Schools in Paraguay- Observations of Two Schools in the Campo

The school in Jhugua has about 75 students, Pre-escolar- sixth grade, only. Photo taken at our book celebration, with special visitors from the States- our kids!

Below, are some random observations, based on time spent volunteering in two different elementary schools, (Escuela Basicas, here in Paraguay), just some snippets about things that have jumped out at us. Sorry in advance for the stream of conscience ramblings…

• Bilingual Instruction is mandated and is presented in Spanish and Guarani.
• Most instruction consists of copying what is written by the teacher on the blackboard.
• Teachers frequently leave the classroom to talk, drink terrere, make phone calls, etc,
• No books, paper, or supplies in classrooms, each student has one notebook in which to write all assignments.
• Students are provided with a small bag of cookies and milk every day, for snack. They provide their own cup and rinse it out after use.
• In one classroom, a bucket of water is kept in the back of the room. Kids dip their cups into it to get a drink.
• Kids use box cutter knives to sharpen pencils.
• When a teacher is sick or needs to take a day off, she/he must find and pay a substitute.
• Kids get immunization shots, fluoride treatments, and anti-parasitic medications at school.
• Teachers and kids do all cleaning of classrooms and grounds, use machetes to cut weeds, and burn all trash in a pit on school grounds.
• Kids are boosted up with a broom, when the roof needs to be cleaned.

Students and teachers are responsible for cleaning the schools

• The school grounds where kids play has rubble from previous bathroom, a hole in the ground leading to an old well, and tangles of barbed wire. 
• There is no systematic maintenance, with broken windows, fans, and non functional lighting in many rooms.
• Frequently there are cows, dogs and chickens on school grounds. Less frequently, horses and pigs.
• If it rains, school is cancelled. Once a month, on teacher payday, school is cancelled. When teachers strike, (at least nine, one day strikes since we’ve been here), school is cancelled. This year, the first day of school was delayed one week to give teachers more time to clean classrooms and bathrooms and prepare the buildings.
• The school buildings are utilized from 7:00am until 9:00pm. 7-11:00am: Pre-escolar-6^th grade; 1-5:00pm: 7^th-9^th grade; 5-9:00pm: 10-12^th grades.
• Teachers and Parent group are responsible for paying electricity and water bills.
• Most schools have big grassy area- during the 20 minute recess each day, kids kick off their shoes and start up a big game of soccer.
• Each morning begins with an assembly for the raising of the Paraguayan flag, singing of the national anthem, and classes take turns leading morning announcements, and prayers.
• Holidays such as Mother’s Day, Day of the Child, and National Holidays are celebrated with assemblies, music, traditional dance performances, and games.
• I have never seen a fight or even a heated disagreement on school grounds, though students are minimally supervised.
• Many kids, especially girls, do not attend school past 6^th grade.

So, there you go- a little information about the elementary schools in Paraguay. We could write an entire blog post on each one of the topics listed above, but would rather talk about it more when we return to the states.

Trees for Paraguay

Teodocio completes a mass planting of Tajy and Peterevy

2000 trees, delivered right to our patio! That’s how phase two of our tree project began. To recap Phase One: We went to agriculture comite meetings and talked to the farmers  about how planting native trees near cultivated land could serve as wind breaks, living posts, and introduce nitrogen and organic matter into the soil. Seeing there was interest in this project, we worked with comite presidents to write grants to a Paraguayan non-profit organization, “ A Todo Pulmon Paraguay Respira”, which has interests in the reforestation of Paraguay. The grants were approved, the farmers signed up for specific numbers and varieties of trees native to Paraguay, we made contact with a tree nursery in Villa Florida, and about two months later, the trees arrived!

Comite Yvy Pyta poses for a picture

A group was on hand to help unload the trees, placing them in designated areas, to separate them by variety. Next, we labeled the trees, counted them and prepared each farmer’s order. The following Saturday, 30 farmers came to our house for the tree distribution. Felix, President of the Yvy Pyta comite, gave a demonstration on how to correctly plant the trees, including how to care for and protect them.  

Comite President, Felix, teaches his members about trees

 Mark and I thanked the farmers for doing their part in re-foresting Paraguay, and the NGO for providing the trees. We also explained that we would be available to help with planting, and would be sending GPS coordinates of the planting sites to the NGO, as required.

Leyla "heads" home with her trees!

And then, the little trees began making their way to new homes, some by wheel barrow, some by horse and cart, some even on the tops of people’s heads!

