Juma at after school care with two of his friends

He created this and asked his teacher to take a picture of it.

exercise

Juma: I really would like to get in an hour of exercise per day, but I just don't have the time.

Apparently, he learned about heart disease in science class.

trip to Unguja island

Juma and I recently got back from Unguja island (aka Zanzibar island). I had to go for work, but Justin also had to work, so he stayed here in Pemba. I took Juma with me, and he went to the international school for 2 days. He borrowed a uniform from his friend Franklin (his parents are also from Yale), and he was so cute! I forgot to get a picture, though. Bummer. Next time. He didn't want to go to the school, but he did great and liked it fine. He was placed in class 2 by his age, but he'll have to be in class 3, I think. Class 2 is just too easy for him. He did have a good time playing with Franklin and his siblings Maggie and Solomon. They get along very well, and live in a great house with a back yard, play room, zip line, and they live within minutes of a beach that also has a swimming pool.

Unguja is way different these days compared to Pemba and compared to what it was back in 1999. Both nights we were there we ate real Italian pizza and gelato! Mmm, mmm, mmm! There are so many tourists and tourist shops and restaurants and fancy hotels, it's crazy. It's nice to take a break from Pemba, though. But then we were certainly ready to come back to the quiet of Pemba where if we see two other white people in a day, we think the place is being overrun with tourists! It's nice that everyone here in Chake Chake knows us and isn't trying to sell us tourist packages to go to this or that beach.

Also, Pemba currently has a steady supply of electricity, but Unguja has none at all. Only people with generators (aka rich people and tourist hotels) can have electricity. Because there's no electricity, getting water has been a huge problem, too. Only people who happen to have wells can get access to any fresh water; they share liberally with others. Some sell water. Others have dug shallow wells of their own, and are only getting dirty water. It's pretty bad in the villages these days. The government promises the electricity will be back this month, but no one believes them. We'll see.

The plus side of Unguja, though, is that it has some commodities that we can't get in Pemba. So I managed to find a counter-top water purifier which I bought and hauled back to Pemba. It was only about 30 dollars, which is about how much we spend on bottled water in 2-3 weeks. So it'll pay for itself very quickly. Luckily we have a fridge, so we can just fill up containers and have cold water any time (the electricity is on).

Our work continues well. Justin is getting lots done in the Archives, and I'm making some great contacts that'll help me with my projects. I've hired a research assistant who is great and has tons of experience doing health research, so I am pleased.

Juma is doing great with homeschooling. Yesterday, we started to make a tambourine from bottle caps, learned about the founding of Rome, learned what a peninsula is, and wrote about our trip to Unguja. (I'll ask his permission to type it up here.)

Juma's performance at school

Every year, Juma's school has International Day. Each class learns about a different country and performs a song or skit about it. This year, his class had Turkey. The whole class performs a skit about Hoja, a character from trickster-style folk tales. Juma doesn't have a speaking part, but he is one of the characters who show up for lunch at Hoja's house.

last day, squared

The West family:


Juma with Mrs. A, the teacher's aid:


Juma with Mr. Shortt, the teacher:


Juma with Gonen, his best friend:


The last day of school was also the day to say goodbye to our good friends these six years, the Wests. We'll miss you!

Juma's report on the weekend

Just after graduation weekend, Juma wrote a "report" for his class. Here it is with his spelling.

"on the week end I whened to a play in new york called wiced. It was vary freaky. It was about the wizard of oz. of how the wicked wich of the east of how she became the wiced wich of the east and how she died"


And the "correct" version for those who have trouble reading first-grade-ese:

"On the weekend I went to a play in New York called Wicked. It was very freaky. It was about the Wizard of Oz. Of how the Wicked Witch of the East [West?] of how she became the Wicked Witch of the East and how she died."

field trip

I went along with Juma's class on a field trip to the local newspaper offices. His teacher wanted to make sure the kids got a chance to see how newspapers are made (since the new media seem to pushing good old fashioned newspapers out of the market).



I took the movie for Justin's sake, really, but if you're up for it, take a look. Don't worry, it's only some highlights, not the whole tour.

Juma's class

I went to Juma's 1st grade class yesterday afternoon to talk about Zanzibar, e.g. "Where Juma's daddy is." The whole class has been involved in Juma dealing with Justin leaving, so I thought it would be good to introduce the class to that far-away place.

After showing them a map--at least they all knew where Africa is--I had them try on some local clothing.

