Lost in Nicaragua: Project Update

Hola a todos!

I’m back in the blog world again! I’ve decided to cut back posts to once a month as I have actually started to get busy here and have less time to spend online. As seems to be the pattern, this next blog post is going to get all of you up to speed on what I’ve been up to here in terms of projects. I also have included some pictures, of my site curtsey of my camera which traveled through several states, countries, and across all of Nicaragua to arrive here in Bluefields. A big shout out goes to Kelsey Guziak, a current Peace Corps trainee here in Nicaragua who brought my camera all the way from the states to Nicaragua.

I currently am working on co-teaching in both the primary schools that I have been assigned (Ruben Dario and Santa Rosa). For each school, I am required to co-plan and co-teach one to two natural science classes every week with two teachers. The idea behind this is to facilitate an ideas-exchange between the Peace Corps volunteer and teacher so that the volunteer is able to capacitate (as the creoles say) their teachers to integrate more dynamic learning techniques and classroom management into their lesson and in turn the teacher is able to help the volunteer navigate the challenges of a Nicaraguan classroom (of which there are many). So currently I am co-planning and co-teaching with two fourth grade teachers in Ruben Dario, as well as two fifth grade teachers and a fourth grade teacher in Santa Rosa. Co-planning is….challenging. Imagine the usual challenge of working closely with another teacher and then add in language and cultural barriers. In other words, like anything worth doing, it’s a process.

In addition, I am also collaborating with two local organizations to do urban gardening projects in both my schools. One is a local government organization that is somewhat akin to a ministry of the environment. The other is a local NGO called FUNDCO. Although they normally work on promoting organic gardening practices in more rural areas of the RAAS, they have agreed to collaborate on this project and provide some of the materials and technical training. Already, both schools have realized the compost portion of this project. The next step is building raised garden beds and then planting the seeds. Raised garden beds require more planning and effort, but seem to make the most sense here since 1) we are in a more urban setting and space is therefore more limited and 2) the soil here is mostly clay and rocks so it’s almost impossible to plant seeds directly in the soil without first mixing it with a significant amount of sand and compost. More pictures and updates of the project to come as it unfolds!

The last big project that I am currently working on is co-teaching a class at the local university. My last blog update seems to have caused a lot of confusion about whether I am actually teaching the class or not. I am glad to say that I am not principally teaching the class. Instead I am focusing more on preparing the practical classes (aka: lab classes) than giving lectures. The experience I’ve had working with the university has been an invaluable lesson in making clear your objectives, as well as being assertive. Like all new volunteers, I still am getting the feel for what projects I should be working on and how I should collaborate with community members to plan for and achieve the project’s objectives. As I said before…it’s a process.

Well, that’s all I have to report on the project front. Now all of you actually know what I do here. Now for some pictures. Enjoy getting to know my site! I hope to see all of you here in the next two years J