Jesu Maria takes his 178 native trees home with a little help from a friend

Since then, we have helped  a few farmers plant trees, worked with a 7^th grade class to plant trees at the police station, taken GPS coordinates of completed plantings, taken pictures of proud farmers with their completed tree projects, and are waiting out some cold rainy weather before we set out again.

Juan completed a fence line planting

This has been a rewarding project for us. We worked to: raise awareness about Paraguayan agencies and the grant writing process to access services; empower the farmers to teach each other; and were able to plant a few trees at the same time!

Processing Raw Wool into Works of Art

The women in Arazape are masters in the process of turning a big, brown heap of wool, straight from the sheep, into beautiful, functional works of art, using only their hands and a few simple tools. I have had the privilege of working with these women and learning their craft, well, at least parts of it. We spend lots of time laughing at my clumsy attempts at the time-honored wool work that has been passed down from mother to daughter for generations.

 The wool is purchased from a local cooperative located about 13 kilometers from Arazape, in San Miguel. The women bring their feedsacks stuffed with raw wool, (5-7 kilos, the equivalent of fleece from 2-3 sheep), back to Arazape, where the transformation begins.

Magdi and Rafaela separate the wool

1. First, the wool is separated, into two piles. The coarse, more heavily soiled wool is set aside to make “hergas”, (Guarani word for saddle blankets). The remaining wool is used for the specialties for which this area is famous, ponchos and “vishus”, (Guarani word for shawls).

Pounding the wool releases dirt and debris from the wool fibers

2. The wool is cleaned by soaking it in a bucket of cold water to which a tiny bit of laundry soap has been added. Next, a small clump of the wet wool is placed on a flat board, and is beaten with a paddle. This part of the process splashes dirty brown water in all direction. The “paddler” is advised to work with her mouth closed, which I learned the hard way. More laughing ensued. After a thorough paddling, the clump of wool is wrung out and rinsed in a bucket of clean water. This process continues until all of the soaked wool has been cleaned.

3. The wool is hung on a line or barbed wire fence, until dry.

4. After it has dried, the wool is carded to remove any remaining debris, comb through and fluff the fibers.

Dominga shows fellow volunteer Lydia how to "finger spin" the wool

5. Next, the carded wool is pulled into the shape of a snake, then spun using fingers or a drop spindle.

Julia proudly displays her newly completed vishu

6. Finally, the hand- spun wool is crocheted by these skilled artisans, creating beautiful wool products. These finished products, are then taken back to San Miguel, where they are marketed in small tiendas, located near the main ruta. Many products were also on display at the recent Ovecha Rogue Festival, celebrating the tradition of crafting with wool.

Spending time with and learning from my friends and neighbors has been an amazing experience. In learning about this part of their culture, they shared their craft, but more importantly, we shared stories about our families, a little gossip about the goings on in the community, hopes and dreams, and just time together.

Medicinal Herbs in my Backyard

The Paraguayan women in our community have a wealth of information about using local plants as natural remedies for everything from coughs, to stomach ailments, to skin infections. It has been fascinating to learn about how this knowledge has been passed down through the generations, among these resourceful women.  Over time, friends and neighbors have shared plants or cuttings, or showed me where I could locate specific specimens, and now I have a collection of medicinal herbs in my own back yard.

Yerba de Lucero (Pluchea suaveolens kuntze)- leaves used for intestinal disturbances

My first introduction to this topic arose out of necessity. The one and only time I was sick, during my Peace Corps service, I was REALLY sick. Let’s just say I had multiple stomach issues…. The woman we were living with at the time prepared a tea for me that included Yerba de Lucero and Ajenjo, two plants growing in the forest near her house. Though I was hesitant to put anything in my stomach, after much coaxing, I decided to give it a try. Afterward, I felt so much better- the results were amazing!

Kumanda Yvyra'i (Cajanus cajan)- leaves used to relieve cough

Since then, I have spent lots of time with these wise women who have helped me identify medicinal herbs in our area, taught me what ailments they are used to treat, and how to prepare them for use. During this time, I collected, pressed, and dried leaves from these plants, and recorded information about each one to create a

Poha ñana, (medicinal herb), notebook. To date, I have collected over 50 different plant samples with pertinent information about each. I was also able to locate the Latin names to accompany the common Guarani or Spanish plant names, so I can continue to cultivate many of these medicinal herbs when we return to the states.

Borraja (Borago oficinales L.)- flowers used to treat bronchitis

Yesterday, a neighbor stopped by our house to gather some herbs from our garden to prepare a tea, to ease her daughter’s cough. It made me feel so good to share some of my medicinal plants with her, something about which she had taught me so much!