Last day at school

There were a few teary goodbyes as the trekkers waved farewell to their schools, host families and villages which have been their home for the past 7 weeks. They all did an amazing job with principles commenting on their hard work and the benefits of having them.

At Iguana Creek John and Tori completed their playground to the delight of all the pupils. One of the teachers Earl Said “we would never have had a playground if John and Tori hadn’t been with us, we are very grateful.” Tori also hand made a flag for the school which is now proudly raised on the flagpole every morning.

Clare and Sara were very sad to leave as they had become very close with their host family. They will be keeping in contact by mail to let them know what new adventures they have been on. Earlier in the week they put into practice the first aid skills they learnt in jungle training, when one of the children from their host family cut her leg badly on a piece of glass. They handled the situation brilliantly cleaning and dressing the wound and calming everyone down. A quick trip to the hospital and all was well.

The schools in El Progresso were over the moon with Sophie, Synnoeve and Aileen’s fundraising efforts. They managed to raise a whopping $2000. Aileen used some of the money to re-floor the three classrooms at St Peters. Normally the children suffer from the dusty concrete floor, but now they have brand new lino floor. Lily said “It was pretty emotional seeing how excited they all were about it, especially as we had fundraised the money for it”. Up the road the whole school came out to wave Sophie and Synnoeve goodbye and the principle was full of thanks for the fundraised money.

During the past week at Duck Run II Alex and Kieran have been really busy; Kieran finished laying the concrete for the raised walkway between classrooms and both lads worked on a playground, getting two towers and a wooden bridge up in just over a week! The school had their graduation on their last day and Alex gave a speech congratulating all the students and thanking them for their time at the school.

The students at Calla Creek got a treat when Eloise and Kat gave out letters written by children from Eloise’s Auntie’s primary school back in the UK. The children from their school have all written letters in return. On their last day the girls held a sports day, with sack and skipping races, the children had great fun and they both said it was great to finish on such a high. Eloise and Kat both received a thank you card, for all their hard work, signed by all the children at the school.

We’re really proud of all the hard work and effort the trekkers have put in during their teaching placements. The principles and students are all incredibly grateful for all that they have done. Pats on the back all round!

Trekkers organising charity beer festival

Aileen, Synnoeve and Sophie are putting on a fundraiser this Saturday in the form of a charity beer festival. They are hoping to raise a good few thousand dollars for their schools. Aileen said “we are going to spend the money on renovating the school classrooms” Sophie added “also to improve the sewerage and toilet system”. Keep checking the blog to find out how the event goes.

Elsewhere teaching is in full flow…..

Eloise and Kat have there own little classroom which the children have decorated with all their work. They teach a small group from each class throughout the day, Infant I and II in the morning and Standard I and II in the afternoon. Kat say “Having a smaller group means we can make sure everyone understands what we are teaching”. After observing a morning class it is great to see how the children respond to Eloise and Kat and the progress they are making.

With all the rain we have been having their school was closed at the start of the week as the teachers couldn't get there! Returning on Wednesday Eloise said "It's sooo good to be back in our classroom. All the infants came up and hugged us, it was such a good feeling".

John and Tori's playground at Iguana Creek is coming along well. Even though it isn't yet finished the children are still lining up in their break time to play on it!

Alongside building the playground they have been assisting with classes and at the start of the week their school had a visit from the Minister of Education. John and Tori got the oppertunity to tell him all about what they have been doing at the school and in Belize.



In the near by village of Duck Run II Alex and Kieran have been busy with a mixture of teaching, football and building! They are helping their school by building a concrete walkway between classrooms. This will come in very handy as the rainy season is now upon us. In an inter school football tournament, which was held a few weeks ago, both the boys and girls teams triumphed over the other local schools. Alex and Kieran were there cheering them on and said they were really chuffed for the teams especially as they beat the teams from some of the other trekker’s schools!

Over at La Gracia Clare and Sara along with teaching have been taking the girls for football practice. Maybe they are hoping for a rematch with Duck Run II!

Sara teaches the infants she says that her knowledge of Spanish has come in very useful for explaining things that the children don't yet understand in English. Clare teaches some of the older children and is helping them to prepare for their exams. Both are extremely close with their host family, so close in fact that Clare says “It’s going to be so sad to say goodbye, I might try and sneak one of the kids home in my rucksack!”