The girls were just delighted to try on kanga:



The boy I chose to try on a kanzu was a good sport in trying on what the class thought looked like a dress. I explained it was NOT a dress, and that all the men and boys wear these to go to the mosque, Quran school, and on special occasions like weddings:




Juma's teacher, on the other hand, was rather embarrassed, and took the kanzu off as soon as he could. (But since he had dressed up as the Cat in the Hat on Dr. Suess's birthday, I figured he could handle a kanzu.)




After the presentation, the class wrote letters to students in Zanzibar. I'll send them to Justin, and he'll bring them to a school. Hopefully we can start a penpal thing.

Juma's school adventures

Last week, Juma's school had an International Day celebration, where each class, K through 3, performed on stage, highlighting a certain country. Juma's class had Japan, and performed the Coal Miner's Dance; a classmate's mother taught it to them.

Right before the dance, Juma surprised us and played the xylophone in front of the whole school! We didn't know he had such good rhythm--he was perfect.



Sorry the picture is blurry, but it's the best one of the dance: Look for Juma with his Japanese headband and (Sarah's) white shirt. (The kids were told to wear white shirts, and the only one we could find was mine. Then it turned out most of the kids didn't wear white anyway. Oh well.)



Today, the mayor held a Halloween Parade, but made the theme Go Green! Juma's class dressed up in newspaper hats and carried placards with reminders to recycle.





They marched downtown, and his class spontaneously started chanting, Recyle! Recycle!

report card

Juma brought home his first report card of first grade, and he did awesome (of course he did!). He got perfect marks on math, and while his reading level is expected to be at a 6 right now, it's at a 14. His behavioral marks were also perfect, and we are very proud of him. Way to go Juma!

We decided this deserved a reward, so we let him watch Walking with Dinosaurs, a movie we'd been holding on to as a reward for general good behavior at home (measured by filling up his "sticker chart"). When we told him he could watch the movie, he got the biggest grin on his face and exclaimed, "Thank you! Thank you! Oh, I love you! I love you so much! I'm so excited!"

school

By the way, both Juma and I started school last week, so we've been busy. (Justin is very busy applying for jobs and getting the house unpacked and in order.)

Juma is thoroughly enjoying first grade (yes, first grade already!) and has kids in his class he already knew from before, so that helped a lot. We got him into the school we wanted him in (it's not just a matter of going to the local neighborhood school here), and it's within walking/biking distance, so we've been getting lots of exercise.

As for me, I write my first paper tomorrow, and am trying to find time to learn Arabic, read two scholarly books a week, write the occasional paper, work on my thesis, and still be a good mommy and wife. And not go insane through all of that. So far, so good. But it hasn't even been a week yet.

one minute

For school Juma performed a few different tasks, seeing how many times he could do them in one minute.

His stats:

hop: 140

write his first name: 12

bounce a ball: 87

draw circles: 48

be cute: infinity

mondays

Last night when I was putting Juma to bed, we had our usual discussion about whatever is on his mind.

Juma: Mom, I hate Mondays.

Sarah: Lots of people hate Mondays, honey.

Juma: But, Mom, I really hate Mondays.

Sarah: Why?

Juma: Because on Monday, that means that there's another day I have to go to school, and then another, and then another, and then ANOTHER!

Sarah: Yep, that's true. Good night, bud.

Juma: But wait, Mom.

Sarah: What?

Juma: Just kidding, I mean I love Mondays.

Sarah: How come?

Juma: Because that means I get to go learn stuff the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day so I can grow up to be a scientist!

juma's first book

Juma wrote a book in school. The text reads "By Juma/ Matthew is my friend/ I am a police officer and Matthew/ is a burglar"


bi Juma




I am a ples afasr and Matthew
Matthew is my friend






is a brglr

writing and reading

Juma's been working hard in school. He recently won a writing award for his kindergarten-level writing.



And at home, we do extra practice reading. Each sticker represents a time he read the book. He earns a sticker a day and when the chart is filled, he gets a reward.



At home, his grandma set up a little private writing center to inspire him to write.



The first thing he did was to take everyone's orders for drinks and dinner.



(Wotr = water
ise te = iced tea
joos = juice
dr pepr = Dr Pepper
the speshl = the special)

The next writing task he wrote and drew a rendition of a dream he'd had the night before.



(Me and Tristan found jewels. Rylee tooc [took] mine.)

playground

first day of kindergarten

putting on his best smile, hiding his nervousness



showing off his new school clothes, shoes, and backpack ("I'm wearing everything new!")