Expressions in English

Papua New Guinea Pen Pals

May 26, 2006 at 12:31 am | In Uncategorized | Comments Off

Students in Ms Anderson’s English classes are currently writing pen pal letters to students in Papua New Guinea.  A retired former headmaster, Mr John Jeffreys, visited the classes to talk about the lifestyle and culture of the PNG students.

Many of the students who are studying Year 8 and above, must board at the school, which is located on a small island in PNG.  Some of them are able to return home occasionally, whereas others may be away from home for many years while they study.

They must provide their own food, prepare their own food, and generally look after themselves, as there are about 600 boarding students and one adult staff member to manage them.

Many of the projects that are run at the school are designed to improve the quality of their lifestyle.  For example, some students created a vegetable garden to grow Chinese cabbage to supplement their diet, which mainly consists of rice.  They are also able to sell extra produce at a local market, so that they can purchase other items for the school, such as books.

Mr Jeffreys is also involved in helping them to set up a chicken project, and he is involved in raising funds so that the students can build a chicken run and buy chickens.  Once again, this provides a food source and a source of income for the boarders.

On a previous trip, Mr Jeffreys bought spade heads for the students to improve their cultivation methods, as they only had digging sticks prior to this.  The students crafted the spade handles as part of their wood working project.

Ms Anderson’s students were keen to learn and understand more about the life of the PNG students.  Many are looking forward to receiving a reply to their letters when Mr Jeffreys returns to Bunbury in July.  Mr Jeffreys must hand deliver the letters as the students cannot afford to buy stamps to mail them.

Ms Anderson would like to thank Mr Jeffreys for coming in to talk to the students.