Red Rose School - Kibera, Nairobi

WE ARE READY FOR CHANGE

2012-01-26T05:56:00.001-08:00

We are all excited to see the new face of The Red Rose School after it has under gone its transformation this year. We shall all miss the colorful drawings that have been on the gate that identified Red Rose, an institution that cares nurtures and provides quality education. Now the new face of Red Rose will show the future and what is to come, change. It is another one of the many fresh starts to the year 2012 we look forward to the completion of this fantastic transformation.

AMAZING NEW FACES GRACE RED ROSE

2012-01-17T03:27:00.001-08:00

The New Year continues to be exciting here at Red Rose. The students got the pleasure of meeting Bradley Clements who works as a lawyer and her daughter Amelia Moore a second year student at Amherst College in the USA and a former Potomac School student of our executive director, Kenneth Okoth.

Meeting these new friends from the USA who also know all our friends from LitWorld and the Potomac School was wonderful. The Red Rose children were ecstatic as they are always, happy to meet new people and to make new friends. Both Bradley and Amelia got to visit them in their classrooms and they played some of their favorite games during games break. Bradley read stories to the lower primary students and Amelia with her love for art did some art work with them. We definitely enjoy having them with us!

Above: Teacher Bradley runs active reading lessons for lower school children in the LitWorld library at Red Rose, including finger puppets and all!

Below: Teacher Amelia shares her love of art in different hands-on creativity sessions in the newly designated "art room" at Red Rose.

NEW ADDITION AT REDROSE

2012-01-13T05:12:00.000-08:00

Red Rose teaching staff‘s latest addition, George Ochieng! George is the new teacher for classes 4, 7 and 8’s teaching both Mathematics and English. He began teaching career in 2010 after his training at St Marks Teachers Training Collage. He loves to read Novels play football and listening to music. The students at Red Rose adore having him they are cooperative, disciplined and fully participate in class. He has enjoyed working at Red Rose in the one week he has been with us and the teachers here enjoy having him with us. We are all very happy to welcome him to the team

IT’S BACK TO SCHOOL 2012

2012-01-05T02:55:00.000-08:00

The Christmas holidays are over and it is time to start off the school year with a bang. Students are thrilled getting to see their friends, move a grade up and learn new things. It is all super exciting for both the teachers and students alike.
Moreover, it's the beginning of a history as the pioneers of class eight at the Red Rose School begin their classes. This is definitely a great step for the school as they work towards making a mark in the national academic chart. It is a new year of great promises, expectations and hopes for the Red Rose fraternity.

MAGIC IN THE LITTLE THINGS WE DO

2011-12-14T04:33:00.001-08:00

Education is so very important. I am of the strong opinion that children's education should be nurtured. A compassionate, creative, encouraging teacher can make all the difference in the education of a child.

Joyful learners

...An appreciating teacher

...And young achievers

“Do your little bit of good where you are; it's those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world.” Desmond Tutu

RED ROSE CLOSES FOR THE HOLIDAYS

2011-12-06T11:14:00.000-08:00

Red Rose students had an end of year party. It was really interesting and fun for the children and for the adults as well. They had a variety of presentations that were quite enjoyable and fun. The younger children in lower primary had a short skit about baby Jesus and Christmas in general. It was a lovely afternoon well spent with the children. Red The students get time to spend with their families and friends. We look forward to having them back next year full of renewed energy ready to work even harder in 2012.

GRADUATION!

2011-12-01T00:15:00.000-08:00

The day started with a big bang at the Red Rose School. Despite the chilly weather, all the students were totally thrilled as the school year came to an end. It was now their chance to showcase their presentations in front of their parents and teachers. Parents were also very engrossed to see their children’s progress in school through out the year. Students were dressed their best and for the graduates, beautiful blue gowns to commemorate this joyous occasion, where they will now no longer be in pre unit but class one.

END OF ANOTHER YEAR IS HERE

2011-11-22T02:41:00.000-08:00

It is finally the end of the year and Red Rose is closing for the holidays. Exams are over and what a glorious year it has been! Looking back, Red Rose had a lot of wonderful events, the establishing of the debate club for classes 1-3, the many wonderful visitors that have graced us with their presence and the generous donations of books from well-wishers to aid our students in their studies.

Some of the students had the opportunity to meet Njugush (John Njuguna) a TV Presenter in Rauka (a gospel show) that airs on Citizen TV every Sunday morning from 6am - 1pm. The Kids love the show and were inspired by his visit. They assiduously listened to the advice Njuguna had to offer their young minds. “We all have to start from somewhere and let nobody make you feel like you are worth less” words of wisdom from the TV icon. Everybody is now looking forward to the December holidays. Students have already started making home made cards to their families, friends and sponsors. It really has been an awesome academic year!

ONE AWESOME DAY!

2011-11-14T06:15:00.000-08:00

The 11th day of November was a day like no other at The Red Rose Children Center. It was a day packed with emotions, filled with activities, laughters, stories, theater performances filled the air. We had visitors. Our beloved partner and supporter Pam Allyn came to visit us, not alone, but with an entourage of great men and women: Billy (Pam’s father), Rose (former LitWorld facilitator), Jim, Denise (Founder of Sharing to learn organization)-mobilized the students and reorganized the library in a manner that made the students feel that the library belonged to them for each one had the chance to sort and arrange the books by author and subject. Jeremy (works at the boys’ village in New York); he particularly had a special time with the boys club for he took them through a journey of self evaluation through putting down their thoughts on paper. Lois, a high school teacher running various girl clubs in Kisumu- a city in Western Kenya had the opportunity to share best practices with other girls club patrons present.
Although it was for a short time, the students took every opportunity to get to spend time with them. Pam brought them books that they read aloud, and would also enjoy in their various clubs: the LitWorld girls club and the Red Rose boys club, books like: The tales of Despereanx, The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulan and many more. During this period the students also performed skits. One was about a princess who was in trouble and needed to be saved from a dragon. Fully adorned in colorful costumes brought by Pam, the students expressed their creativity on stage. Important lessons were also learnt. Lessons of teamwork, courage and good communication skills among others.
It is indeed a day to remember here at red rose.
“The acting was fun and a great opportunity to
improve and nurture my acting ambitions”
–Diana-Grade 7 student.

A VOLUNTEER AT RED ROSE

2011-10-28T02:31:00.000-07:00

Alison Smith, a close friend to Pete and Carrie Atkin who were volunteers at Red Rose in June of this year came to work as volunteers for three months. It is her first time in Kibera. When she arrived she met all the Red Rose kids and will be with them for the next two days. She will work at the Children of Kibera Offices thereafter, for the rest of the week. The kids appreciate and love spending time with her.

OF VISITORS, DEBATE CLUB AND FUNFAIR.

2011-10-14T00:55:00.000-07:00

On the 23rd of September, Red Rose was visited by a group of students from St Lawrence University, Jenna Gunnel and Kaley Kokomoor, who got to spend some quality time with the kids from classes 1 to 3. They got to participate in physical exercises and socialize with the students, after a long fruitful afternoon with the children they left at 2:00 pm and are greatly missed here at Red Rose.
Every child usually looks forward for the annul Nairobi International Trade Fair. 30th October was their chance to get to enjoy themselves, Red Rose kids got to enjoy themselves ,from face painting to the banana rides, from dancing with the clowns to eating ice cream the constant buzzing in their various classes could not go unnoticed as each kid tried to outdo the other with more juicy a story.
Today Teacher Sophie is introducing debate club to the students in lower primary and we here at Red Rose look forward to seeing our students grow and develop their communication skills also, build on their team work.
The 12th of October Red Rose got another special visitor from Canada, Todd a former teacher who got to visit the vicinity as well as meet the students at Red Rose and looks forward to working with us in the future to create programs to promote child education development.

SOON TO BE RED ROSE CANDIDATES GET MORE TEXT BOOKS!

2011-09-23T00:06:00.000-07:00

On the 19/09/2011, Our 2011 Summer Volunteers from the USA brought Red Rose 7th grade pupils text books to provide them a “safe landing” next year as they will be preparing for the first ever KCPE at our centre. They got 15 books for each subject: Maths, Languages, Social Studies and Science, a few revision guides too. This number is very important for it ensures a 1:1 student –book ratio.
Thanks for upholding our belief in not just education, but quality education.

Visitors from U S Embassy

2011-08-22T05:47:00.001-07:00

After two weeks of holiday tuition, pupils of Red rose middle school were told to come back for the goodies.On Saturday, 13th August 2011, the school was honoured to be visited by Victor Erlich, Sonja Warner, Calvina Page, Toni Foreman and Christopher Herre from the U S Embassy.
Poems, songs and dances performed by happy pupils filled the air and visitors felt at home. The pupils were excited when they were given some snacks by the visitors. They completed their visit by walking around Kibera with the pupils.
Quite a wonderful weekend it was!

Art work at Red Rose with Amanda Boone

2011-08-05T04:37:00.000-07:00

It was a successful week at Red Rose School. The school was blessed to receive a visitor from Norwood School in the U.S. Mrs. Amanda Boone had a three day visit to our school. She managed to carry out art activities with different classes. She spent two days at the Red Rose "up school" where she engaged the grade one to three students in coloring, drawing, cutting and pasting.
On her third day,pupils from grade four to seven were not left behind. They were also engaged in wall painting on animals, flowers and flags. The pupils were so excited about the painting.

Motivation from a Soldier, Leader, Scholar, Author, Activist!

