So this week we've been volunteering at an "American Summer Camp" run by the US embassy for dakar high schoolers who want to learn english. The idea was that these kids might not have the best english instruction in school, the opportunity to speak english with a native speaker, or much chance to learn about american culture, so we would help out with providing that. Peace corps volunteers from all over senegal came out to organize the camp, which is taking place in 3 high schools around dakar. So far we've had fun helping out and teaching our various skills, including hulahoop dancing and music appreciation (along with numchuck skills, bowhunting skills...hehehe).
The kids are very willing to participate and excited to learn the hoops and dance- which makes it easy to want to teach them! I taught a short routine that i had each group learn and compete against each other with, and mike taught a music and dance course with a playlist he put together (some groups even learned to jitterbug). All in all it was a fun time, and yesterday I had some of the volunteers over for dinner (I made a salad with mango-pineapple salsa, cannellonni shells with homemade tomato sauce, tuna, and gouda-feta-parmasean cheese, and garlic bread (well, mike made the garlic bread so he gets props for that)). Très délicieux! We had fun chatting about their projects and then all went up to the roof and hooped and drummed and looked out over twinkling dakar, the gorgeous fullish moon and the liquid night ocean.
So this week we've been volunteering at an "American Summer Camp" run by the US embassy for dakar high schoolers who want to learn english. The idea was that these kids might not have the best english instruction in school, the opportunity to speak english with a native speaker, or much chance to learn about american culture, so we would help out with providing that. Peace corps volunteers from all over senegal came out to organize the camp, which is taking place in 3 high schools around dakar. So far we've had fun helping out and teaching our various skills, including hulahoop dancing and music appreciation (along with numchuck skills, bowhunting skills...hehehe). 
The kids are very willing to participate and excited to learn the hoops and dance- which makes it easy to want to teach them! I taught a short routine that i had each group learn and compete against each other with, and mike taught a music and dance course with a playlist he put together (some groups even learned to jitterbug). All in all it was a fun time, and yesterday I had some of the volunteers over for dinner (I made a salad with mango-pineapple salsa, cannellonni shells with homemade tomato sauce, tuna, and gouda-feta-parmasean cheese, and garlic bread (well, mike made the garlic bread so he gets props for that)). Très délicieux! We had fun chatting about their projects and then all went up to the roof and hooped and drummed and looked out over twinkling dakar, the gorgeous fullish moon and the liquid night ocean.
