​Schon im Vorfeld war die Kommunikation transparent und klar strukturiert. Die Vorbereitungen mit Vera und Joshua gaben mir bereits vor der Abreise viel Sicherheit.
​Vor Ort setzte sich dieser positive Eindruck nahtlos fort:
​Schulleitung: Die Zusammenarbeit mit dem Schuldirektor Harrison und seiner Frau Grace war äusserst herzlich und von gegenseitiger Wertschätzung geprägt.

​Begleitung im Schulalltag: Ein ganz besonderer Dank geht an die Schulsozialarbeiterin Eleanor. Sie hat mich überallhin mitgenommen, mir alles gezeigt und stand mir jederzeit zur Seite. Ich fühlte mich nie allein gelassen oder orientierungslos.

​Sehr geschätzt habe ich die Balance im Tagesablauf: Es gab klare Absprachen, aber gleichzeitig genügend Raum für Spontanität. Ein starrer Stundenplan war gar nicht nötig, durch die hohe Flexibilität ergaben sich täglich neue, spannende Einblicke.

​Die Abschiedsvorführung: Die Aufführung, welche die Schulkinder extra für mich auf die Beine gestellt haben, hat mich im Herzen berührt.

Ich würde das Volunteering weiterempfehlen

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During my time at the school, I lived with Harrison and Grace. It was less than a 20-minute walk or five minutes by motorbike from the school. I was welcomed as a new member of the family right from the start and this only increased over the course of my time. Today, when I tell my friends and relatives about my time in Kenya, I always talk proudly about my Kenyan family. The way in which all the family members took me in (at the best of times there were eleven of us living under one roof) really touched me and I was very impressed by how they coped with life. For the first time, I really realised what a luxury water is and what it means to have no running water. The water is painstakingly carried into the house canister by canister. I got a backache just watching, whereas other women in the village seemed to have no problem balancing 20 litres of water on their heads. With this in mind, it is understandable that the water has to be handled with care. Not a drop is wasted: Water used for washing hands is collected directly in a bucket and reused later to flush the toilet. I tried the same thing with my hand shower from the bucket. The kitchen cannot be compared either, especially its equipment: while we are used to having at least a four-ring hob including an oven, my Kenyan family only had a single gas cylinder fire (if the gas ran out, there was still the option of switching to charcoal). Right up until the last day, I was always impressed by what ended up on the table despite the circumstances and I never ate badly, quite the opposite. To summarise briefly: I lived a very simple life, but I never lacked for anything.

Let's get back to school. After surviving the weekend, including countless battles with the prevailing heat, I was allowed to familiarise myself with the school on Monday. I was accompanied by Harrison himself. He drove me to the school, showed me all the rooms and introduced me to the teachers and all the pupils. I then discussed the timetable and the next steps with the headteacher Silas so that I could start my first lessons straight away on Tuesday. On Monday itself, I was primarily present as a visitor. I observed various lessons from the other teachers, got a first impression of the project and curiously observed the interested looks of the children on the school grounds. In general, I was expected to do very little in the first few days. Every time I made the slightest movement, I was immediately offered a break on the grounds that I was tired. I almost had to push myself to be able to offer my help. Fortunately, this soon subsided and after a short time I was an integral part of the team and therefore part of the HPS. As a teacher, I then took over all the maths lessons in Year 8 (last school year at the HPS) from the very beginning. Over time, the maths lessons in Year 6 and Italian lessons in Years 5 and 6 were added. And occasionally I also led individual sports lessons, which meant running after a ball in the blazing sun without a trace of shade (for the children, unlike me, absolutely no problem). I was also always sitting in on my fellow teachers and giving them feedback. When I wasn't teaching myself, I assisted our cook Elina in the kitchen and in the afternoons I often played and danced with the younger classes, which was always a great pleasure for me. I still love to think of the children's shining eyes today.

