more science equipment which arrived on the last container. These items were used in lessons this week for practical experiments. As you will see from the photos and what the teacher has told me, students being able to learn practically as well as theoretically, makes lessons far more exciting and easier to understand!

However, although everyone is delighted that they now have some equipment for performing science experiments, they do need to buy many more items to cover practical lessons in physics, biology and chemistry for all four years of the curriculum. Will you help us please? In addition to another microscope, circuits, beakers, burners, magnets etc…there will be an ongoing need for a selection of chemicals to be bought each year. Will you help us so that the students have what they need to achieve their potential?

contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com for our bank details or if you have any items we might need. We have a fundraiser on DonorSee specifically for science equipment and any donations will be very much appreciated. https://donorsee.com/project/25307?share=1

I asked Mr Kanyimbo, one of the science teachers at Bright Futures Secondary School, for some feedback from the students and himself after his lesson using the new equipment in his lesson. I was delighted to receive such a comprehensive response from him.

Mr Kanyimbo reflected on the lesson. “From the students’ perspective, many of the students seemed genuinely excited to work with new equipment, saying things like ‘I didn’t know experiments could be this fun!‘ They were clearly engaged, asking more questions and showing greater curiosity about the science behind what they were doing. They were also taking more initiative, setting up their experiments carefully and troubleshooting alongside their peers.”

“One student noted, ‘Having the equipment makes understanding this so much easier’, which highlights how hands-on resources help clarify abstract concepts and others said ‘this is way better than just reading about it’, which captures the enthusiasm and deeper understanding gained through practical work.”

“From my side, the addition of practical equipment brings new ways on how we can approach teaching. Instead of only relying on theoretical explanations, we are able to bring lessons to life, allowing students to make tangible connections between concepts and real-world applications. With practical lessons, students engage more deeply, ask more critical questions, and demonstrate a much stronger grasp of the material. I have already noticed a difference in their confidence and interest in science.”

“Additionally, with hands-on experiments, students become active learners. It is one thing to discuss theories, but quite another to let them test and observe these concepts in action. This approach doesn’t just make learning enjoyable but also builds problem-solving skills, deepens comprehension, and fosters a love of science that goes beyond the classroom. If we can have more equipment for practical lessons, for form 3 and form 4 work, we can have some better improvements in our science department. We currently do not carry out experiments with form 3 due to lack of chemicals and other apparatus.”

Please help us ensure that the students (and teachers) have what they need to be successful this year! https://donorsee.com/project/25307?share=1

Thanks to Mr Kanyimbo and his S2 students for the photos and feedback from what looks to have been a fun and informative lesson! Enjoy the photos and video (sorry about poor sound quality of the video) and please donate if you can, Sarah x

Sorry about the poor sound quality. The students are thanking donors for the new equipment and explaining what they are holding. They are asking for some additional equipment to be sent so they can complete more practical science lessons.

Advent Calendar – highlighting projects & children – day 15

Advertisements

Sarah’s blog 15/12/23

On day 15 we are again highlighting the need for quality education. The children and young people we are helping to support have all had extremely difficult lives and are living in extreme poverty. Secondary education needs to be paid for in Malawi and none of the students at Bright Futures Secondary School would be able to afford to pay these fees.

We are extremely proud of Chancy Chisale who is the first sponsored young person to have passed their s4 national exams and is going on to further education. Chancy’s family had paid for some of his education but then ran out of money. Chancy was a very hard worker and a promising student so we managed to match him with a sponsor and we are glad to say that he was successful. We wish him every success for the future.

Bright Futures Secondary School has only been open for just over a year. We were absolutely delighted that the whole S2 class passed their national exams in the summer. This was an amazing achievement for them and we are very proud of them.

Class sizes will always be smaller than government run schools. However, currently, Bright Futures Secondary School is running at approximately 50% capacity. We cannot afford to support more students without sponsors to help support their education costs. The decision was made that all students at Bright Futures Secondary School will get a free school lunch each day. This, for many, is their only proper meal. For some, it is their only food each day. They cannot study and concentrate without being fed at school. But this costs money.

