A warm welcome
I have visited 9 of the 27 villages of the World Vision sponsored Nawabganj area, constantly accomanied by a soundtrack of rickshaw bells, bird song and buzzing insects. What astounds me most is how incredibly loving, humble and warmhearted the people are here. It is a common practice that upon my arrival at a home I would be quickly cooled down with bamboo hand fans and offered shade. The children are a particular highlight and the focus of my trip.
Helping Children to tell their stories
One of the main purposes of my time in Bangladesh is to test a new Storytelling tool that I’m currently developing. The intention is that it will serve to inspire a more thoughtful and insightful approach to children’s communication that aims to teach and encourage children to be story-tellers and build their own tools of communication, develop emotional intelligence and life skills.
The purpose of the Storytellers Tool is to plant seeds of inspiration that empower each child to have a voice to their sponsor and community showing their identity and world view through their words, drawings, photos and videos.
The child gets the chance to navigate through their world by using a storytellers map and cards. So far the response has been great and the children have said that it has been so much fun and they have had a chance to think about themselves and their everyday experiences in a different way.
Here are a few examples of their stories:
The big bus
“We attend school regularly on foot, though our school is far from our home and sometimes we use car to go to school. The people of our area use different types of vehicles to go to their work such as cars, rickshaw, bicycle and boats. I love to ride the big bus very much. Because, big bus move very fast and there are many seats to sit down beside the window and it is very enjoyable, I feel very happy. I went to visit to my maternal house with my family. We rode on bus at that time. We stayed there for few days, because I feel very happy there to stay with my relatives. - Ashalata, Sponsored Child
A friendly herd of goats
“We have four goats in our home. We have a small house. We have no cow, but we have goats. I love goats very much, they are very good. When I come back from school the goats rush towards me. When I call they rush toward me by sounding, that time I feel very pleasure. I hug the goats going to them. We have also a different room for them. I regularly feed them, I give them the water of boiled rice. I bring water for goats from my aunt’s tube well. This tube well was given from World Vision, we have no tube well. World Vision has given tube well for our villagers. When there was no tube well in our village we used a bucket to take water from the ring well.
I help my mother to cook. We drink water from the tube well from my uncle and aunty. I help my mother to do other works also. My favourite food is vegetable. In my mother’s absence I cook for my family. I can cook everything, whatever I want to take. When I’m hungry that time I cook rice. First I give onions and boil, then I give vegetables, when it is dry I give some oil again. I like also banana.” – Sukumoni, 13 yrs
I love my little brother
“In our village people have small houses. We have a brick built house. It has only stairs to go to the roof. I love the roof it has a mango tree there. We carry water from pond and we do our works with this water. We have a kitchen, my mother cooks. My mother’s cooking is very good. Our home needs to extend with the brick construction. Our home has four corner like a square. My father loves me very much, our family members all are very good, but I love my little brother very much.” - Arjina, Sponsored Child
If you’ve got any questions about life here in Bangladesh or questions you’d like to ask the kids, please post them below.
(Please in the interest of child protection do not use your sponsored childs full name in any posts.)
I sponsor a young girl in the Chowfaldandi ADP and would love to hear more from that project. I think the storytelling idea is a very good one. How do I participate, since the main difficulty seems to be translation at the Bangladesh end?
I’m looking at ways to involve sponsors in storytelling with their children…. watch this space…
Thanks for all your support. Unfortunately, I’m not visiting Chowfaldani ADP this time. I’m based in the North. Stay blessed. Steve
It is nice to read the comments from Sukumoni. From the short notes, she seems to be a “happy child”. Also she seems to have different priorities in her young life to ours.
I wish her well
Hi Jim, you are right. Sukumoni was a happy child and had lots of loving friends, family and community around her. Children’s priorities are different to ours, but in many ways there are numerous similarities. All children need emotional warmth and encouragement…
Blessings. Steve
Dear Steve,
I’m glad you are able to visit the villages in Bangladesh.
I worry about my sponsored daughter’s future, can you find out if early marriage is common there? And can you speak against it when you visit schools!! Please tell them a girl must be at least 18 before marrying, and that everyone has the right to choose their own husband. Tell them it is criminal to force someone into marriage.