2011-07-29T01:22:00.000-07:00

It was a wonderful day for our upper primary school pupils. Mr. Rye Barcott, the co-founder of Carolina for Kibera, visited Red Rose upper school where he had an ample time to talk with the pupils on several issues. He began by encouraging them to work hard in their studies since they are the leaders of tomorrow. Rye also advised the Red Rose students to catalyse positive change in their lives. This can include things like not involving themselves in activities like immorality and robbery. Lastly, he gave them a talk on alleviating poverty in slum. He added that being in slums does not mean that that is the end of life for them. Mr. Rye Barcott also donated one copy of his book, "It Happened on the Way to War" to our library. Knowing all the different roles that Rye has lived in his life as a soldier, scholar, leader, activist, and a published author was very motivating for our students.

We are together again

2011-07-16T02:26:00.000-07:00

1st of July was a colourful day at Red Rose. We had the privilege of hosting volunteers from USA. They attended a welcoming ceremony at the school. The day was filled with poems, songs and dances performed by happy pupils from each class, as well as a speech from Mr. Ken, the Founder of Children of Kibera Foundation .The volunteers are spending three weeks in Kenya; helping out at Red Rose School, visiting other schools and projects in Kibera that serve vulnerable children. We wish them a nice time in Kenya.

Red Rose Opens for Term II 2011

2011-05-15T04:13:00.000-07:00

After the long April holiday vacation, the Red Rose School opened its gates for this term’s academics. Everyone felt rejuvenated and ready to tackle this term’s educational demands for they had time to relax their bodies and minds for a period of three weeks. The Red Rose upper primary section was abuzz with the students sharing their vacation experiences, each eager to tell his/her story to fellow students. The teachers having completed to scheme for this term’s work are confident that it is going to be a fruitful term.

Oh, did I forget to mention! This week Anna Nadgrodkiewicz-Kens friend from their days at Georgetown University was at our organisation and spent some time with the students. She brought them candy from Poland and in turn she had the chance to learn how to count from 1-10 in Swahili! Share stories too!!
Let the term begin!

GIRLS FOOTBALL TEAM RECEIVE UNIFORMS

2011-04-04T05:15:00.000-07:00

Finally, the beauty of football uniform in the upcoming Red Rose girls football team was experienced on the Friday 25Th of March, each team player received a soccer kit plus a pair of boots, the happiness in the girls’ hearts could not be hidden, as it brightened their faces and motivated them to like football even more. “We have been waiting for this moment for a long time, having the uniforms will enable us utilize our potential in extra curricular activity,” Diana-the captain stated cheerfully.They enjoyed the comfort of their new kits during a friendly football match that evening. All gratitude goes out to the donors who made it possible for the girls to have uniforms and more so, put smiles on the young girls’ faces.

With Arms Wide Open

2011-04-02T01:30:00.000-07:00

With arms wide open
Under the sunlight
Welcome to this place
I’ll show you everything
With arms wide open
Now everything has changed
I’ll show you love
I’ll show you everything

Pulling away from the Children Of Kibera, after a celebratory presentation by the school to our family, waving good-bye to our friends. Our driver, George, puts on one of the CD’s that Larry burned for him. Creed’s “With Arms Wide Open.” We all sit quietly listening, reflecting over the past 4 weeks here. Sobbing on the inside, but only letting a few tears sneak to the surface, I feel such gratefulness for this experience, for all we have been able to do, for all we have learned. One last look at this neighborhood that at first was so foreign, but now so familiar, with my arms wide open.

I will miss our drives to school and enlightening George to our music.

I will miss the bustle of the streets of Kibera during the morning rush.

I will miss the staff who greet us with smiles.

I will miss Jeff’s hospitality and generosity, welcoming us always.

I will miss the walk from the office to the school with all our “ha wa you” choruses to greet us.

I will miss that moment when I cried with Saidi’s Mom and Kelvin’s Mom over their sons who now feel like mine.

I will miss Saidi’s and Iris’s shyness that reminds me so much of Alexa and Dillon when they are around adults.

I will miss watching Alexa and Dillon’s passion for teaching and playing with the young children, especially the nursery, especially Katrina.

I will miss 10:30 recess when we can’t wait for the children to come out on break and play with us.

I will miss their excitement to see us and the joy we give them when we just hold their hand.

I will miss them lining up to play dahble dahble dees dees, dahble dahble dat dat (double double this this, double double that that) with me over and over again.

I will miss how easy it is to make these underprivileged children smile and how easily they touched my heart.

I was commonly asked before our journey which place was I most looking forward to. My answer was “believe it or not, Nairobi.” So far, this has been the hardest place to leave.

Post by Kim Weinberg

Traditional Dance - Red Rose Girls Club at Children of Kibera Music Festival

2011-03-03T23:32:00.000-08:00

FUN DAY FOR LITWORD GIRLS CLUB.

2011-02-09T00:29:00.001-08:00

The long awaited day for the young girls was here, on Sunday 6th February. Out of the ordinary routine of class work and writing skills, the young girls went for an outdoor activity which included swimming and swinging under the beautiful blue sky of YMCA grounds in Nairobi, city centre.The Major aim of the activity was to create a strong bond between them and to raise their self esteem through interacting and socialising with different people of different social background in the society, which was encouraging.They could not hide their gratitude as it was all shown in their bright faces and overwhelming smiles, for the majority, it was their first experience and a memorable event in their lives indeed!

cheers!!!

Red Rose students Graduate To The Next Class

2011-01-19T23:42:00.000-08:00

It is yet another academic year at the Red Rose School, a year full of promises since the center is having its first ever Seventh Grade Students -a sure sign that we are growing in leaps and bounds, coupled with this, every student was moving a grade higher hence the beaming smiles and the bright faces which filled the school's precincts. The Teacher and Students fraternity were happy to see their peers after a long December holidays vacation.

The normal school programs have commenced well, both on the academic and extra curricular fronts, the teachers are well prepared to continue imparting knowledge to these young brains, the future of Kibera, the future of Kenya.

I'm One Grade Up!

Physical fitness is essential

A hungry kid cannot learn.

Welcome 2011!

Football Madness

2010-11-16T00:02:00.000-08:00

The Red Rose Football Club is coming together very fast. The boys practice now twice weekly with Coach Aswani. As they're preparing to play other teams, you can really see which students are emerging soccer stars. The girls, despite being without uniforms, are also preparing and practicing as a team. Their new coach, Kristina, has already noted who is showing great potential. We're eagerly awaiting the arrival of donated uniforms/shoes to arrive in December, thanks to Washington DC/MD/VA Stoddert Soccer families.

Guest Performers at Music Festival

2010-10-06T01:25:00.000-07:00

The dancers from Red Rose were the only primary school guest performers at this years music festival to End Violence Against Children. The girls were one of the first groups on the stage, performing a dance to the song "Waka Waka" by Shakira, which was made popular during the World Cup in South Africa. The girls had been working tirelessly on the dance over the past month with CoKF intern Brendan Thompson.

Later in the day some of the girls performed the Red Rose traditional dance for the gathered crowd.

The Red Rose students who were in attendance were also very helpful as they worked with the staff and volunteers on various jobs during the festival, and were very hospitable hosts for various guests who arrived.

Red Rose Officially Opens New Classrooms

2010-09-20T00:45:00.000-07:00

On Friday afternoon, under blue skies, and with various dignitaries in attendance, including CoKF Founder Ken Okoth, The Red Rose School and Children of Kibera Foundation officially opened the new classrooms for classes 4,5, and 6.

The classrooms were built through the efforts of various members of the community, as well as volunteers from the USA. The festivities marked the continued expansion of The Red Rose School, as there is now space for

future classes 7 and 8, so students will be able to complete their primary education at Red Rose.

The new space also provides the Children of Kibera Foundation with much needed office space, as the organization continues to grow and expand. There is also a new library, which will be shared between Red Rose and the Children of Kibera Scholars, along with many volumes the library also has laptops for student use.

The ceremonies included dances, songs, and poems performed by each class, as well as speeches from various members of the community about the importance of education and continuing to support these students. The students and teachers of Red Rose, along with the staff at the Children of Kibera Foundation would like to thank all of those who made the new addition possible, it is greatly appreciated.

Uniform donations

2010-09-16T23:03:00.000-07:00

Yesterday morning, the fifty sponsored Red Rose students received a brand new set of uniforms, thanks to a generous donation. The students were ecstatic to be given the new clothes.

Many students were previously sporting sweaters with holes in the elbows or simply a sweatshirt. The clean and bright new uniforms made everyone look 'smart'- a British-adopted term used to describe well dressed people.

The students say "Thank you!"

Red Rose opens for Term III 2010

2010-09-06T05:45:00.000-07:00

The Red Rose students returned to classes for the first day of the third term today. They were greeted by beautiful blues skies, and new classrooms behind the new Children of Kibera Foundation offices. The students started the morning with an assembly at Red Rose where they ran into friends, classmates, and teachers

Summer 2010

2010-07-30T03:14:00.000-07:00

My Pet By Calvin Mutira

2010-06-24T00:56:00.000-07:00

We are in the second term of the year. We are progressing well with our academics in Red-rose; since we opened the pupils have been learning well the syllabus. It has come a time to determine what they have covered if they understood, we conducted mid-term exams this week in the month of June from date 15th to 17th June 2010.

Here is one of the composition/ essay written by a 4th grade pupil called Calvin about My Pet. It was among the exams they did for mid-term. Have a pleasure to read it.

