Jun 18 2008
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Jun 12 2008
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“ Most children learn to read going letter-by-letter, learning which sounds go with which shapes until they can blend the sounds together to form words. This is why new readers proceed slowly and sometimes struggle with pronunciation and syllable stress.
Jun 09 2008
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“ Hey guys, I’ve got a friend in Uganda who is trying to get a school for orphaned and needy kids off the ground. Be sure to check out the website here Bunabumali School and the stories on Newsvine, and be sure to read Story 2 on Newsvine, as well
Jun 04 2008
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“ Mission around the World is the brainchild of a group of friends, who having been successful in their own fields, now want to devote their time to making a difference.
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Headed by Siv Sivarajah (right), who says ” I want to make a difference in the world, and not just a difference, but I want to make a contribution to the world. I want the world to be a better place because I have been here. I want to leave the world better than I found it.
I can’t change the entire world. That’s impossible. But maybe, just maybe, I can affect a few people’s minds with my words and actions. Maybe I can get them thinking differently.
May 30 2008
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Box arrived
So it takes 14 days for a parcel to arrive, and a small bribe to clear the box from postoffice. Next time we’ll send on a Monday. That shouls speed up the process.
May 18 2008
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I am now in a dark box full of things you will like. I have no idea when I will arive in Bunabumali, but I hope we will have a lot of fun. Read more on my own website.
- Ben told me he wil make you a site like mine too if you ask him.
May 16 2008
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VT Box nr 1 shipped to Bunabumali
It took much longer than I anticipated when I came up with the VT box idea, but now finaly the first box is on it´s way. I am now turning this into monthly recurring service and building a simple order process and a fundraising project.
- When I am finished you´ll be able to track your Box via Twitter on your mobile phone.
- It will include online shipping services from most major couriers and automaticaly calculate the lowest shipping charges from a donor country into a selection of African countries.
- We are now working on a set up whereby goods are shiped from one location matching the travel schedule ot the local contacts, to reduce travel/distribution costs.
- We are using dopplr to to track peoples travel schedules, so we know at any point in time whos’s traveling where and could take a shipment to the next detination.
Bunabumali is the first destination in Africa.
The first VT box was send to Norman’s Postal Box at makerere University. My goal is to deliver direct to the Bunabumali General store. This will take some time, but there’s no reason why you would have to wait for Norman to run up to Bunabumali. VilageTalk will be providing the store with BunaConnect, an online villagepump
- Meet friends
- Fill in your shoppinglist
The pump acts as :
Effectively we’re setting up a modern equivalent of the Pony Express
Pony Express stations were placed at intervals of about 10 miles (16 km) along the route roughly the maximum distance a horse can travel at full gallop.
The rider changed to a fresh horse at each station, taking only the mail pouch (called a mochila, Spanish (from Basque) for “pouch”) with him.
The Mochila was thrown over the saddle and held in place by the weight of the rider sitting on it.
Each corner had a cantina, or pocket. Bundles of mail were placed in these cantinas, which were padlocked for safety.
The mochila could hold 20 pounds (10 kg) of mail.
The VT box I mailed today held 10 KG, as that’s the limit I can send for €55.00 per shipment.
The challenge now is to set up distribuiton points between Kampala, where the main VT box arrives and Bunabumali containing smaller parcels per comunity on the route, preordered via mobile phone/twitter. I guess DHL and other companies have this set up allready, so all we need to do is match their network with our the VT community.
We now have 2 opions….
- Use existing distribution networks, which means high charges and profit into Western companies pockets.
- Set up the VillageTalk Pony Express run your own show and turn it into a real business, using the latest free internet technolgy. Every dollar/euro you don’t have to pay is a contribution towards profit!
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Dear members
l highly respect and value your ideas and views. Allow me welcome the new members and share with you the children’s pictures here
Having been loved by friends across the earth. We have recived Educational materials from Norway and we are also expecting to get more things from Montreal, seeds from Vancouver (Canada) this week and soon we get more seeds from Cory.
So it is the pleasure and love the world has for Bunabumali l highly appreciate and say together we stand divided we fall
much love from uganda and more love from the children
May 15 2008
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May 13 2008
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Flat Kathlyn, a paper doll visiting Bunabumali
This is a unique project derived from a popular American school kids networking experiment, Flat Stanley.
Kathelyn is the grand daughter of one of Ben’s relatives in America and her school participates in the project. That’s how I came to take the pictures of my home town featuring the paper doll. Instead of sending the paper cut back the the US I decided to send it to Norman, so it can be used to connect African kids to the rest of the world, simply by taking a picture of Kathelyn like I did, and send her over to another school in the area. Kath’s African journey has it’s own website
Here’s the basic idea…
In 1995, Dale Hubert, a Grade 3 teacher in London, Ontario, Canada, began the Flat Stanley Project. He invited other teachers to take part by hosting flat visitors and to encourage their students to write their own Flat Stanley journals.
One of the many advantages of sending flat visitors is that they can visit friends by travelling in an envelope. Students’ written work goes to other places by conventional mail and e-mail. You can check out the Flat Stanley List of Participants to see where you can send a Flat Stanley or who might be sending a Flat Stanley to you, but the best way to arrange exchanges is through the Bulletin Board. After completing the Teacher Application form you’ll receive a username and password that will allow you to login to the Bulletin Board.
Students make paper Flat Stanleys and begin a journal with him for a few days. Then Flat Stanley and the journal are sent to another school where students there treat Flat Stanley as a guest and complete the journal. Flat Stanley and the journal are then returned to the original sender. Students can plot his travels on maps and share the contents of the journal. Often, a Flat Stanley returns with a pin or postcard from his visit. Some teachers prefer to use e-mail only. Especially creative hosts send the Flat Stanleys back with pictures, souvenirs, stories and reminders of the visit.
Before sending a Flat Stanley to anyone on the List of Participants or on the Bulletin Board, be sure to send an e-mail first, to ask if it’s OK. Some classes become overwhelmed with all the little flat guys.
The Flat Stanley Project is a penpal activity- but it’s far more than that, too. By sending a Flat Stanley it’s as if the senders and the recipients have a mutual friend- a little flat guy they can both talk about.