Also please tell them about the University for Women, in Dhaka. And that scholarships are available. This will give them new perspectives.
thank you very much!
Thanks IA for your valuable comments. You are right, early marriage is an issue in Bangladesh. This is despite it being illegal. The Bangladesh law stipulates that you have to be 18 to be married. Otherwise, this offence is punishable by a prison sentence. However, nepotism and corruption can mean that people avoid sentencing. Or the prevalance of cases is in remote areas, where their are enforecment challenges.
What I’ve noticed is that there are many girls and women that are benefitting from World Vision.
I was fortunate to spend time with child forums in Nawabganj ADP and Panchbibi ADP which had about 80% female attendance. This children were so empowered and were clearly leaders for their child community. They spoke out against early marriage in a very passionate manner and shared stories from their own experience of other children they knew that faced this problem.
Our Sponsorship Programmes through our various projects are creating awareness about this issue amongst our commnities.
Thanks for the tip about the University for Women, in Dhaka… I will definitely pass this on.
Steve
Steve,
The storytelling tool seems to be working. The childrens stories pick out some of the simplicities in life and bring them alive….relations with people we see eveyrday, journeys on the bus. What is impressive is the tool is bringing out the ‘why!’ e.g why I like the bus, why I love my brother. You described your intention was to empower young people and I feel you are well on your way to achieve this!!!
Can you tell me more about the food and the main spices used in cooking?
Many Blessings on your journey,
Tamson.
Hi Tamson,
This is the harvesting month for the rice paddy fields, and seasonal fruits such as, water melons, blackberries and lychees, are available. Everywhere you look there are ‘day labourers’ in the field working.
The local Bazaar (market) is full of food at the moment, however not everyone can afford to buy. The stats are stark, 41% of the country live on less than $1 a day and 84% live on less than $2 a day.
A normal meal for the average person is rice and vegetable curry and for those that are fortunate to have fruit trees, they will eat mangoes, banana’s and jackfruits (the national fruit). My favourite thing so far has to be the ‘wood apple’ juice. I’ve not come across this fruit before, it has a hard gourd shell. It has been giving me a lot of energy at the beginning of the day before going in to the villages and at the end of the day when I return.
About spices, they are using chilli’s (I’ve seen them drying them out on roof tops), ginger, I’m not sure about the other spices they use… but I will ask some mothers when I go to the villages today and let you know.
People’s favourite food is fish curry but this is infrequent, maybe once in three months. Meat is very rare, maybe it is eaten on Eid el Fitr. Malnutrition rates nationwide are 41-50%.
World Vision has contributed to the fight against malnutrition, through various Health Projects.
Hi Steve,
Great to hear that the story telling tools are working really well in Bangladesh. I like the way how the children have adapted to using the story telling tools so quickly. Keep up the good work.
Blessings
Tamson,
Spices: Ada (ginger), Rasun (garlic), Piyaz (onion), Jhal (chilli), Zira (cumin), Holud,(turmeric) Dhane (corriander), Tail (oil), Labon (salt)
These are the common ones used in cooking.
Pilau rice is a special dish here, usually made with water, but for a guest they make a ‘special rice’ and include some spices such as; ginger, and tespata, ghee and milk.
all this talk of rice and spices is making me hungry….lol
the food is great out here…. shame not everyone can eat…
Hi Steve, great to hear that the Story Telling Tool is going well. We were convinced it would be so helpful when you first shared the idea. Good to see the photos which greatly add to the narrative. keep telling the story. Greetings from Sweden and all your friends here! D and M.
Thanks for the support….
It is very nice to hear it right from them (children) Telling it like it is . Mereena from Malawi.
children are small in an adults world… they are often not seen and heard… it’s time we amplified children’s voices… and hear it like they say!!! Thanks Mereena…
this blog is really cool man… loving hearing about the storytelling tool… amazing and inspiring.
Thanks Arji… I’ve been truly inspired by the stories I’ve heard… it’s great to share with you and others… blessings….