MY PET By: Calvin Mutira

My pets are two puppies. They are both brother and sister, the male is brown and the female is black they are both four and a half year old. They like eating junk food. They were born on 8/5/10 they like barking very much especially when they see strangers they always dig the ground and make potholes, they share one kennel.

They are not afraid of water like other dogs, they are trained, and they understand Kiswahili they come very faster.

The male one is called Deco and the female one is called Dico. When they smell food they run very fast in the house and start disturbing when it is time to wash them stay calm. They like drinking milk, when they see us they quickly run and jump on us they also stay calm when being treated, they don’t disturb the veterinary they are always treated on every second May every year. They sometimes kill our neighbor’s cats. Every day at seven o’clock they go back to the kennel and start sleeping. They like breaking their plates and tear paper. They haven’t start shedding teeth.

Posted by Tr. Christine

Busy Week at Red Rose

2010-06-03T12:38:00.000-07:00

St Lawrence university students lead by Prof Nyamweru visited Red Rose over the week.

Red Rose Middle School students got a lesson on making calenders from interns Jackie and Jos. They were able to make June calenders for themselves.

Our students also got to do their mid term exams too.

Week two term II 2010

2010-05-18T23:17:00.000-07:00

This is the second week of 2nd term. lt has been rainy and outdoor activities have been limited. We’ve had rather warm and indoor learning, despite long distance most pupils braved the rain to be at the school on time.

I was able cover the topic, ‘properties of matter’ in standard four {fourth grade} science. The pupil’s response was positive as we did experiments on sinking and floating and pressure in liquids.

In standard six {sixth grade} English, we’ve have been reading the books “Matilda” dwelling on spelling and vocabulary at the same time. We can’t avoid to lose a minute because this is a class we are preparing for our first Kenya Certificate Of Primary Education exam in 2012 as a school.

Mining is a topic we’ve been covering in standard five {fifth grade} social studies. We dwelt only on a few minerals mined in Kenya e.g. diatomite, fluorspar, soda ash and limestone and their importance to our economy.

We are looking forward to a very busy term ahead.

By Rose Nancy Mureka.

Red Rose opens for Term II 2010

2010-05-08T00:46:00.000-07:00

It is the first week of 2nd term in this year’s calendar. Most of the pupils have reported back to school from Easter holidays. As a Red-rose community, we are happy because all our pupils have reported to school in good health. Learning has begun as usual in all the classes and the teachers very busy preparing the learning from day to day activities.

Though the term has begun smoothly, the July winter has begun in a high note. The weather is quiet cold in such a way that all the pupils must be wearing sweaters so hat they do not shiver from the cold. During the early morning, there is always some drizzling which makes the compound muddy.

Red-rose has also formed some clubs whereby the children are taught on various life skills. One of the club is Health Club led by Teacher Christine whereby the children are taught in various matters concerning hygiene and how the to take care of themselves. Another club is Lit World Girls Club led by Teacher Rose.

We are also glad because we received a new teacher by the name Teacher Linah who will be assisting Teacher Musau in handling the children in Nursery class. Our standard four is also underway and it’s about to be completed. The construction of the new school toilets is over and we really appreciate the Children of Kibera Organization sponsors at large because this has minimized movement among our pupils and it has minimized time wastage in between the lessons.

Photos to come.

By Tr. Charles Omondi.

CoKF Chairman visit Red Rose

2010-04-08T01:52:00.000-07:00

We had the privilege of hosting Children of Kibera Foundation's Chairman Mr. Curtis Rooney. He was in hand to commission our new classroom and the newly built washrooms. The day was filled with poems, songs and dance from the happy students. We are very grateful for the help that Children of Kibera Foundation has accorded to us.

Exams and New washrooms at Red Rose Middle School

2010-03-28T08:00:00.000-07:00

We would like to thank all of you for your support through out this term. We have come to the end of 1st term and as usual, we test our children if they can remember what they have learnt this term.
Red Rose kids are very bright and perform very well in any test given to them. One of the children whose education ids being supported by CoKF, proudly told his friend's "I will move to the next class each year until I finish my learning period". He said this because he is not worried of the school payments, since he was sure a good friend somewhere around the world would cater for the school fees.
Thank you so much for your support our new Middle school has new washrooms coming up and this will help to stop the movement from the new school to the old school to use the washrooms.

Posting by Tr. Sofia.

Red Rose School Progressing Steadily

2010-03-08T10:43:00.000-08:00

Students returned from a two day midterm break on March 3rd. Grades four, five and six were ushered back with continuous assessment tests to gear them towards the tough end of semester exams. Mr. Ken Okoth visited Red Rose on March 4th. He later toured the new Children of Kibera Foundation office and new Red Rose Middle School facilities, only a short walk away from the main school.

Above: Ken Okoth popping into Class six's new room and a surprised Laureen, happy to see him.

Grade six have been seen throughout the week practicing the art of book writing taught by Pam and the LitWorld trainers about a week ago. "It's exciting, I am proud of my work," said Stephen Keva while handing over his piece to Teacher Ben for perusal.

-Teacher George

St. Lawrence Students Come for a Visit

2010-02-28T05:14:00.000-08:00

All what was taught during the LitWeek is never a forgotten story. The pupils have continued reading and writing for practice and perfection.

Furthermore, students from St. Lawrence University joint the pupils this week and did more work with the pupils. The group of students are on the Kenya Semester Program (KSP). They study many different subjects, for example History, Biology, English, Psychology, Gender Studies, Politics, Economics, Art, and Environmental Conservation among other things.

St. Lawrence students were split up into different Red Rose classes to mingle with pupils and learn more from each other. For instance, in Class 3, we had PJ Miller who studies American History as a second year student. He did a great job of teaching the pupils.

The pupils have benefitted very much from the St. Lawrence students' visit. They found their teachings very interesting and it expanded their knowledge and skills in their day at school. The college students taught them about Geography, Food Production, Housing, Religion, and Culture in Kenya and America. The Red Rose School gives the St. Lawrence group a lot of credit for their great job with the students. In exchange, the group also appreciated the warm welcome of the Red Rose Children's Centre.

"Teacher PJ" took right off where Class 6's teacher left off and read the students a chapter from Charlotte's Web. Below: Students enjoy their visit to Red Rose.
by Teacher Joyce

LitWorld visits Red Rose Again!

2010-02-22T04:05:00.000-08:00

It happened to be a fantastic week since we were blessed to have some visitors from the LitWorld Organization. The organization's Director Pam Allyn, along with her LitWorld team consisting of her husband Jim, Annie, a kindergarten teacher, Jonathan, a teacher and co-founder of a literacy building NGO in Ghana. Our visitors attended different classes where they shared their knowledge of reading and writing learning skills with our children. For example. Teacher Annie attended the baby class and practiced reading skills with them through the power of pictures. Even the youngest class at Red Rose was able to improve their reading skills by forming ideas and stories through story books full of captivating images and Teacher Annie's enthusiastic reading aloud.
Jonathan taught classes one through six skills they could use to begin writing their own books. He stressed that anyone can write a book, and becoming an author is a very empowering feeling for a young student and certainly improves their reading and writing skills. Our students gained the confidence and skills to put their original thoughts into book form and were even able to produce books using "Reale" online book making technology. In the afternoon hours, the LitWorld team held seminars for Red Rose teachers. Teacher Pam and Teacher Annie shared their teaching knowledge and experience to give us some new and innovative ideas on how to teach our students to read. Teachers began by asking any questions they had about teaching reading, and the seminar proved to be very helpful. In addition to all of the fun and informative activities above, the kind people from LitWorld generously provided every student and staff member with a lovely LitWorld T-shirt. We were all very thankful.
On the final day of the LitWorld workshop, we celebrated with a party to say our goodbyes. Our visitors were entertained by the presentation of songs and poems that the children sang and recited for them. Later on, our visitors were showered with presents as a thank you for the wonderful job they did at Red Rose. Us teachers were so thankful to our visitors and will continue to use the new teaching techniques, games, books, and skills that we learned.

NEW RED-ROSE MIDDLE SCHOOL EXPERIENCE!!

2010-02-08T05:19:00.000-08:00

A cold drop of water on a thirsty, hungry throat is how I can describe this new school. It wouldn’t have come at a better time than this! Children of Kibera Foundation (CoKF) have just made it happen! They have just made sure that these children, most of who are orphaned, don’t end up homeless and on the street because to many, Red-rose is home away from home. It came as a surprise to these students but they took it calmly. Most of them couldn’t hide their joy. It is their dream opportunity, their newly founded middle school!

This is a big impact to these vulnerable children. The smiles and grins on their faces couldn’t pass without notice. As their teacher, I couldn’t hesitate to ask a few of them to share their experience with me and here are some of the answers I get.

‘My name is Quinter Atieno. I am in sixth grade. Our new school is located at a quiet and peaceful environment different from the previous school which was full of squeaks and screams of the little ones of the pre-school.’

Another sixth grader with similar opinions is Brian and he has this to say. ‘My name is Brian. This school is nice!’ he says jovially. I ask Brian to expound on what he means by nice and he continues; ‘Now more than ever, I feel as playful as a kitten. The playground here is bigger and green. While playing, I don’t have to worry about stepping on or hitting the babies in pre-school and spend a lot of time trying to apologize.’ The same sentiments are made by Quinter. ‘I was worried about more classrooms being constructed at this already squeezed place.’ Brian says.

They both think that their new classes are spacious with concrete walls for easier hanging and sticking of learning materials and other aids. It is evident that this new school is an unveiling story. It is a whole new experience!!

