KIDS4KIDS: Cross-Cultural Connections

In this short video clip, Tim Wright, founding Director of Sauti Moja, and Pat Kalpaca, a retired school teacher, present the value of the Longido Early Childhood Education Program and the attributes of the Kids4Kids initiative. 

                           

 “A few years ago, Sarah, a Maasai lady who had retired from teaching, came to us asking for support for her vision, a vision of preparing Maasai children for formal education.  One of the issues for rural Maasai is that their children grow-up speaking Maa, but when they enter primary school, the language of instruction is Swahili.  Many children do not cope very well with this transition, from herding animals to entering formal schooling in another language.  They are not well-prepared to sit in a desk all day.  Further, many of the children are not well-nourished, and that is detrimental to learning.  Therefore, Sarah established a health program that includes nutritious lunches and medical check-ups.  The combination of Montessori pre-school and support of health development of children ensures that the children are prepared for formal education.”

“Recently Sauti Moja established the Kids4Kids initiative.  Kids4Kids is partly about supporting the school, but more than that it is about creating understanding among North American children about the lives of Masan children.”

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