I really enjoyed teaching and working with my students. It took a while for us to get used to each other, but afterwards I would say it was a very fruitful collaboration. Particularly at the beginning, my pupils found it difficult to openly admit when they had not yet covered or understood something. As a maths teacher, you always encounter the same problems with pupils, both in my work in Switzerland and at the HPS. And yet I have to admit that I had to deal with a few more challenges there. As a teacher in Basel, you are used to every classroom being equipped with a projector and a blackboard, there are plenty of sets of teaching materials and now most pupils are also present with their own laptops/tablets. There is talk of so-called BYOD classes (BringYourOwnDevice) - simply unimaginable in Kenya (or at least at the HPS). I was already happy when all pupils were able to provide writing materials. A textbook was provided for me as a teacher, the pupils copied everything down and got their documents that way. In year 6, I had access to four copies of the book, which meant that small group work was also possible in some cases. The structure of a lesson therefore required a different approach to what I was used to in Switzerland. Although the students themselves did not have their own devices, the HPS was provided with a few laptops including school software by the Labdoo organisation. I also tried to incorporate these into the lessons and thus familiarise the pupils with the use of computers. I also looked at subject-specific learning programmes with the maths teachers and taught them a little so that they could continue to use them after I left. Overall, I certainly noticed a poorer understanding and less intuition in dealing with the computer than would have been the case in Switzerland in the same age group, but the enjoyment and interest in it is at least as great. Fortunately, language was not an obstacle. After all, English is Kenya's second official language and the children come into contact with it from kindergarten onwards. From primary school onwards, lessons are mainly taught in English. As a result, the pupils, especially in the higher grades, are very well versed and fluent in English - in some cases perhaps even more so than me. The only thing that was challenging - or rather took some getting used to - was the Kenyan pronunciation of English and, conversely, my Swiss pronunciation. However, you soon get used to it, but it could also lead to funny misunderstandings at the beginning. On my first day in Kenya, for example, I was given the nickname ‘Safari’ (Swahili for journey) at short notice, as the Italian pronunciation of ‘Gianni’ corresponds to their English pronunciation of ‘Journey’ - still incomprehensible to me today, but quite amusing. As my Swahili wasn't, or isn't, too noteworthy, it took over a week to resolve this misunderstanding. During this short time, however, I wore this sonorous name with pride and then told my friends and relatives in Switzerland with amusement.

As already mentioned, I also taught a little Italian. This came about because Kenyan schools are required to teach another foreign language in addition to English and Swahili in the future - at least that's how it was explained to me. In fact, the timetable (which is not drawn up by the school itself) also included corresponding lessons. The school management originally wanted me to teach German or French. However, as my time at the school was limited and there was no continuation of foreign language lessons in sight, I insisted on letting the pupils choose which language they wanted to learn. It was also important to me that these lessons should be more fun than learning pressure. Firstly, the learning success of a new language in six weeks is manageable and secondly, the timetables already demanded a lot from the children. Not everyone necessarily saw it that way, but in the end we went through with the Italian lessons and it was a great success. We laughed a lot together and the children greeted me in the schoolyard with ‘Buongiorno Gianni’ and a big grin on their faces.

One of the big highlights for me was certainly the farewell and all the emotions I was given. As a teacher, you're used to students not always seeing all the effort that goes into preparing lessons etc. and taking many things for granted. They often only realise this later, but you are still pleased when this is noticed. A teacher can draw a lot of energy for further tasks from these small appreciations. And it's not much different as a teacher in Kenya. I always had a very good and trusting relationship with my pupils at the HPS and also felt that the joy of working together was mutual. However, the emotions I saw and received at my farewell party were beyond imagination. It is difficult to even begin to put it into words, but these emotions and the gratitude I received repaid my efforts many times over. This moment alone confirmed to me that my decision to go to the HPS was absolutely right and also showed me that the work I had done was worth much more than I would ever have given myself credit for.

I wish the HPS all the best for the future and sincerely hope to be able to visit my Kenyan family and all my students again soon. Asante sana - Mwalimu Safari Gianni!

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At the airport in Mombasa, we looked out for someone to pick us up - and found a whole reception committee. Even Harrison, the headmaster, had come especially to greet us. We were moved to tears by all the warmth and joy that flowed towards us.

As the school still had a week's holiday, we first went on safari as a family: the 5 days in Amboseli Park and Tsavo East were like a dream! Being able to experience nature and animals up close was an unrivalled experience.

At the beginning of our second week, we drove to Mshomoroni for the first time, a very poor area about 45 minutes by car from our hotel. The journey was always quite adventurous, as there are no tarmac roads away from the town and we were really shaken up in the car. When it rained, it wasn't even possible to drive to school, so we had to take a long diversions, park the car and walk the last few hundred metres. This resulted in very muddy feet, for which everyone at the school apologised to us (‘Sorry for the rain!’). At the school, we met the headmaster Harrison, his wife Grace and the teaching staff, and we were shown round the various old and new school buildings. There were no children yet because the government had spontaneously decided to make up for the Sunday holiday on Monday. We visited the entire area and in particular the newest building, on which an extra stable roof was built. The plan was to install the solar system, for which we had been collecting donations for months, on this roof while we were there. However, it was already clear that we could not start the next day because the solar panels had not been delivered at the agreed time. At some point we had to go to the toilet and we took a look at the tin hut toilets. Behind the door we found a hole on the floor and water to pour in next to it. It certainly took some getting used to, but our children accepted this situation in an exemplary manner. Late in the afternoon - after many long meetings - we were invited to Harrison's home. We felt very honored and were able to enjoy a traditional African meal on his “terrace” (preparations for an addition to the house for a guest room). We were very touched by the hospitality and warmth of the whole family.