Nursery Class Social Activities

2010-01-29T05:39:00.000-08:00

Social activities refer to those activities that will make the child familiar with his/her environment and enhance his social skills.This will help the child acquire appropriate social relationship and interaction with his/her environment. The child will be able to make use of things found within the surrounding, also acquire acceptable health habit and maintain good health through a balanced diet.

New Red Rose Middle School

2010-01-25T23:55:00.000-08:00

Red Rose School was founded as a pre-school institution. Over the years, the school expanded with new classes being added. In 2005 we built the first grade class and since then a new class has been formed every year. This year we have grown to have sixth grade at Red Rose. Due to the increase in number of students attending Red Rose (more than 140 children in January 2010), the school compound has become smaller forcing the Children of Kibera Foundation to step in and find a place to expand the school.

The help of Children of Kibera Foundation is very good news to us because they have rented a place for our fourth grade, fifth grade and sixth grade pupils to learn with less congestion. We hope to add more classes in future at the new school site so all of our middle school level classes from fourth to eight grade will be based at the same location.

The new building will also house the Children of Kibera Foundation office, allowing for closer day to day collaboration with the the school. Thank you very much Children of Kibera Foundation for helping us and all the people supporting this important work.

ANOTHER NEW YEAR AT RED-ROSE

2010-01-13T04:58:00.000-08:00

If you thought New Year resolutions were only for adults, you might be mistaken. It has been proved by Red-Rose students that they too have resolutions. They opened school on Tuesday the 5^th this month full of hope and enthusiasm to achieve even higher grades this year. Most of those who had discipline cases last year vowed to avoid crossing paths with anybody. They are all ready to settle down to serious business as fast as possible. They are all glad to have moved one step ahead to the next class. Learning in all grades is gaining momentum. Students were given the first week to refresh their heads from holiday hangovers by doing hand work like beading, drawing and playing. It is a year like no other!

December 2009 Holiday Greetings

2009-12-11T01:02:00.001-08:00

Exams and Graduation

2009-11-19T23:33:00.000-08:00

The week was so cool since we were busy doing our end of term exams. Children were so focused busy revising because this exam will determine whether promoted to the next class or not.

We did our marking and they’ve really showed great improvement. We are so impressed with their good work. Children also practiced some songs, dances and rhymes that they will present during the graduation ceremony. It was a wonderful week full of joy and love to our children.

Student from St. Lawrence University

2009-11-13T02:55:00.000-08:00

The week started well with the school receiving a visitor from America.
Hannah Grimes is a student from St. Lawrence University.
She came to Kenya to learn more about the cultures of different ethnic groups and to tour Kenya as a country
She has stayed in Kenya since August and she has really enjoyed her stay.
Currently she is at Red-Rose Children Centre teaching wonderful children and enjoying interaction with the rest of people.
Since her visit in Red-Rose, she is really enjoying to work and getting to know people at Red-Rose.
Hannah is majoring in Arts and minor in Education and African studies

LANGUAGE

2009-11-08T23:33:00.000-08:00

LANGUAGE

It’s a means of communication where people express their desires, ideas, excitements and disappointments. By using language, children are able to talk to each other and discuss their interest and surrounding. By doing so they develop their vocabulary. Children should be given opportunities to express themselves to enable them practice what they have learnt through stories, poems, songs etc.

Language also is an important tool for thinking. It helps children develop ideas and concepts (e.g.) when children are doing an activity, they talk about it and these helps them improve and express their thoughts.

Objectives (Why we learn language)

Develop children’s vocabulary.
Children are able to express themselves freely and confidently.
They speak fluently and clearly.
Improves their listening ability, concentration, understanding and memory.
It enables children to look at and interpret details in objects, pictures, symbols and signs.
Develop eye-hand co-ordination.
Use basic tools for writing and drawing.
Develop interest in books.
Children are able to reason and think logically.

Role of language

By use of language children interact with those in the environment around. Through this interaction, a lot of learning occurs. Therefore language is an important tool for learning.

Children also learn to speak or as a result of leaving in an environment where speech is past of every bodies life. It is important to realize that in pre-school, children acquire and develop very important skills in language (i.e.) Oral and writing skills

Examples of Oral skills

Poems and rhymes.
Stories.
Riddles.

Examples of writing skills

Scribbling.
Doodling.
Tracing.
Writing patterns, sounds and alphabets.

Posting by Tr. Judy Baby class.

Christmas Artwork by Red Rose School children

2009-11-02T11:35:00.000-08:00

Please click here for a link to a picasa web album of more Artwork by Red Rose School Children.

THE RAINS ARE HERE

2009-10-26T00:20:00.000-07:00

The week started with on set of rain. Rain is important to our daily lives. There is a lot of water which is also important to every creature. There isn’t a lot of dust which might cause some infections like running nose to our children because all the dust has been swept away by the rain.

Also due to more rain, the children were unable to play outside their classes. They were also advised to put on warm clothes all the time. Due to change of climate conditions, we taught the theme weather whereby we talked the sub-theme rain. It enables the children to understand the climate around them and also they become curious in nature. The process involves curiosity, discovery and experiment. We had experiments using water whereby we discussed things that float and sink in water.

The children were able to observe, communicate and record what happened. It was so enjoying when the children found out that a stone sinks in water while feathers floats in water.

This week we had a short break on Tuesday and all the students were required to stay at home and celebrate Kenyatta holiday.

Visit by CoKF Board Member

2009-10-14T22:49:00.000-07:00

On 5^th October, 2009, Mr. Robert Ratemo who is a board member of Children of Kibera Foundation paid a visit and was shown around by Jeff. He also toured Kibra Academy where he got to see the new computer lab.

Posting by Tr. George

Surprise from England

2009-10-01T04:36:00.000-07:00

This being the fourth week of our third term in school this year, we are lucky to have teacher Jenny from

England

. She is a teacher in a school known as Monkey Puzzle Day Nurseries. She has been in our school, Red Rose Children’s Centre, from Monday to Thursday. She was received with a warm welcome from both the staff and the pupils.

According to her programme back in England, she said that she had planned to visit East Africa during her vacation. When she went to the internet, having chosen to visit Kenya, she found Children of kibera foundation. Through this she came to learn about Red Rose School.Teacher Jenny brought stationary, T-shirts, play items for both indoor and outdoor games and modeling dough to help the pupils in their learning. She has interacted with the pupils very much. Pupils have really found learning more interesting and enjoyable in her presence. This is because she could read, write, model, sing, play or attend computer lessons with the pupils.

Her views about our school she enjoyed her time very much. She counts the pupils very lucky to be in school. Especially that they are offered a difference by quality education with limited resources. The pupils are so happy and they do appreciate the education they receive. “They have so much energy and enthusiasm. I will miss them when I go back to

England

and hope to return one day to see their progress to finish the primary education”. She said.

All her efforts are appreciated so much because this is fantastic and amazing. Pupils have benefited a lot through her. They are very happy and thankful

Posting By Tr. Joyce (Grade Three)

A week full of great activities and fun at Red Rose School

2009-09-25T05:38:00.000-07:00

The kids got a surprise treat of biscuit cookies and orange juice from Ken Okoth when he came to the Children of Kibera Drama and Music Festival in Nairobi. It was an ecstatic day for the children as most do not usually get such pleasant Red Rose surprises in their day to day lives. Some were even more happy with the way their tongues changed color when they drank the juice.

On Tuesday September 22nd, there was a three hour seminar held by Anna Barford, a graduate student from Sheffield University in the U.K. It was offered to teachers Rose, George and Christine who are in charge of the upper-primary classes. Anna is also doing her research on inequalities in Kenya.

On Thursday September 24th, we had two more visitors from America; Jackie from California and Joscelyn from Washington DC. They learnt about Red Rose School and Children of Kibera Foundation from their uncle in Washington DC who is Ken’s friend. Before coming to Red Rose, they had been working at an orphanage in Tanzania and also met Ken in Dar Es Salaam. Joscelyn and Jackie were given a brief tour of the school and they were impressed by its neatness and tidiness. They will be volunteering at Red Rose by giving some after school programs, teaching about health, leadership and life skills and also being more creative here. They are both trained social workers who graduated from New York University (NYU) in May 2009.

On Friday September 25th, we welcomed five new friends from St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY. They spent the afternoon interacting with the children, singing and playing. They even learnt some Swahili words from the children. Hannah, one of the visitors will be on her independent studies at Red Rose in November for four weeks. They left Red Rose a very happy and entertained lot.

Posting by Teacher Sylvia Akinyi (Nursery Class)

Red Rose Children Happy to be in School

2009-09-22T05:47:00.000-07:00

Being the 3^rd week of the term, the children of Red Rose School are happy to be in school. They all like the school environment and like all meals brought before them.

“Its delicious”, one of the pre-Unit children like’s mentioning this whenever she taste’s her lunch time meal. She takes her time to enjoy every bite of the food she eats.

Red Rose Children have no serious problems when it comes to class work since they all know that the school is the best place for them.

“We get what we want here”. One child quoted this when he was playing with his friends. He meant they were provided by the basic needs of a child.

After school, most of them don’t like going back home. They reluctantly go home at different times. Most of them complain of too much work at home since most parents/ guardians are still out in search of their dinner and so they are assigned some duties i.e. fetch for water, clean utensils and wash clothes. These duties are too much for these children, the age of the Red Rose Children at present (2yrs – 12yrs), this is why they have never liked going back to their homes.

