Mountain Times

The group has emerged from the mountains after some adventurous days of hiking. We climbed up and over boulders through a dried up river gorge to see the stunning array of peaks and valleys. The girls rallied each other throughout the hike and encouraged one another up mountain peaks and ladders. It was a great team building day.

We have been listening to the array of languages spoken throughout the provinces and are busy practicing our clicks so we can interact. These skills will come in handy as we head to the province that Nelson Mandela grew up in.

Everyone is doing great and sends big hugs and hellos to all!


~ Aunge

P.E. Class

P.E. at The Traveling School involves a variety of activities from rock climbing and hiking to morning runs and yoga. Recently, the girls practiced their team building and trust tactics while discovering rock climbing routes on the canyon walls. We have focused on getting the entire group into running shape as well as using plyo-metrics and core exercises to promote strong bodies. We also play active games including capture the flag, freeze tag, and ultimate frisbee. Later this week we head to the mountains to hike some incredible mountain passes and challenge ourselves.

Brenna & Caroline

Battlefield

After an early morning jog, breakfast and tea the girls are headed to the British Zulu battlefield. Two different cultures are represented at this battlefield. The first museum is described through an Afrikaner perspective and the second from a Zulu. History comes alive for the girls as they walk through the museum and life size sculptures of loggers (wagons) circled up trying to defend themselves wait for them outside on the battlefield. Tomorrow we are headed for the mountains.

Brenna

Three School Visits...

The TTS18 students have had the rare opportunity of visiting three different secondary schools within our 2 and ½ weeks of travel. Students visited two private boarding schools (Stanford Lake College and the Southern Cross school) and one public school located in the Engwenya Township near Waterval Boven. They sat in on classes and interacted with students of similar age. Debriefing this experience in our Global Studies class provided a platform for students to discuss their observations and question why. The legacy of apartheid is a theme that has been part of the past few weeks in our discussions. We have discussed observations that the students have made regarding infrastructure of the schools, student and teacher motivation levels, racial divisions amongst students and the variety of culture within student groups. The TTS students have been open and honest in their discussions with each other about what they are seeing and experiencing. To compare and contrast the variety of schooling systems in South Africa first hand is what makes the Traveling School a truly experiential learning experience.

History and Government of Southern Africa Class Update

Our semester began with learning the geography of the African continent with a focus on the newest democratic nation of the South Sudan. The struggle for democracy is a theme that we will discuss throughout the semester. With current knowledge of South African’s political structure and leadership, students have looked to the beginning of colonization and the roots of the Afrikaner identity through readings and discussion. While visiting the Southern Cross school, we had the wondrous opportunity to talk with a freedom fighter from the anti-apartheid movement. He gave the students a brief history and focused on his participation in the ANC (African National Congress) political party beginning in the 1980’s. Having been imprisoned several times for political crimes, he gave the students a unique perspective on race and identity in South Africa today. Discussing the importance of perspective has been a theme and will continue to be as the students visit the site of the famous Battle of Blood River next week, where they will compare and contrast the perspective of the Afrikaner (Boer) and the Zulu during the battle in 1838.

Algebra 2 Class Update

The 6 students in this class have been working hard on reviewing Algebra 1 skills and filling in gaps to make a strong platform for our next 5 chapters. Amongst singing birds and the occasional lizard scurrying through the grass, the students diligently work through their problems and take notes. Sitting in their crazy creek chairs today, we reviewed the 5 types of Parent functions and students refreshed their practice of graphing techniques with their graphing calculators. Our first chapter test is coming up and the students will demonstrate their knowledge of functions, transformations, and simplifying equations with square roots and exponents.

Travel Journalism

Travel journalism has been an eye opening experience for the girls. They are learning how to combine travel in a new country with photography and articulate writing, an asset which will be available to them throughout their life. Three weeks into the course we have touched on basic writing concepts, what journalism is today and how writing techniques change depending on the audience they are writing for.
The students had numerous opportunities in the past week with their cameras in Kruger National Park. Sightings of leopards, lions, elephants, giraffes, sables, hyenas, kudu, impalas and the rare flightless bird the ground horn-bill kept the students on their toes, changing their framing techniques through the truck windows.

