Aspects of Malawi 3: At school in Malawi
To give children a glimpse of school life in Malawi.
by Helen Redfern
Suitable for Whole School (Pri)
Aims
To give children a glimpse of school life in Malawi.
Preparation and materials
-
You will need two readers: a girl wearing a green top and a boy wearing normal school uniform.
- Music for Time for reflection.
- Photographs are available to download to accompany this assembly.
Assembly
- B rainstorm ideas from the children about the objects we have in our schools in this country.
Imagine a school with …
… no chairs, no tables, no whiteboards, no displays on the wall, no sports equipment, no computers, no library, no electricity …
Most government schools in Malawi do not have any of these things. - Reader 1: My name is Agnes and I go to Blantyre Girls School.
Reader 2: My name is …… and I go to (name of school).
Reader 1: I wear a green uniform.
Reader 2: I wear a …… uniform.
Reader 1: There are 2,000 children in my school.
Reader 2: There are …… children in my school.
Reader 1: There are 60 children in my class.
Reader 2: There are … children in my class.
Reader 1: School starts at half past seven and finishes at half past eleven.
Reader 2: School starts at …… and finishes at …….
Reader 1: My favourite subject is Chichewa, which is the language of Malawi.
Reader 2: My favourite subject is ……. - Wow! School in Malawi is very different from school here, isn’t it? Here are some more differences:
If you do not pass the exam at the end of the school year, you have to stay in the same class for another whole year.
School finishes before lunch because it would be too hot to study in the middle of the day.
The children study agriculture in school and most schools grow their own vegetables.
Time for reflection
Take time to imagine what it might be like to go to school in Malawi.
Children in Malawi work very hard at school because they know that a good education is important for getting a job when they grow up.
Imagine going to a school without tables and chairs.
Our school is so full of things to be thankful for.
(Show the photos again, and play some music so the children can reflect personally for a few moments.)
As we consider the country of Malawi, let us open our minds to learn from how the people live and work and play.
Let us open our hearts to appreciate all that we have.
Let us open our imaginations to help the hopes of the people of Malawi become realities.
Song/music
‘He’s got the whole world’ (Come and Praise, 19)