I highly thank the Children of Kibera Foundation and Red Rose friends who have turned Red Rose School into a small heaven for these needy children.

Thank you so much for your great support. You are their heroes!

2009 THIRD TERM SESSIONS BEGIN AT RED ROSE AT A HIGH NOTE

2009-09-09T01:10:00.000-07:00

This term begins with a beehive of activities. Since it is the last term of the year, only the best is expected from each student to enable them secure a chance in the next grade. They all look set to work and most of them have already reported to school. Though this is the first week of the term, we have been priviledged to receive Anna Barford, a PhD student from the University of Sheffield who will be here to research on economic inequalities from 21st Sep 2009. She was told about Red Rose by Prof. Cecilia Nyamweru of St. Lawrence University.

Thank you for the August camp 2009

2009-08-21T06:14:00.000-07:00

On behalf of Red Rose School I would like to say thank you very much to Children of Kibera Foundation for organizing this terms camp. The camp has been on for two weeks and it has kept our students busy. They have learnt a lot out of the camp and also the meals provide has gone along way in keeping them healthy. We also did get a suprise visit from Ken Okoth who passed by to check on the students, thank you Ken. Today we even had the privilege of hosting Father Andrew from Georgetown University, he is a friend of Mittie Rooney's family. Mittie is a very special friend of Red Rose and we are so happy that he recommended Father Andrew to come and share his time with us. The school closes today for a two weeks break and we will reopen on the 7th September 2009.

Red Rose School August Camp 2009

2009-08-10T23:12:00.000-07:00

We have come to the end of a long but useful term which we believe has been beneficial to all our children. We have received many visitors from the U.S.A. this term more than any other term in the history of the school. It is very good to welcome visitors because it is after their visits that they can see how much their support makes a difference in our school.

Our August camp kicked off on the 10th of August and will run up to the 21st. This term's camp like all the other camps has been funded by the Children of Kibera Foundation. We are so grateful for their help. We did have a good start with Tr. Steve from England being his last day at the school and he donated books for our library. Thank you so much Steve. Children from Red Rose were also at hand to present small gifts for Steve to take back to his school and also spread the good news from Red Rose.

US EMBASSY NAIROBI STAFF VISITS RED-ROSE

2009-08-04T04:52:00.000-07:00

Students of Red-Rose Children's Centre were privileged to receive visitors from the US embassy Nairobi Shamis Mohamud and Sarah Ford, who paid a courtesy visit after meeting the founder of Children of Kibera Foundation, Ken Okoth and the students he came with from different schools in USA to volunteer at Red-Rose. They wanted to know more about the school and see the children.They got an opportunity to be shown around and met the students in their various grades. They were very impressed with what they saw. Thank you very much for the visit and we look forward to be working with the US embassy.

Sarah & Shamis in front of the Red Rose School gate together with Grade two students.
In class with the grade two students.
Sarah & Shamis enjoying the songs in the kindergarten class.

French Lessons at Red Rose Children's Centre

2009-08-04T04:39:00.000-07:00

I am Edmond Mugisha and a Burundian living in Nairobi, Kenya. I volunteer to teach French at RedRose School and Children Centre. French , as one of the most important foreign languages in Africa, will be helpful to pupils of this school. Not only will French allow them to express themselves , but it will also open opportunities for them to meet French speakers and therefore open windows to the rich French culture and literature. Many great and famous writers and authors are French . Speaking French will help the pupils understand their works and improve their knowledge.

Five years I spent in seminary and mostly in missionaries of Africa (white fathers) strengthened my sense of serving. I appeal to other young people to initiate such activities and discover how wonderful and joyful it is to help ,especially children expecting only smile as a sign of satisfaction and love.

Student From England Volunteer at Red Rose School

2009-08-04T04:23:00.000-07:00

Steve Macfarlane is a student from St Edwards Oxford in England. He has contributed to our learning in Red Rose Children’s centre. He has assisted in teaching various subjects in various subjects in different classes. May it be in learning new topics or in revision of work already covered. The pupils have learned a lot of new things every other day. They have also showed a sign of appreciation for all these.

On the other hand teacher Steve does not only teach but he is also being taught Kiswahili by the Pupils. So in that connection he teaches and also learn from his pupils. Kiswahili is among the two languages which is in our curriculum .

We are very happy and we do appreciate all these good and amazing work. The pupils have really enjoyed learning with this new teacher and found it very interesting. We celebrate this very much

Art and Creative Activities Lesson at Red Rose

2009-08-04T04:13:00.000-07:00

I wish to take this opportunity to thank The George Town University for their connection with the Red Rose School in Kenya.

Red Rose School is one of the lucky schools in Kenya which has benefited From George Town University.

We’ve been great friends since last year, 2008. George and Margaret from the University came to Red Rose to make fun with the pre-unit class ( 5-6 yrs) in drawing and coloring.

I teacher Sofia , as the class teacher, was so much surprised to learn that through creative activities, children develop different ideas and talents. Each child’s drawing contained different information, and each one of them could talk about own drawing.

Thanks to Charles and Margaret for providing the knowledge and Art materials to the children for the activity during their visit.

May the relationship between George town University and Red Rose School live forever .

(Pictures to come soon)

St. lawrence professors of African studies at Red Rose School

2009-08-04T03:11:00.000-07:00

This summer we were lucky to have St. Lawrence professors visit us. St. Lawrence has always been sending students to work at Red Rose School as part of their community project in Kenya. We have been very grateful for their support and the wonderful students they have sent to us. This time round we had the professors visit 15 of them were in hand to see the school and also to learn first had what their students experience being at Red Rose. They were lead by Dr. Wairimu Ndirangu who is the country Director of St. Lawrence. The presence of Ken Okoth made the visit even more wonderful because he is a former student at St. Lawrence and the reunion with the professors was great. The professors had the chance to visit all the classes, plus our computer lab which has laptops donated by St. Lawrence University, later we all went out for songs and dance it is here that after the dance we were presented by a donation of Kshs 60,000 through Children of Kibera Foundation to celebrate Celia Nyamweru and John Barthelme retiring as professors of African studies at St. Lawrence university. It was more song and dance after this we are very happy for the donation. Thank you very much the donation will go along way in helping to keep the students at Red Rose in School

The visiting professors outside a computer lab that has been set up by Children of Kibera.

Prof. Pat alder enjoying songs and dance with the students at Red Rose, together with visiting High School students from the USA.
The Cheque being presented to Children of Kibera Foundation on behalf of Red Rose on hand to receive the donation is Ken Okoth and Mr. Protase Buluma. Ken also presented T-shirts from Children of Kibera to the professors.

LITWORLD TRAINING IN NAIROBI, KENYA

2009-08-04T00:53:00.001-07:00

A group of facilitators,Jenny Koons, Annie Folie,Yohanna Briscoe, Sara Wolkowitz, together with the Litworld Executive Director Pam Allyn arrived at Red-Rose Children's Centre, a school in the heart of Kibera slum in aid of vulnerable children mostly orphaned by HIV/AIDS to facilitate a teacher training program to the knowledge-thirst teachers from schools in Kibera. The six day training was a big success because it ended up benefittting teachers not only from around Nairobi but also other parts of the country. The very enthusiastic facilitators did not only teach reading and writing skills but also addressed challenges faced by the teacher as a role model in a poverty stricken society. They left Kenyan teachers yearning for more, for their skills and ideas are rare to find in any Kenyan teacher training institution.

From Uganda with Love

2009-08-03T08:09:00.000-07:00

Will Graham was seconded to Red Rose Children Center by her Aunt Beecie Kupersmith who was a workmate of Ken Okoth at the Potomac School. Will has been working in

Uganda

with an organization called the UAPO. They have a small orphanage, water well project, and community center in the Northern part of

Uganda

he was interested in seeing projects run by Children of Kibera. He was accompanied by Kristen Roupeniah who is based in

Kenya

working with the peace corps.

Operation Crossroads Africa

2009-08-03T05:18:00.000-07:00

Members of Operation Crossroads Africa visited Red Rose school lead by Sasha Kinnely (who used to be Ken Okoth student at George Town University). The group had Tracy, Kristen, Aaron, Alexander, Cayla, Rachel & Stephanie.

Student Reach International Visit Red Rose School

2009-08-02T14:37:00.000-07:00

Student Reach International is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing students with humanitarian opportunities. They encourage students to Reach In to their hearts, Reach Out to their peers, and Reach Beyond all obstacles. Lead by their Executive Director Ashley Bondad, Matt Baptista, Nicole Malatesta and Meaghan Morris did pay a visit at Red Rose Children Centre, I also showed them around some of the Projects Children of Kibera Foundation is working on. They got to learn about the school and the projects through Ken Okoth. They were really impressed with what CoKF is doing in Kibera, I told them we could not have achieved much were it not for our friends and donors supporting us. Thank you very much Friends of Red Rose School and CoKF.

LOTS OF LOVE FROM BRONXVILLE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

2009-07-24T04:28:00.000-07:00

Our third grade have been able to keep in touch with the third grades of Bronxville Elementary school through teacher Pam Kohlhoff and teacher Christine of Red Rose. On 20th July, 2009 we received five visitors from Bronxville, among them was Vera Anderson a third grade student who was very much pleased to visit Red Rose and be with her pen pals, in particular her colleagues of third grade. We love you and we hope we will continue being in touch with you always. Thank you very much for the storybooks.

