Pauline Penney supporting REDEARTH

I became involved with Red Earth through my school who actively support them as a main charity. We had been attempting to establish a sustainable global link for a couple of years but with little success.

Ron partnered us with Link Commuity Development who was extremely quick to match us up with a school in the Masindi District. This allowed us to not only visit and establish a strong link with our school, but also work to support Red Earth along the way.

Personally, I find it easier to support a local charity such as Red Earth. Having regular contact with Ron, gives me confidence that the money raised for Red Earth is going towards a very worthy cause. I feel very much included and part of a team.

Raising the profile of Red Earth in our local community has therefore been relatively easy as it is something that, as dedicated teachers, we become very passionate about the cause.

Some of the ways we have supported Red Earth are:
1) Joining in the London to Oxford bike ride – This was a great motivation not only to get fit but also take advantage of the cycle to work scheme and know you will have an opportunity to make use of your bike! Mr Toalima was an absolute star joining last minute and making sure we made the most of our rest breaks and Mr Shearman made sure we didn’t slacken off. We managed to raise over £700 thanks to our friends, family, staff and children at Roxbourne Middle School.
2) Red Mufti Days – Wearing Red for mufti days.
3) Raising awareness amongst children and parents through different media:
· Having a stall at the school fair
· Writing articles in our Roxbourne Read it All (Termly newspaper produced by students)
· Producing segments for Roxbourne Round Up (Termly news programme produced by students).
4) Spreading the word amongst family and friends, they are always great sponsors! They can also keep their ear to the ground for possible fundraising ventures. It is amazing what you learn about some people! I discovered an acquaintance was a member of the local Rotary chapter and has invited Red Earth to join fundraising ventures. Another friend is a gardener of a Manor House and is currently persuading his governor to open the gardens up for a tea party next summer to raise money for Red Earth.
5) Asking local businesses to support by putting collection pots out, I have found if you sound passionate enough and have some pre printed information about Red Earth they will want to help.
6) Do not underestimate the power of the children in your class; your passions often become theirs and they can come up with some brilliant ideas and who knows what they can bring to the table.
I will be visiting the Masindi District and our linked school in October half term with Mr Toalima, and we will definitely be taking time to familiarise ourselves with Red Earth and working alongside them to plan future trips.

Pauline Penney

No pain no gain

Back from Uganda!

Great trip!
4 weeks of training. We have now been awarded NGO status in Uganda and hope to have the course validated by the Curriculum council.

We are well...great to be back...going again in October to monitor the trainees we trained in August.

More info and photos to come...talk soon.

Ronnie and Lynne

PS. Today is Ronnie's birthday!

We've landed!

Hello hello..

So, we have been forced into the world of blogging by Ron's daughter..who swears by it as a means to connecting with people and reaching out to those who otherwise might just never know we existed..so here we are ;-)

This is our very first blog, so rather than throw you all in the deep end, we thought we'd just give you a bit of an intro as to who we are, what we do..and why we'd like you to follow us on our journey.

So..here goes.

Following our experiences in Uganda in 2003 when two of us spent our summer holidays as ‘Global Teachers’, living in rural communities and supporting work at the village school and the other lived and worked at a school for the deaf in Kampala, we have returned each year to train teachers in the Masindi District. Initially this was in literacy and numeracy. However, we had by then gained a lot of knowledge and experience of the education system and decided to set up our own registered charity REDEARTH, to continue the work and to develop different projects.

LEARNING FROM THEM, LEARNING FROM US, LEARNING TOGETHER

We are working in a rural district of Uganda. Primary education has only been free for the past 10 years. Classes are very large (as many as 300 to class) and there are extremely limited resources. Teachers have virtually no access to new ideas about teaching and learning as there are very rare opportunities for professional development.

Children’s life chances anywhere in the world are enhanced by teachers who engage them in exciting, motivating and relevant activities. These are likely to have much higher success in developing their learning.

Through our training programme we are providing opportunities for teachers to develop good practice in interactive teaching methods. We have been really excited about the feedback we have received from teachers and from children.

We have lots to do and we need your help in raising awareness about Red Earth and the astonishing difference the work of the charity is making..so get on board, become a follower and let's work together to increase the life chances of these wonderful, wonderful children.

Ronnie and Lynne