This year, Khadarlis Global is starting a pen pal project called "Classroom to Classroom."
This is an opportunity for students from Sierra Leone and the United States to connect with one another through letters.
Not only would this be wonderful for students in Jimmi (a place in Sierra Leone) to find friends here in the US, but it would be great to create cultural exchange. Through a simple letter, children and teens thousands of miles apart will reach each other through one of the oldest communication tools possible.
Our hope is to create students who are globally aware about others, and not just about themselves and to practice basic communication skills.
For Sierra Leonean children, letters may still be one of the ways they are able to reach out (cost effectively) to the world.
At the end of the year, we also want to create a class donation drive where pen pals in the US can donate backpacks or school supplies to their pen pals in Sierra Leone.
If your class is interested, please contact Khadarlis at khadarlis@khadarlis.org. We are a 501c3 nonprofit dedicated to alleviating social inequality and poverty world wide.
2. Sierra leone
❧ Located in West Africa,
north of the Equator
❧ Eastern region is
mountainous
❧ West has 250 miles of
coastline giving it
marine resources,
followed by Mangrove
swamps, rainforest
plains and farmland,
and to the east there is
a mountainous plateau.
3. General Facts
❧ Population = 5,485,998
❧ Monetary unit= leone
❧ Portuguese gave Sierra Leone its
name meaning “lion mountains”
❧ Government= constitutional
democracy
❧ Literacy Rate= 35.1%
❧ Capital= Freetown, located on coastal
peninsula, next to worlds 3rd largest
natural harbor making it the center of
trade and colonial administration
❧ Rice is staple food eaten at almost
every meal
7. CULTURE & TRADITIONS
❧ Dance and music
❧ Dances for every
occasion
❧ People carve masks in
animal and human figures
❧ At ceremonial occasions
(weddings, funerals,
initiations, ..) there are
large platters of rice given
to guests until they are
full
8. ETHNICITY AND RACE
❧ 20 Native African tribes
make up 90% of population
❧ 10% made up of refugees
from Liberia(after their civil
war)
❧ small amounts of
Europeans, Lebanese,
Pakistanis and Indians
10. Civil war
❧ Rebellion to overthrow
corrupt government
began on March 23rd,
1991
❧ The war lasted from
1991 to 2002
❧ 50,000 people died in the
war
❧ Government allowed
economic collapse. They
could not even pay
teachers, which caused
the education system to
fail
11. Education in sierra leone
❧ About 25–30 percent of primary-
school-aged children (more than
240,000) are currently not in
school.
❧ Most schools very poor
classroom conditions ,still do not
have enough learning materials
and underqualified teachers.
❧ Very large class sizes,
overcrowded classrooms (more
than 60 students per classroom)
12. EDUCATION (CONT.)
❧ Attendance of primary
school is free, but there are
the hidden costs of travel
and uniforms,
❧ Children could also be
working to support their
family instead
❧ Early marriage is often
encouraged, resulting in
girls not attending school.
13. Education compared to
u.s.
There are not enough schools, so
some classes are taught underneath
trees and huts.
American schools usually have extra
supplies, whereas Sierra Leone
schools rarely have enough
Classes are almost doubled in size in
Sierra Leone compared to American
classes.
All children legally have to attend
school in the United States. It is
considered a privilege in Sierra Leone
14. CHILDREN IN SIERRA
LEONE
❧ Some children have to work
to support their families
❧ Others have to spend their
mornings and afternoons
retrieving water, traveling
miles to find it.
❧ 20-30 percent of elementary
school-aged children do not
attend school
15. WATER WELLS
70 percent of Sierra
Leoneans are unable to
meet their basic needs in
terms of safe water and
sanitation
Children can’t attend school
because they spend entire
days getting water for their
families
Most still-water such as
ponds and unprotected
wells contain contaminated
water, containing parasites
and diseases.
16. KHADARLIS FOR SIERRA
LEONE
Khadarlis For Sierra Leone is an
organization located in Providence, RI.
They work hard to fix all of the problems we
have mentioned.
o They send supplies and workers to rebuild
roads, schools, homes, and water wells in
Sierra Leone.
oThey also help homeless and low income
families in Rhode Island by providing the
essentials needed when they move into a
new apartment and find a job.
17. How does it work?
❧ Pen pals write letters back and
forth to each other.
❧ You can tell each other about
your life, your school, your
favorite hobbies.
❧ You get to learn about what life
is like for children in Sierra
Leone, and they get to learn
about you!
❧ This friendship can last a life
time depending on YOU!
❧ Love someone from a distance
18. WHAT TO INCLUDE
❧ Include your name, age, where you are from.
❧ Talk about school. What do you study? What is your
favorite subject? What is your school day like?
❧ Tell them things about you. What is your favorite color?
Do you have any pets? Talk about your favorite foods
and activities. What do you like to do?
❧ Tell them about your family and family traditions.
❧ Ask questions about your pen pal!
❧ At the end of your school year
❧ Donate your used book bag and
❧ Supplies to be shipped to her/him