Text by Tr. Christine (Grade 4 teacher)

Kenya 2009 Service, Learning, Adventure

2009-07-23T11:58:00.000-07:00

The role of what to do has been proven not to be inborn. This is how Red Rose, a school in Kibera may just be in position to explain how meaningful exchange of teaching skills profits. From Brian to Steve (41), to Sarah and all, teachers could not but sit back and be shown how “it works in America.”

The visitors stormed the learning cubicles in maze and style. At first I thought it would be difficult to entrust all the lessons to them, I speculated wrong. From Mathematics to English to Social Studies and Religious Education, no subject was left unattended.

I am in class with teacher Steve. I am explaining to students the elements of population. I hit rocks as students ask about world census and info on some countries. The lesson ends with meager satisfaction. Teacher Steve approaches me with a better approach, letting the net do the work for me. He directs me to websites that I could download info anytime on any country’s population and related topics thereof. We also agree on showing the students how to goggle for the same and make use of blog to speak their mind. We make it practical by sending them to the computer lab. Eureka! I feel like we moved a mountain a yard. As the old adage cries, all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy, students at Red-Rose school had opportunity to learn and practice new games. Some were mind-boggling yet others rib-crackers.

The visitors brought gifts that were distributed to kids. Clothes, shoes, stationery and so on. Each and every child received something to cheer their heart. There was also a trip to Shedric, Giraffe centre and Mamba Village for picnic and games.What better word to summarize than it works. From teachers to totos, everyone was all smiles and near tears as the visitors left. Kudos to Ken, the team and everyone involved. Thanks too to the Wright Brothers. If only we didn’t have planes. Thank you very much for sharing your time with us!!

Please click here for a picasa web album.

Text by Tr. George (Math teacher Grade 4 & 5)

Ndegwa Family visits Red Rose

2009-07-22T12:59:00.000-07:00

Dana and her husband Ndegwa of Washington in the USA are friends of Ken. They visited

Kenya

in June and took time from their busy schedule to come see the Red Rose School. They came to Red Rose together with Dana’s mother, Mrs. Walton, and their young daughter, Ciru. The Ndegwas and the Waltons have all been generous contributors to the Children of Kibera Foundation. During their visit to Red Rose, they donated children's story books and assorted school supplies. Thank you very much for your support and friendship.

RIPPLE KIDS FUNDRAISE FOR RED ROSE

2009-07-22T02:31:00.000-07:00

Lauren and Isobel, two Ripple Kids from California did a funds drive and sent their contributions to Red Rose. Lauren was one of the students who started the penpal project with Red Rose. Lauren's sister’s Audrey and her Girl Scout troop also donated. The money donated went along way to buying new shoes, sweaters for our kids plus help in making the fence of the school which was not in good shape and we also got a new coat of paint on our fence plus one of the classes www.ripplekids.com . Thank you so much Lauren, Isobel, Lauren and your Girl Scout troop. Thank you Megan for making the connection.

My Time as a Volunteer at Red Rose, by L. Bogosian

2009-06-03T10:24:00.000-07:00

Hello!

I am Lizzie Bogosian from St. Lawrence University in Canton, New York, USA. I have been in Kenya for a semester study abroad program that started in January and decided to spend my last two weeks volunteering at Red Rose Children’s Center. My experience has been incredible.

My first week I worked with the baby class, class 2 and class 3. During my second week, I spent time with the nursery, pre-unit and class 4 with the babies I was able to assist them with colouring letters of the alphabet, counting and painting. With then other classes, I was given a chance to teach math, English and science as well as assist the teachers in anything they needed. When I was not in class, I spent time playing with the kids, talking with the teachers and spent time with the students.

Spending my last couple of weeks at Red Rose was a perfect way to end my stay in Kenya. I was given the chance to make great relationships with the students and teachers both in and outside of class. Everyone was very welcoming, creating an environment open to visitors and a great place for children to learn. The students were always so enthuastic about learning not only the class material but also about who I am and where I come from. It was always a happy place to be. I look forward to when I can come back again.
ASANTE SANA!

Hollis and Kimberly visit Red Rose

2009-05-28T10:02:00.000-07:00

Hollis Calhoun and Kimberly from the USA stopped by to visit Red Rose School today. They have been in in the country on a training exercise near Mt. Kenya, and wanted to follow up with a visit to Red Rose after hearing so much about it from their friend and Children of Kibera Foundation board member, Michelle O'Hara.

St. Lawrence University Student Volunteer at Red Rose

2009-05-22T03:44:00.000-07:00

For the next two weeks we will be hosting Lizze Bogosian from St. Lawrence University as part of their Kenya Semester Program Urban Studies Component. She has been working in class with the students and she is enjoying her volunteer work.

World Bank Friends visit Red Rose at start of Term Two

2009-05-07T10:04:00.001-07:00

Marjorie Lehrman, a long-time supporter of Red Rose from Washington DC brought her friend Jill, a former colleague at the World Bank to visit the Red Rose School today. During their visit, Marjie and Jill quickly made friends with all the children by bringing in special squash drink and cookies for an impromptu schoolwide party! This was a fun way to reopen the school since the children have just returned to school this week for the beginning of the second term of the school year that runs from May to end of July.

Marjie and Jill also had conversations with the staff at Red Rose to learn more about the school's programs and goals for growth in the future. Marjie, whose brother Robert Lehrman is a board member of the Children of Kibera Foundation, delivered specially wrapped pencils and pens from her niece Sydney. The children of the fourth and fifth grade at Red Rose will start a penpal relationship with Sydney by email.

Thank you Marjie and Jill for cheering everybody up with your visit. Please come again! Asante sana na karibu tena!

Click here to view a picasa web album of the visit

April Camp at Red Rose

2009-04-29T19:04:00.000-07:00

Chores Mean More, New York Times, April 27th 2009

2009-04-28T09:57:00.000-07:00

Teacher Rose Mureka of Red Rose School, Litworld, and the Bronxville School are featured in an article on a collaboration through electronic books, email, and letters that bring American and Kenyan children closer together as they learn about life in the slums outside Nairobi and in the surburbs of New York City. Read the April 27th New York Times article by cliking here!

"Living with my Granny" by Brian, Grade 5

2009-04-19T17:12:00.000-07:00

"Helping My Mother" by Diana, Grade 5

2009-04-19T17:04:00.001-07:00

April Camp 2009

2009-04-18T05:04:00.000-07:00

This April we had another successful camp at Red Rose School thanks to the financial support of the Children of Kibera Foundation. We had visitors from St. Lawrence University come over and spend their time with the children. The activities in the camp included drawing, painting, computer lessons, singing e.tc. The camp was a great experience, with two meals provided each day for the children, many of whom would otherwise go hungry over the month-long April vacation from school. On the last week of the camp we were graced by Teacher Emmily Minayo who had just returned fresh from her three week teacher exchange trip to the Potomac School and other friends of Red Rose in the USA. Click here for a Picasa web album of the camp.

Back Home

2009-04-17T02:07:00.000-07:00

I am back home. I really enjoyed my trip in the U.S.A. It was so amazing to me. Thank you so much for hosting me and making my trip to be succesful. My trip allowed me to get more ideas from different schools. The ideas were very important to me. I will use them at Red Rose. Red Rose is going to shine in Kibera.

A Sanctuary of Learning, by Allison Fisk

2009-04-11T10:27:00.000-07:00

Red Rose- A Sanctuary of Learning from Allison F on Vimeo.

Emmily Marks Successful Red Rose-Potomac Exchange Visit

2009-04-11T00:03:00.000-07:00

It has been an amazing trip for Teacher Emmily Minayo from the Red Rose School on a three week visit across the Eastern and the Mid-Atlantic Regions of the USA, including two weeks spent at the Potomac School and with host families in the Washington DC area. The slide show is a pictorial revue of her safari in the USA.

Road Trip Through New England and North East USA

2009-04-01T08:40:00.000-07:00

Teacher Emmily had the chance to visit many schools and friends of the Red Rose School and Children of Kibera in New York City, Portland (Maine), and Canton (Upstate NY). For more photos of some of the places and people we visited last week, check out the picasa web-album through this link.

Hope for the future, by Megan MacDonald

2009-03-29T02:18:00.000-07:00

With all that’s going on around the world these days, it’s easy to doubt whether as a collective humanity we’ll be able to pull out of the various ruts we’ve dug ourselves into. From the vantage of leading nations' failing economies to the continued violence in countries that have yet to establish stable governments or triumph over dictators and warlords, the future often looks quite bleak. As individuals, we feel powerless to combat such massive forces, and as nations we have our hands full with our own problems. When the headlines get personal, I find it’s extremely important to seek perspective wherever we can, and often the greatest inspiration and reminder that all is not lost is found in a gathering of children - those who will either inherit the problems we fail to fix, or with the proper encouragement and investment will take it upon themselves to fix them.

I have visited Red Rose a couple times since arriving in Nairobi (though not nearly as frequently as I’d like to) and from my first visit I was struck by the absolute joy of the children I met. Attempting to make a foreign country your home can be challenging at times, and in my first weeks and months I was constantly made aware of just how much I had to learn about conducting life and simply getting around here. To join the children at Red Rose on a Friday morning, participate in their recreation time, spin circles and sing songs with them helped me take a step back from my need to understand my new home in all its complexity and struggle. For a morning I could simply indulge in the thrill of life that most adults capture infrequently at best, but which comes very easily to children whose synapses and neurons are still actively developing and connecting as they take in the world around them. I was also impressed with the layout and attitude of the school. Though it’s small and there are many children to serve, I didn’t observe the authoritarianism and over-strictness you sometimes see at schools where resources and funding are limited. I saw children being indulged in their natural inclinations and expressions as kids, and learners eager to tackle their studies and explore new things.

