A DONATION IS RECEIVED!!!

A donation of consumable school supplies was received today – THANK YOU DD & BA Read more Entry>>

First class with 6th graders at ERdM

We met for the first time with the 6th graders today. There were ten of them – 5 boys and 5 girls. Their teacher, Xinia as well as the principal, Shirley was there. Shirley ‘sat in’ to practice her English.
In our 90 minute ‘class’, we helped them prepare for a test on introductions. Dave put together a presentation to introduce us, complete with colored pictures. After, we encouraged them to think and speak in English by participating in interactive exercises, e.g. “My name is . . . , What is your name?”, “I live in . . . Where do you live?”, etc.
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Meeting with the parents at ERdM

Shirley Salas, the principal of Escuela Rincon de Mora called a meeting of all of the 6th grade parents (10 students) and us to discuss our involvement with that class. As a prelude to the meeting, everyone was treated to a traditional story told by Shirley via a PowerPoint presentation prepared using the school’s only computer. Dave wasn’t exactly sure of the content of the presentation since it was all done in Spanish.
The parents of eight of the ten students in the 6th grade attended the meeting and were very excited to hear that native English speakers would be helping their children. Xinia, the English teacher assigned to this school, explained that we would be attending one 80 minute class per week starting March 13 at 3:30 pm. The parents immediately asked if it was possible for us to do two sessions a week! David explained that since it would require the use of an interpreter we would have to look into that possibility.
We discussed the other needs of the school. It was apparent that they needed a new Television. Theirs is approximately 15” with a mediocre picture. They, like San Rafael, also are in need of a VCR/DVD player as their only VCR has seen better days.
While everyone was being served cookies, crackers and soda by some of the 6th grade students, the parents discussed the 6th grade graduation field trip. The kids all want to go to an amusement park near San Jose, but there seems to be a challenge with the cost. It was estimated that each student would have to come up with 20,000 Colones (about $40.00 or $1.00 per week) by the end of the school year and that is a hardship for some of the parents. It appeared that there was going to be more discussion at a later date to talk about options. Read more Entry>>

"Ask and Ye Shall . . . ?" broadcast email

Dave sent out another broadcast email which contained a "wish list" from Escuela Rincon de Mora:

Dear Friends,
We would like to thank you for all of the ideas and generous donations that we have received over the past couple of weeks.
From staple classroom supplies to a used computer (with the likelihood of many more to come) along with cash, the response has been heartwarming. We have had supplies brought back from a Gringa visiting the states and promises of supplies from others “the next time we go to PriceSmart, Hypermas or Office Depot.” People with contacts in the shipping business have committed to helping get “stuff” to Costa Rica; businesses have expressed their desire to help as the school year progresses and one immediately handed over a cash donation; individuals have expressed a desire to help with in-school tutoring or helping in any way they can. And Ticos have also expressed a desire to help. From helping us look for used and “nearly free” equipment to helping us with translation in school meetings, they are pitching in too.
That said, our “Shameless Request for Help” continues and we still are looking the same things that we listed in our first email, along with a number of added items. Remember, most of the items that we are requesting and are receiving are consumables. So……. please think about dedicating a few Colones on that next “outing” to Alajuela, Heredia, Escazu (or even Nuevo Mercadito downtown) to the school kids. To give you an idea of exactly what type of request we are getting please take a moment to read the letter we recently received form Escuela Rincon de Mora:

We are also investigating expanding our efforts to other schools and to fundraising and “supplyraising” in the U. S. (We are taking baby steps with this, though – we learned long ago that “Slow and steady wins the race”). So, if you have any contacts in that arena, please get in touch with us. Aside from a rather large email database our experience in that area is a bit thin.
Once again, thank you for reading this. Any and all donations will be greatly appreciated.
David & Raylene Scott Read more Entry>>