Summer Camp, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

I think I have finally found my calling in life.....running summer camps! Love them. I spent 3 weeks running a camp for 100 12 year old Tamil children from all over Malaysia, from poor families, to teach them English in a 'fun' way before they enter secondary school where their maths and science classes will be in English rather than Tamil. The stupid government here has restricted teaching of English in Tamil and Chinese schools to 1.5hours max a week in primary schools and then when they go into secondary school the government has made it compulsory to teach maths and science in English so the kids starts falling behind because their English isn't so good.....so the Tamil Foundation have done an excellent job of starting these summer camps. This was the 2nd one they have run and next year are planning to run 6 around the country simultaneously!!!.

Anyway I had a great time....staying in the old dilapidated school with the kids sleeping on the concrete floor with the rats and mosquitoes!! up at 6am teaching them yoga at 6.30 taking them to breakfast at 8am then taking a class of 20 for English lessons all day til 4.30pm. then more games and activities til 10.30pm....then mosquito spray, sorting out all the illnesses and homesickness then kids to bed! Then meetings for me til 12pm! Phew!!! Loved it. Didn't sleep for days from the buzz.

The kids were so polite and respectful and enthusiastic.....really lovely to teach.

Anyway it was all a big success and I made it into the national newspaper...and am now going to be writing a manual and lesson plans for the future camps.