I learned about Red Rose from a friend of a friend after seeking a partner school for a penpal project some children in Orange County, CA wanted to start as part of a Ripple Kids effort. In the hopes of gaining international insight and making new friends, Lauren and Audrey Benedict and their respective classes compiled a set of letters for me to carry to Kenya, and I committed to find a school. A few exchanges of cards and pictures have since been shared, and the project is helping the kids in both places to better understand life in a foreign country, while at the same time identifying the common ground they share as children. In a recent exchange the kids from Red Rose utilized donated computers and cameras to compile picture books of the kids’ homes and neighborhoods, and the kids in Orange County loved them. Perhaps more importantly, they helped them to realize how much they have to be thankful for in their own lives – perspective that will no doubt help them grow into more conscious global citizens and leaders.

For those of us fortunate to have resources to share, it can be overwhelming to know how to best direct donations, gifts and social investments in order to promote the greatest benefit and change. Given the situation in Kenya, the U.S. and the world as a whole, ensuring our children are educated and inspired in their learning has to be considered an essential investment if we are to work our way out of the many challenges we face. Creating partnerships and raising children who understand the generosity of foreign nations, and conversely helping people to realize the importance of helping those abroad in sustainable ways can help rebuild faith in our common humanity, and eventually, ensure we have the resources and brain power across the globe to fix the economic, political and social issues that so concern us today.

Megan MacDonald is a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar pursuing an M.A. in Development Studies at the University of Nairobi.

Friends from Intercontinental Hotels and Children's Hope Foundation, Dubai

2009-03-27T07:10:00.000-07:00

We had the honor of hosting Ms. Aditi Daga for a visit at the Red Rose School. Ms. Daga is the Public Relations and Marketing Manager of Intercontinental Dubai Festival City (Dubai). SHe brought along with her Barry, a colleague from Dubai, and Kavi Mwenda, the Public Relations Manager of the Intercontinetal Hotel in Nairobi. Ms. Aditi came on a mission to meet the children and teachers at Red Rose after learning about their school on the internet. As a member of the Dubai based Children's Hope Foundation , Ms. Aditi was also able to bring many boxes filled with toys and school supplies, plus a generous check donation to support the work of the Children of Kibera Foundation. We are very grateful for the visit and thank Ms. Aditi, Children's Hope Foundation, Barry, Kavi and all their supporters for these helpful donations to the Red Rose School. Click on the picture below to view an album with more pictures from their visit.

Bronxville School, New York

2009-03-24T18:44:00.000-07:00

Mr. Wilson, Principal of Bronxville School welcomes teacher Emmily Minayo and Ken Okoth to the morning assembly and presentation about Red Rose and Children of Kibera to half of the students and teachers. We had a second presentation later for the other children too! A nice group with many good questions about Kenya.

LitWorld Founder and Director Pam Allyn, our host in the New York City area, speaks with the children and talks about her visit to Red Rose in August 2008.

Red Rose School on Voice of America TV

2009-03-24T04:37:00.001-07:00

Baltimore and Washington DC Exploration

2009-03-22T08:33:00.000-07:00

After a night of resting and recovering from the long intercontinental flights, Emmily was ready to explore and discover some of America. Her hosts for the weekend, Ken and Monica, took her to visit the port city of Baltimore, one hour away from Washington, DC. It was a day full of new images, impressions, sounds, and tastes. Here are some photos!

Click here for Picasa Web Album of DC and Baltimore Photos

Amefika Amerika? Ndiyo, Amefika Amerika!

2009-03-20T15:36:00.000-07:00

"Has she arrived in America? Yeah, she has arrived in America!"

The first photos of Ms. Emmily Minayo on arriving at Washington Dulles Airport in Virginia. She's whole yet very exhausted after nearly two days of flying from Nairobi to London (8 hours) then London to DC (8 hours).

We stopped at the Potomac School to pick up Ken's laptop. The buildings and the campus in general, do NOT look anything like the Red Rose School, hence the photo above, taken by Emmily. Let the culture shock begin!

Teacher Emmily of Red Rose Coming to the USA

2009-03-20T10:30:00.000-07:00

Ms. Emmily Minayo, nursery classroom teacher at Red Rose left Kenya on Thursday March 19th 2009 on a history making visit to the USA. She will be in the USA until April 12th on a teacher exchange visit between the Potomac School of McLean Virginia and Red Rose School in Kibera, Nairobi. The trip is sponsored by the Children of Kibera Foundation to reciprocate a visit in July 2008 by Ms. Cindy Cheadle, a second grade teacher at Potomac who was at Red Rose for two weeks.

While in the USA, Ms. Minnayo will get a chance to go on a road trip for a week in the NorthEast, visiting Delaware, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachussetts, Maine, New Hampshire,Vermont, Pennsylvannia, Washington DC, Maryland and Virginia. Ms. Minayo will have a chance to connect with organizations and schools that support children and teacher at the Red Rose School. In NY, she will visit LitWorld and LitWorld partner schools in Ardsley, Hastings, Bronxville, and Brooklyn. She will also visit St. Lawrence University and the Unitarian Universalist Church Sunday School in Canton.

In her second and third weeks in the USA, she will be based at the Potomac School, shadowing different teachers, meeting with learning specialists, librarians, students, and parents. She will observe classes and make presentations to different groups.

In Washington, Ms. Minayo will have a chance to visit major sites like the White House, the House of Congress on Capitol Hill, Arlington National Cemetery, and the Smithsonian Museums. She will speak at a reception and benefit event for the Children of Kibera Foundation on Saturday April 4th. Please contact Ken Okoth ken@childrenofkibera.org for more information.

American Women Association of Kenya Visit Red Rose

2009-03-13T03:51:00.000-07:00

American Women’s Association (AWA) is a nonprofit, charitable organization promoting community services and development and volunteering opportunities in Kenya as well as providing social and cultural activities for its members. Their members came to Red Rose on a field trip to get to learn and see how the school is doing and some of the programs we have been able to achieve through the help of the Children of Kibera Foundation. On the same day Charles Desantis, a dear friend of the CoKF and Red Rose, was visiting together with a friend Clin and his two sons Dillan and Tim. We received a donation of exercise books and pencils from AWA. The children were very happy. To all our visitors, thanks for your friendship and support. You are most welcome to visit Red Rose again.

Red Rose Photos Update

2009-03-11T12:39:00.000-07:00

Red Rose Children Publish Books Online

2009-03-09T02:46:00.000-07:00

Red-Rose Children Center is privileged to be linked with litworld. Children make online books based on different issues affecting their life in Kibera slum and the school in general. They share these books with their friends in different schools in the world. In this book, fifth grade students together with their teacher went round the giant slum of Kibera taking pictures of different businesses and business people. The students illustrated how small scale businesses have helped people in Kibera to earn a living. This is just one of the many books made by students of different grades at Red-Rose. Litworld has enabled children here to share learning experiences with their friends in the same grades in America and London.This has made it easier for them to understand what goes on in other parts of the world. Follow the link below to get more of the books written by students of Red-Rose

http://litworld.realelibrary.com/index.php/RealeBooks/browse/

Red Rose The Perennial Challenges

2009-02-12T22:49:00.000-08:00

We shall ever remain grateful to Mr. Ken Okoth together with his fellow Board Members of the Children of Kibera Foundation for the sustained sponsorship of the 50 orphans and vulnerable children at Red Rose, as well as the provision of complete school uniforms, modern information technological as well as communication network. A lot of changes have been realized at Red Rose and we are becoming an envy of many of our neighbouring education centres.
However, one major challenge which we face is the lack of ground space to expand yet our pupils population is increasing rapidly. with 131 children, the centre is experiencing congestion. The long term response to our perennial challenge is to relocate to a large space within the locality. Spaces are available but the costs are prohibitive ranging from $55,000 dollars to $80,000 dollars. However if we join our efforts as friends of Red Rose Children Centre and support the Board members of the Children of Kibera Foundation who are spearheading this noble course wherever you are in the diaspora Kibera needs your support, Red Rose needs your contribution assist in giving hope and a bright future to our vulnerable children.
YES WE CAN!!!

RED ROSE REOPENS FOR A NEW TERM 2009

2009-02-07T23:01:00.000-08:00

Dear Friends of Red Rose School :
We are very sorry for taking too long to update our blog. The Red Rose teachers and all the children are fine and have been back to school since early January.

During December 2008 we had the pleasure of hosting Ken from the Children of Kibera Foundation together with his visitors who included Rachel Meyers of the US Embassy in Nairobi. They donated books to our library from Rachel's mom in California and from LitWorld in New York. We are very thankful for the books that we got. THANK YOU so much all of you who donated the books. The school has grown to a total enrollment of 131 children, including 50 children who are orphans or from very vulnerable family circumstances that the CoKF sponsors by paying their fees and providing uniforms. There is now a fifth grade class and cemented paving of all the paths at the school to keep it clean and reduce problems of dust and mud. Thanks to Ken from CoKF for making this project possible when he visited in December. We have recruited two new teachers at Red Rose to take charde of grades 1 and 2.

In January, we were lucky to host Ken's friend from the World Bank Jennifer Asego who came to visit and see how the school is doing and hopefully talk to her workmates to help us out where they can. The picture above is Jennifer with some of our children at Red Rose.