A few days later, we were introduced to each class. The children welcomed us with singing and clapping. We distributed a box of colored pencils and a piece of the Swiss chocolate we brought to all 190 students. They examined it with wide eyes until we informed them that this treat was meant to be eaten."
"To keep ourselves useful until the delivery of the solar panels, we decided to plaster the walls of the newly built classrooms. Sascha and Sebastian assisted the workers. Vivienne and I went from class to class and peeked into the lessons. However, we could never stay too long because the children were very distracted by us. During the breaks, the first interactions among the children took place, and many wanted to touch the white skin of Sebastian and Vivienne or feel their hair. When we took photos, there was always a big scramble because everyone wanted to pose next to our children."

Of course, we also had gifts with us. Once during the break, we unpacked a rope that we had brought along, which was immediately used for jumping rope. Everyone was really excited about it – even some teachers joined in. We taught Harrison and one class how to play Kubb right in the classroom. And the Froebel tower created great concentration, amazement, and cheers under the tree in the shade. The younger ones tried their hand at memory games and stacking figures, all things they had never seen before.
The impressions of that week were so overwhelming that we had to take a rest day for the children (and for us) on the Friday of the first school week. However, we also spent a lot of time on our "free" days distributing clothes to the beach vendors and hotel staff. This always caused a lot of excitement, as some feared they wouldn't get anything. But we were always able to reassure and comfort them by telling them that we would still be there for the rest of the month and had plenty more to distribute.

For Saturday, we had planned a celebration: all the school children and their parents were invited. However, there were hardly any men to be seen. In Kenya, the women predominantly take on the responsibility for the children. We were assigned seats at the front. Each class prepared a presentation: the children sang, danced, or recited poems. We guests were also repeatedly invited to dance along. It was a great pleasure for us. The subsequent speeches from the official guests lasted a long time, and we became quite hungry. Fortunately, cooking was already in full swing in the background. Because it was important to us that everyone had a meal that day, we arranged for the purchase of two goats as well as rice, vegetables, fruits, and water.
And then came the day everyone at the school had been looking forward to: We laid out the donated shoes—there were about 230 pairs—on the floor, and one class at a time was brought in to us. We tried on shoes for each individual child, and we managed to find a suitable pair for almost all of them. In the afternoon, we repeated the same process with the clothes: we dressed each child in 2 to 3 pieces of clothing in the right size. The beaming faces of the children when they received, for example, a used T-shirt were our reward for all the work of collecting and sorting beforehand.

A week late, the solar system was delivered. The new roof had been specially built to Swiss standards to withstand the additional weight. First, a basic structure was created, which was then welded onto the roof. After that, all six solar panels were installed, with Sascha actively helping out. The next day, everything was electrically connected, and all the teachers, school children, and we gathered in a classroom. LED lights were installed on the ceiling, and we watched eagerly. The moment the light switch was pressed and the school had light for the first time was unique and gave everyone goosebumps.
The electricity now also makes it possible to operate a water pump, so water no longer has to be drawn from the tank by hand. Additionally, the donated laptops can be charged. In each class, I introduced a few age-appropriate learning programs. The curiosity was very high. Now, the teachers are called upon to make use of this new opportunity for teaching.
Another project is the renovation of the kitchen. At the moment, cooking is still done over a fire on the ground. The hygienic conditions are quite poor, which is why we actually didn't want to eat at the school. However, when full plates were brought to us, we tried it out of courtesy, and because it was so delicious, we mostly ended up having lunch at the school.

Finally, we couldn't visit the school for a whole week because Sebastian was feeling quite unwell with a bit of fever and a cough. We all tried to recover a bit from the abundance of events. And suddenly (almost too quickly), the day of farewell arrived. We distributed the last of the gifts we had brought along. For example, the girls were all allowed to take a Polaroid photo with Vivienne and keep it as a memento. This surprise was a great success, and the joy was immense!

After many hugs and emotional moments, we left the school. We take away an incredible amount from this time. The people we got to know during our project have all grown dear to us. In Mshomoroni, we no longer see just "the project," but we think of all these lovely people who made our stay special and unique. From their side, they all pray that God will arrange for us to return next year... On our side, we say THANK YOU for the treasure of experience and the warmth we get to take home.

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