We have an English Curriculum!

Thing are really falling into place for the PECH project at Gentille Hirondelle school in Haiti!  As you know, I have three goals for this upcoming May trip to Haiti.  My first goal is getting an English school off the ground, to include deciding on a curriculum and training teachers so that the English school will be able to continue once we go home. My second goal is raising $10,000 to get a roof built on the school since the original school was destroyed in the January 2010 earthquake.  My third goal is more personal-to complete the book about Haiti that I began when I was there in 1998.  

Thanks to you all, I've collected over $7,000 in donations!  I am certain we'll reach  the $10,000 goal to build a roof on the school! 

These are some of the children at Gentille Hirondelle school who will be in my morning English classes

I am going to teach English to the children at the school in the mornings, but it's time to make some decisions regarding the English curriculum we will use to start the young adult English program in the school.  I've spent many hours thinking about materials, text books, classes, supplies, etc... that we would need to bring, but it wasn't until a meeting with Jean Kirschenmann at Hawaii Pacific University (HPU) that I make any concrete decisions.  Jean offered for us to take the Teaching English with Celebrate! Holidays in the U.S.A. materials developed by her and Sally La Luzerne-Oi, professors of applied linguistics at Hawaii Pacific University.  Because I earned my Master's of Arts in Teaching English as a Second Language at HPU, I knew anything developed by my former professors, and later, my colleagues, would be of excellent quality. 

Teaching English with Celebrate! Holidays in the U.S.A. is a content-based, integrated skills course in language and culture for high school or young adult populations around the world. Students learn about American holidays, festivals, and celebrations and then examine similar customs in their own country. They use all four language skills—listening, speaking, reading, and writing—in the context of exchanging information, expressing opinions, exploring local traditions, and completing group or class projects.

I've offered to bring two HPU graduate students (or recent grads) of the MA TESOL program with me to Haiti.  If you are an HPU MA TESOL student or graduate interested in volunteer teaching with the PECH project, please contact me at ProjectEnglishCurriculumHaiti@gmail.com. 

At this time, we can not accommodate any other volunteers, but please check back with us periodically as the need may arise in the future.