Mate, loving that the story telling cards are going down well!….Wig and Soph will be chuffed. Sounds like youre reaching and touching loads of people, keep up the good work fella! x
Thanks Joe… there’s some great stories coming from the children and communities… more to follow… Bless
Our sponsored child is Shrabonti, we have just sent her birthday cards away, soon to be 11. Our family hopes she has a good birthday. She Lives in Ghoraghat Thana, Dinajpur, north of Dhaka. We hope that she will benefit from the story telling too. Keep up the good work!
Thanks Megan…. I’ve not met Shrabonti… but I am currently in Ghoraghat ADP right now… testing the storytellers map and cards with other children…. I have trained the community volunteers who work with children to support them to write… as well as the Sponsorship Staff in storytelling and child centred faciliation… So I’m confident that Shrabonti will benefit… Thanks for your sponsorship… you are making a real difference… stay blessed… Steve
Wow…this is exiting Steve! I guess this will add a lot of value to the way the children communicate to their sponsors. <>
Just got back from an afternoon in two different villages…. I’m really excited… for the second day running a sponsored child for the first time ever has written the letter to their sponsor themselves!!! The storytellers map and cards is really fostering confidence in children to not only voice their story but to also hold the pen themselves! This is real child empowerment!!!! Bless Francis
Brilliant….which other countries are you going to introduce the stoytelling maps and cards too?
I have actually shared with my sponsorship staff to shop some ideas from the article, I know it is in its raw form, but will still help. God bless
Hi everyone – we’ve added a few of Steve’s photos in our Facebook album so you can see more of life in Bangladesh: http://on.fb.me/ICiSuY
More stories from children in their own words on their way! Keep the questions coming.
Joycelyn… regarding other countries… yet to be confirmed… this is just the prototype phase… however… I’m off to Bolivia and India next… and be assured the first thing I pack will be the storytelling map and cards…
Hi Steve,
It was great to read comments from the child we sponsor. Reading her story, she comes across as an independent and wise 13 year old!!!
Hi Geoff, really excited that I met your sponsored child… she was amazing… maybe we can talk when I’m back in England and I can let you know more information… Stay blessed
Steve, always love the stories you tell and especially when they can help us understand the different and unique ways in which people live their lives. I would really love know what the children of Bangladesh play for their favourite sports ? Keep up the good work.
Hi Ryan, they love to play cricket…. any wicket will do… a pile of bricks… tree stump… stone… and they make the bat out of a piece of wood… really roughly….. They also play football… climbing trees, games called, kitkat, dangi and korri khela (these last three are difficult to describe) I’m making videos fo these games and hope to post them somewhere for you to see… blessings
Greetings Steve, I can’t wait to see how kitkat is played, sounds fun!!
Read the latest blog and it get better! The children’s stories are very inspiring and so real. Anything like this that gets them communicating so well s a huge bonus. We are staying in the home of Paul John an Indian pastor in Sweden and we are impressed! Looking forward to hearing your stories first hand.
Ta baba
Hi Steve,
Your blog is really inspiring and is bringing your trip alive. Its great to share your experiences. I’m pleased to read how inspiring the cards are. Have the designs been popular with the children? Have the children’s knowledge of English been good enough to tell their stories? Do children learn English in school? Do they have to pay?
I’ve learnt a lot from reading,
I look forward to hearing more
Best wishes
Hi Mike, thanks for following the blog and connecting with the experience.
The map and cards have not only been popular with the children, they’ve increased parent engagement and interestingly, parents whom are illiterate.. As the map and cards are visual without vocab it encourages wider participation and conversation. The map and cards also have an inter-generational power.
Another thing is that children have been taking the cards and talking amongst themsleves, fostering peer learning. It’s really dynamic as a learning environment.
You should check the world vision facebook page as I’ve uploaded some videos that visually capture what I’m explaining…..
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150881618249544.431405.121936349543&type=3
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150880747714544.431380.121936349543&type=3
From the very beginning of schooling they learn Engliish (5yrs), firstly the alphabet and counting then some vocabulary, then some easy poems, then some short stories. They continue to learn English through secondary.
School fees; there are three categaries of schools (Government takes fees but not fully, girl students fees are waivered) however the quality of education is very low in these schools. , but district towns have better schools (not in remote areas) but with higher school fees half government half private and then Private (with high fees). Text books are meant to be free, however the reality is people have to buy text books. Despite these barriers the thirst for learning is so strong!!