Cheers,
Brenna

Precalculus

The precalculus class is busy reviewing various mathematical terms and strengthening their understanding of how algebraic expressions are defined and used. The students are practicing how to factor polynomials and rationalize denominators. The students are also working on verbalizing their problem solving strategies using succinct language to describe the necessary steps to solve a problem.

Math Concepts

In Math Concepts, the students are debating how money can define happiness for a person, a community, or a culture. They are working to define their individual key points of happiness and which factors contribute to a good quality of life. The students are making personal, financial, and educational goals based on different decision making strategies. This week the class will begin to investigate various banking terminology to set a foundation for the upcoming game of life.

Languages of Southern Africa

"Mengwanane!" and "Halo!" echo throughout the campsite as students practice greetings in various languages. The class is awed by the 11 official languages and is inspired by our guest speakers who are able to speak up to nine different languages fluently. Currently, we are focused on developing our understanding of Afrikaans, an offical South African language derived from Dutch. Earlier this week we practiced our pronunciation of various flowers and gardening tools with first graders at a local school. Next week we will begin studying Zulu while continuing with Afrikaans.

~ Aunge

Natural Science in the Savannah!

It has been an amazing week for the girls in the Natural Science class. Our study of the biomes (desert, semi-desert, grasslands, savannah, forest and fynbos) of southwest Africa led right into the discussion of what wildlife lives in these beautiful places. We got to see the variety of savannah animals close up at the Maholoholo Wildlife Rehabilitation Center. Students toured with an expert naturalist and did a focused species study on the hyena, rhino and cheetah. Not only did they learn about these animals, but they had the rare opportunity to get up close and personal with the cheetah, baby black rhino and a variety of vultures. With new information fresh in their heads, we then searched for these illusive animals while on safari in Kruger National Park. Students kept detailed field notes on what species were sighted. More than 30 variety of mammals, birds and reptiles were observed within our 2 days in the park, including baby leopards and a family of hyena outside their den. This information will carry us into our next unit as we examine the interactions that all these species have within the savannah ecosystem.

WOW moments

Once upon a cool September morning the wild African animals gathered under the rising sun and asked one another what they wanted to do today. "Lounge high in the tree and nibble on impala meat," squeaked a little leopard. "Make noise and scare the small animals away," commented a matron elephant. "And lets do it all where some wonderful young ladies in a big blue truck will see us." suggested a wise old rhino. Before long the savannah was filled with anxious animals wanting to go out and play. And so off they went, in packs, prides, and troops to roam about and cause a scene.

Luckily, that same day the TTSers happened to be out on safari with binoculars in hand. Before the sun had reached its peak, the group spotted the big 5 and began to peer deeper into the grasses and see the other mysterious animals relaxing in the sun. And by the end of the safari, the group was lucky enough to see some of the rarest animals of all.

As we drove away from the safari, we heard the animals say good bye and wish us luck on our adventures. The rest of the day was filled with laughter, stories, songs and tales of the elusive Sable antelope.

Literature and Composition

The Literature and Composition class has just finished exploring South African folktales, and we are starting to read The Power of One by Bryce Courtenay -this is our first novel of the semester. This coming of age tale tells the story of Peekay, a young South African boy of British descent growing up in World War II-era South Africa. Various characters come into Peekay's life who teach him valuable lessons about race, society, family, love, and the human condition. As the students are traveling through many of the places mentioned in this book and immersing themselves in South Africa, the story takes on a kind of immediacy for them. Already, they are passionately voicing their own observations of South African society and how these observations differ or align with Peekay's experiences. I have been so impressed with each student's enthusiasm, passion, and creativity as we take on various forms of the written word including short-story, poetry, and folktales. Their poems about who raised them were lovely to read; many wrote it was their families,their friends, and the books they read that have influenced who they are today. When the girls were asked to write original folktales about the animals they observed in Kruger National Park, they demonstrated great creativity, humor, and a solid understanding of the elements of traditional storytelling.