First School Visit

Yesterday we went to a NUFED (Núcleo Familiar Educativo para el Desarrollo) in Santo Domingo Xenacoj.  A NUFED is a type of middle school that focuses on more than just academics.  These schools teach life skills and vocational skills that will help students to succeed in their home communities.  Each class has an agricultural project that they work on, so that they can gain experience in farming and/or animal husbandry.  At this school, the primario (6th grade) students are raising rabbits, the segundo (7th grade) are raising chickens, and the tercero (8th grade) are raising and harvesting mushrooms.  This type of school is really amazing.  The kids have opportunities that aren't offered in most of the other Guatemalan public schools.

When we arrived, we spent some time with the kids, just talking about their school and their community.  The kids were setting up for a disco (dance), and they asked us what kinds of dances we know.  About 8 of us proceeded to show them the electric slide.  I wish I had a video of it, it was pretty hilarious.  Then they showed us some marimba, which is the national dance of Guatemala.  After that, they asked us to sing our national anthem for them.  We could not hold a tune, it was pretty pitiful.  They then proceeded to blow us out of the water with their rendition of the Guatemalan national anthem.

 Lunch in the Park in Xenacoj

All in all, it was a really fun afternoon, and it made me even more excited to get into the schools and get working.  The kids were really receptive and respectful, which made it very easy for us to talk and play with them.

I'm home sick today... I've had a nasty stomach ailment since Tuesday, and the Peace Corps Medical Office told me I'm not allowed to go to Spanish class today.  Tomorrow, we have our first afternoon off, and the plan is to explore Antigua a little, so hopefully I'll start to feel better before then.