Can you sponsor a vulnerable young person to study at Bright Futures Secondary School please? It’s only £25 per month. You can be a sponsor as an individual, a family or two friends or even a business or a school. contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com Or can you make a one off donation towards school lunches? or commit to paying £5 or £10 per month to ensure the young people get the nutrition they need through a free school lunch each day? https://gofund.me/d3cf8c3a Together we can keep Changing Lives Malawi. Thanks so much, Sarah x

VIP Visitors to Bright Futures Secondary School

Advertisements

Sarah’s blog 4/11/22

An amazing and very busy day at The Foundation! Lots of dignitaries were invited to see Bright Futures Secondary School prior to its opening on Monday. There were several village chiefs, head teachers from other local schools, head of the area police and church leaders as well as a few other representatives from the community. All of them were delighted with phase 1 of the school and the chiefs all spoke about how grateful they were for the donors and the work that is being done by Levison and team.

One chief, who hadn’t been to secondary school, said he wished the school had been there 20 years ago so he could have studied there. He asked Levison if he could visit the students at the school to talk to them and tell them how fortunate they are and to study hard. Another chief asked if adults could go to the school. Unfortunately, there isn’t room for them at the same time as the children, however Levison was able to tell them about the plans for adult literacy and numeracy classes.

The head chief said that he was going to ensure all the families of students knew that they had a responsibility to ensure their child behaved well and studied hard. The police chief said that he would ensure the protection of the teachers, staff and the work going on at The Foundation and, with the chiefs, would ensure all the villagers know who the new teachers are and that they must be respected.

On entering the classrooms, one of the men started crying. He couldn’t believe what had been achieved when, not so very long ago, there was nothing there. Now hundreds of the most vulnerable children over the next few years will have the gift of education. They will be given a way out of poverty and the chance of a brighter future. The VIPs listened to Levison and also asked lots of questions and wanted the donors to know how grateful they are for what is being done for the children in their community. So, on behalf of everyone in Ibuluma, if you have donated towards the school project – THANK YOU. We couldn’t help the hundreds of orphans and other vulnerable children without you.

The teachers have arrived and will be working some of this weekend with Levison to plan a timetable and plan their lessons for Monday. Of course, the children who come to The Foundation at the weekend will be interested to meet the new teachers! If you would like to contribute to help us to send money for desks, then here is the link https://gofund.me/44a92444

Busy times but thankful and grateful for all that has been achieved and for the people who are on this journey with us to provide a brighter future an continue Changing Lives Malawi. Enjoy the photos, Sarah x

Traci has completed her challenge!

Advertisements

Sarah’s blog 1/9/22

I can’t believe it is the first of September already! That means Traci’s challenge has finished. She emailed her results last night so here are the results.

Traci had set herself a challenge to walk 500km during July and August. However, she realised that she could do some more and changed her target to walk 700km during July and August. She has been sending regular updates and some great photos and I am in awe of how determined she has been to reach her goal. In fact, she has exceeded her goal by 10km. You are amazing Traci! Very well done!

All Traci’s kilometres have been added to the total that Jackie is keeping for us. As of today, 3,625.615km have been completed in UK plus 320km that the kids in Malawi clocked up in their run gives a total of 3,945.615km. This means we have travelled 30% of our journey now! Well done everyone!

We need more people to ‘donate’ their kilometres from their walks, runs or cycles to add them to our total. Whether you are just taking the dog for a walk or doing the shopping…every little helps…so please do tell us and we will add your kilometres to our total. It’s all about teamwork and we need you on our team.

We are covering the equivalent kilometres of one of the routes that the boxes take that we send from Scotland to Malawi. The aim of this challenge is to raise money and awareness to build a desperately needed secondary school in rural northern Malawi. Please donate if you can to help us give the gift of education to some of the most vulnerable young people in northern Malawi.

