School Supplies and Crafts

Haitian boys with their new pencils

Lots of smiles from these Haitian school girls!

Thanks for the pencils and stickers!

Doing a craft project with the Haitian children

Showing the Haitian kids how to make crazy critters

With the help of the kindergarten and 5th grade classes at Fox Mill Elementary school in Herndon, VA, and some of their nearby friends, my boys collected school supplies and gave them to the Haitian school children. They were so thankful because many of the children didn't even have a single pencil! My boys also gave each child a page of stickers-a definite luxury in Haiti-and did a craft project with the excited children. There is not a lot of joy for children in Haiti, so this day was nice break for them!

Sponsor a child!

Sponsor a child in Haiti! Children writing letters to their sponsor.

Would you like to sponsor a child to go to school in Haiti? Here are pictures of me with some of the sponsored children and photos of them writing letters to their sponsors.

Julie Peters Akey with a child holding a picture of his sponsor

Julie with one of the sponsored children

Lots of new construction!

 

Haitian children at Gentille Hirondelle elementary school

 

In the past year, much progress has been made a Gentille Hirondelle elementary school. An elementary classroom building was completed and a preschool building was finished. Gentille Hirondelle school is now larger and better than before the earthquake. Thanks for your help!

Preschool children in Haiti's Gentille Hirondelle elementary school

  

Pen Pals

I taught the 3rd grade grade class at Gentille Hirondelle for a bit one day in Haiti because the teacher had an emergency and couldn't come. I took the opportunity to have the Haitian 3rd graders (they are 8-11 years old, in grades according to abilities instead of age) write pen pal letters to a friend's French class back in Virginia. It never occurred to me that the children had never written a letter before! There were lots of questions and confusion, but soon they realized that they were supposed to write a response to the letters I brought with me from Virginia. It was fun to do, but I am not completely sure the children made the connection that they were writing to an actual American student!

Haitian children write to American pen pals

My children joined me on this trip, and they collected stickers to bring down to hand out to all the Haitian school children. Although most of the Haitian children had never had stickers before (they are a luxury that they can't afford), I was touched when many generously shared them with their pen pals and decorated their letters with them!