MozamWeek

Yesterday I shared about how I believe Nyungwe  RED ZEBRA BOOKS  will have a positive effect on all literacy skills of Nyungwe children studying in Tete schools where Portuguese is the medium of instruction. Today I'll talk about how these Simple Nyungwe booklets are giving teachers confidence and adding reading comprehension strategies to their lessons. Just having the books published increases the connection between home culture and literacy. Knowing that Nyungwe is a "real" language is a good start in helping people feel that what they know is valuable. Through  RED ZEBRA BOOKS , the younger generation grows curious about the knowledge their elders can share. City kids see that the language they hear at home is a valid means of communicating in writing, too.  Back to how  RED ZEBRA BOOKS  fit into the picture. Teachers are mandated to teach kids about local culture and use the local language,* but it is complicated to make up lessons th...

Some of my friends and acquaintances on Facebook or otherwise will know something about the  RED ZEBRA PROJECT . This is a non-profit organization currently based in Cape Town, South Africa, started by dear friends who love the Nyungwe people as much as we do. In the next few days, I'd like to share how  RED ZEBRA BOOKS  came to Tete and are making a difference around here. At the edge of the provincial capital of Tete, a good 90% of kids speak Nyungwe 90% of the day. For many, school is the only place that Portuguese, the official language of Mozambique, even seems important.  Nyungwe  RED ZEBRA BOOKS   are colorful and chock full of local culture. Children are presented with stories written in their own language for the first time.  We were shocked when our simplest idea became the overall favorite.  "The Bean Book" is simply numbers 1-10 with the respective number of beans and the Nyungwe word for each number. Even teenagers, pu...