Squeeze Them Like a Sponge: Engineering at Gulu Primary
For one week in November, I had the amazing opportunity and support of Sandra and Oysters and Pearls to continue the work of Erin Fitzgerald and Kate Sokol, who introduced the Engineering is Elementary (EiE) curriculum to Gulu Primary School in the summer, a school which is inclusive of students who are visually impaired. The curriculum has students go through a five-step process called the engineering design process, and collaborate to engineer a technology to solve a specific problem. Erin and Kate taught two of the EiE units, as the teachers observed and began to co-teach. After the two weeks, with Sandra’s help, contact with the teachers and administration was kept up. The opportunity arose to go back in November, to do more professional development with teachers, introduce another unit, and observe them teach in order to provide support and feedback. Unfortunately, Teacher Kate was unable to attend, which made the teachers and students very sad. I consider myself extremely lucky I was able to step into Teacher Kate’s role.
Erin and I excitedly geared up for our trip. Our goal was to bring minimal amounts of material, and plan with the teachers how to locally source as many materials
Whenever and however we can, we support the Nyaka Aids Orphans Project in Southwestern Uganda. With two Primary Schools in operation, a health clinic, a water pump, libraries that are inclusive of the community under their belt, they are building a vocational school and a Secondary School at the Nyaka campus. You can read the story of their founding in