Last week we received donations of four boxes of text books to our library thanks to Jeff’s coordination with the Jomo Kenyatta Foundation and the Kenya Literature Bureau. We are very happy that his request was granted. THANK YOU KLB for the donation.

We thank God for this year we had no problems compared to last year when we had the post election violence and looting. I would like to say thank you very much for the generous donations of all our supporters that have kept Red Rose running all of last year and pray that you will keep on helping us educate the Children of Kibera.

Volunteering at Red Rose

2008-12-09T03:20:00.000-08:00

Hi! My name is Clare. I am an American student from St. Lawrence University volunteering at Red Rose. I teach Class 2 with Ms. Rose, a compassionate young teacher who really cares about the students. She and the rest of the staff put so much effort into educating and supporting the kids. I’ve been here for four weeks and every day has been wonderful!Most mornings we begin by playing a few games of Tic Tac Toe, Go Fish, or Hangman--in English and Swahili--to get the kids ready to learn. Then we progress to some lessons in English, Math, or Social Studies. The kids especially like going up to the blackboard to answer individual problems. They're been great about teaching me new Swahili every day, and their enthusiasm has created great opportunities for us to talk about different cultures.Later in the morning we have uji--Kenyan porridge--and I usually read a couple of stories. The kids love Curious George and Dr. Seuss! I've been teaching a lot of art lately, because the children really enjoy expressing themselves through drawing and painting. Yesterday we painted watercolor pictures... and the children ended up painting each other! After art we usually go outside for some free time and play kickball, football, marbles, and jump rope. It's always hectic!

After lunch we have computer time. The kids love spending time in the computer lab; we've been playing games and practicing typing almost every day. I brought a "Mr. Bean" dvd in last week as a treat and it was a huge success! The kids also like dressing up and playing with my camera... one day I painted their faces and they put stickers everywhere and pretended to be Masai warriors. Afterwards, we had fun looking at the pictures in the computer lab.It's been such a pleasure to teach at Red Rose. I've been lucky to work with the staff and get to know such bright and enthusiastic kids... I will miss them all so much when I leave Kenya in December-- I can't wait to come back next year! Asante sana, marafiki!

Christmas Celebration Party at Red Rose

2008-12-05T09:28:00.000-08:00

Today we had a very wonderful day in which we celebrated the first ever Christmas party at the Red Rose School. All the children who were able to attend this celebration that took place after a two-week summer vacation learning enrichment camp at the school had a lot of fun (yes, December is the summer time in Kenya). We did this party for the kids because to some of them this could be the only chance they have to enjoy themselves this December holiday season, with people paying great attention to make them feel special.

We had a lot of activities including singing, dancing, and games. Our kindergarten and grade one students performed a nativity play for the whole school. Food was in plenty, including candy, juice, beef pilau, kachumbari, and chapati. Megan McDonald, (our new Red Rose Ambassador currently at the University of Nairobi as a Rotary Club Fellow) was our Santa Claus for the day, giving the kids the presents that she and her friends came over with.

The wonderful day of celebration came to an end late in the afternoon, but the kids still did not want to go home. What a day we all had!! Asante sana to the Children of Kibera Foundation for the ideas and funding support that made possible the wonderful two-week learning enrichment camp and this special day for the kids here at Red Rose. More than 70 children participated in the camp.
Click on the pictures to the right to view the three different photo albums from the Christmas Party and the Learning Enrichment Camp.

Red Rose School Featured on Voice of America TV

2008-11-17T19:21:00.000-08:00

Red Rose School Offers Hope to Kibera Slum Orphans
By Vincent Makori, Voice of America TV Washington, D.C., 25 November 2008

In Nairobi, Kenya, thousands of orphaned children in the Kibera slums do not go to school. They simply cannot afford the fees and have little hope of a better life. But thanks to a small group of donors, including some in the United States, some children will realize their dream of an education.

Eleven-year-old Brian Amurama lives with his grandmother, Elizabeth Aluda, in a single room in the Kibera slums of Nairobi. They share it with Brian's four-year-old sister Tulen, six-year-old brother Bradley and an adult relative.

Brian starts his day by helping his younger siblings get ready for school. He serves them breakfast, usually just a cup of black tea, before they start the long walk to school.

It takes the children approximately 20 minutes to navigate the busy morning streets to get to school.

Brian's hopes for a good education depend on a small private school established in 1998 by a retired Kenyan school teacher.

Protase Buluma is the deputy director at Red Rose Nursery and Children Center. He says the school is like a drop in the ocean, but it is giving hope to these kids.

"Specifically,” he says, “ we cater for the needs of the orphaned children in the slums, who have nobody to take care of them. So far we have 40 orphans out of a population of 89 kids."

Brian's parents died in 2004. That's when he and his little brother and sister went to live with their grandmother. Elizabeth Aluda is among hundreds of thousands of Kenyans who live in extreme poverty in Kibera, on the south side of the capital Nairobi.

Despite their circumstances, the children have reason for hope. They are enthusiastic and eager to learn through the various teaching methods the teachers have developed at Red Rose School.

A United Nations report says many orphans in Kibera end up on the streets with no formal education or family support system. With time they become part of the rising statistics of crime related deaths, sexual abuse and the widening cycle of poverty. For the few who go to the Red Rose school, they get more than reading and writing there.

Red Rose School Deputy Director Protase Buluma says "Where they would have lacked education they now receive it here. Where they would have lacked nutrition, they get it here. Where they would have lacked love and hope, they are now getting it here."

Red Rose runs its programs with the support of a group of private donors. Ken Okoth is one of them. He grew up in poverty in the slums of Kibera, but now teaches at the Potomac School, a private institution in northern Virginia outside Washington.

Okoth says his personal life experience motivates him to help the kids of Kibera: "I can't just sit back and think, `I made it, am successful, I will move on with life.' I know at every stage, somebody gave something to me and I can never pay them back for the help they gave me."

Okoth has enlisted the help of fellow teachers and students at his school in Virginia to raise funds for the children in Kenya. Some of the teachers and students visited Red Rose School late last year to deliver education materials, including lap-tops and books.

Red Rose school is a small oasis of hope in an expansive landscape of poverty and despair . Many residents of Kibera say they hope that Kenya's government will allocate more resources to ensure no child lacks education and opportunities to advance.

Okoth says this will change the future of the children: "Being poor is just a circumstance where you start in life, but it is not your destiny and it can change."

Children of Kibera Foundation's New Video

2008-11-02T07:19:00.000-08:00

The Red Rose School is a project of the Children of Kibera Foundation, a 501c3 tax exempt grassroots educational charity based in Washington DC. Watch the new video below to learn more about our story, our founder, the children we serve, and how you can join our vision for the future.

Click here to visit the website of the Children of Kibera Foundation for more information or to make an online donation.

REDHILL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PEN PAL PARTNERSHIP WITH RED ROSE

2008-10-24T08:06:00.000-07:00

Megan MacDonald is pursuing an MA in Development Studies at the University of Nairobi as a Rotary Scholar. Before she came to Kenya she was approached by Redhill Elementary School in Tustin Santa Ana, CA) to find a pen pal partnership school for their elementary classes (Grade 2 and 4). She was happy to hear that she could be able to get that at Red Rose, and the students and teachers here can not wait to keep in touch with the newfound friends in the USA. Megan brought with her 49 letters which the Red Rose students will be responding to. I wish to welcome the Redhill Elementary school to our growing community of friends and also welcome other schools to join us. ASANTE SANA!! Megan looking forward to working with you.

KATHERINE BLACKWOOD AT RED ROSE CHILDREN CENTRE

2008-10-18T01:00:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we had a second visit from Katherine Blackwood, she had visited Red Rose last year with the her schoolmates from Potomac School. This year she is doing volunteer work here in Kenya and she could not let her stay go without a visit at Red Rose. The students and the teachers were very happy when they heard she would be visiting them. She brought school supplies with her and also shared her time with students. We are very grateful for the visit ASANTE SANA KAT!!!

SCIENCE LESSON ON AIR

2008-10-07T01:00:00.000-07:00

These Activities on Air helps children to understand that there's air around them, be it Indoors or Outdoor.Children realise that they need air for their daily life.

PRESENCE OF AIR

1.Children have realised being surrounded by air, by; a) breathing In and Out. b) Using fans.

2. Children have gained the experience of air occupying empty containers by dipping bottles and containers in water to produce bubbles.

3. Children also learnt that balloons, flags and propellers are blown by air.

IMPORTANCE OF AIR

1. Air helps some musical instruments to produce sound by blowing, e.g. flutes and whistles.

2. Air also contributes to the blowing of balloons which decorates different celebrations.

3. Air helps most machines to move or work.

FINAL REMARKS:

1. Children have learnt that MOVING AIR is called WIND.

2. AIR is LIFE.

CREATIVE ACTIVITIES IN BABY CLASS

2008-09-29T01:20:00.000-07:00

As children grow they use manipulative activities as a medium of expressing their reaction to their reaction to their physical and environment .Manipulative activities involves the use of fingers and hands.Creative expressions is one way of giving them a controlled and accepted way of expressing their feeling and emotions.Children for example may express their feelings of anger by pounding,squeezing clay ,they may express their disappointment through hammering e.t.c .children will be able to ,awaken their creative talents,develop co-operation and control of their small muscles ,develop eye hand co-ordination ,develop their observation skills ,gain experience in handling different materials and relate to their daily life ,relax and enjoy themselves.