Here is the link to donate https://gofund.me/44a92444 to show your support for Traci’s brilliant achievement and to give the gift of education. Thanks for reading, Sarah x

Traci says “Well, thank goodness I was well ahead of the game before succumbing to Covid – I have been totally floored by it for the last 6 days and barely managed a lap of the garden. But I’m pleased to say I have still exceeded by target of walking 700km by the end of August. If you are able, donations for the wonderful work of Changing Lives Malawi to build a school would be most gratefully appreciated via https://gofund.me/44a92444 “

Very well done Traci! Amazing achievement!

Fun, Clubs & Skills

Advertisements

Sarah’s blog 08/05/22

An holistic approach is taken to improving the lives of the hundreds of children supported by The Foundation. Levison has sent lots of photos from a busy Sunday.

Today was a feeding day and some of the children from the gardening club who had helped grow cabbages, were shown how to prepare and cook them as part of today’s meal. Children have started learning to weave baskets, others were weaving mats to sit on. Some children were playing rugby, some knitting and some sewing. These are all great skills to have for their futures. Children are having opportunities to learn new things that they wouldn’t otherwise have had the chance to try. These children are having fun with their friends whilst learning and are able to forget about their problems for a while.

I hope you enjoy looking at the photos. There is a lot happening at The Foundation. We don’t always see how much is happening or how busy it is. However, with so many children to support, every day at The Foundation is a busy one! I hope you enjoy the photos. Remember the link to my fundraiser to build a school for these children is https://gofund.me/ca9c1629 Thanks for reading, Sarah x

children learning basket weaving

31 days in May challenge

Advertisements

Sarah’s blog 30/4/22

Tomorrow I start my challenge to help raise awareness of the hundreds of vulnerable children we support and how life is for them. So expect lots of stories from Ibuluma, rural Northern Malawi. I am also raising money to build them a school and I need your help.

There are not enough places in secondary schools and, if you don’t get picked (even though you’ve passed your exams) then you don’t go. That’s what happened to 11 of our sponsored young people this year. I had matched them with sponsors to pay their school fees, they worked hard and passed their primary school leavers exams and still didn’t get picked for secondary school! It’s heart breaking for them. Heart breaking and very unfair. How would you feel if that happened to your child? These 11 children are now repeating their last year of primary school in the hope that they get picked next year. But what if they don’t? There are not enough places at secondary school for all the children to get a proper education. What would you do if this had happened to your child and their friends?

If we build a school in the village then all children who pass their primary school leavers exams will be able to go to secondary school. Education, they know, is their way to a better future. It’s their way to a sustainable future where they will be able to support themselves and their families. ALL CHILDREN DESERVE AN EDUCATION. ALL CHILDREN DESERVE A CHANCE TO REACH THEIR POTENTIAL. THESE VULNERABLE CHILDREN NEED MY HELP AND YOUR HELP.

Each day in May, I will be eating the equivalent of what the children have at the feeding programme. I am very aware that they only get this once a week and it’s the most they eat all week. Instead of maize flour, I will be having one bowl of rice each day and vegetables/salad. I will also be cycling 10km a day on my exercise bike which represents what the younger children walk each day to school and back.

To a lot of people this might not seem like a big challenge. However, I have some health issues and this is a big deal for me. I’ll be blogging during the month about how I’m getting on and bringing stories from Ibuluma.

So here is how you can help:

  1. Please donate money
  2. Tell your friends and ask them to donate money too
  3. Share my posts and cheer me on….I’m sure I’ll need your encouragement
  4. Can you join me on this challenge or do a challenge of your own?
  5. Can you or your children do a sponsored event or challenge? Bake sales/sponsored walks/sponsored reading books each day of the summer holidays/sponsored trampolining etc
  6. Can you save all your loose change in a jar for us? If enough people do this then it will certainly add up.
  7. Any other ideas? Anyone you know that has a big following on social media etc who could mention us and a link to donate to my challenge?

Thanks in advance for your support. Here is the link to my fundraiser https://gofund.me/ca9c1629 or you can donate via this website or contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com for bank details. You can also text SCHOOL TO 70560 to donate.

I can’t do this on my own…..but we can do this together! Please help me help the children. Please help me continue Changing Lives Malawi. Thanks for reading and your support, Sarah x

Exit mobile version
%%footer%%