A PenPal Program between American and Filipino Kids

Right: Girl scouts in the US
Left: 3rd and 4th graders in SFAS






In the US, school children can join lots of different kinds of clubs to help them to learn how to do things and to help them have fun with new friends. Children in the country often join "4-H" and learn about taking care of horses, cows, and pigs. Children in the city and country can join "scouts," which helps them enjoy the outdoors by camping and hiking. Scouts learn skills like first aid, cooking, and sewing. They also learn about our city and about children in other parts of the world.

Girl Scouts in the US set aside one day each year, called "Thinking Day," to share what they've learned about children in other countries. This year, one scout group at Forest Knolls Elementary School in Silver Spring, Maryland, chose the Philippines, because three of the girls have relatives who live there or came to the US from the Philippines.

Usually, we find out information from books and from the internet. But this time, we thought it would be better if we could actually "talk" to some kids in the Philippines.

One thing we want to find out about is what sorts of houses you have in the Philippines. Our houses are mostly built from bricks or wood and must have heat, because it can get quite cold here--it was 0 degrees C yesterday, and that was warm for January. It can also get quite hot (35 degrees C) in the summer, so many have air conditioning also. The houses are quite close together, because we are near the city of Washington, DC; some girls live in apartment buildings or townhouses. Most girls have their own bedrooms, or they share with a sibling.

Another thing we would like to know is what you do in school, and how big your classes are. At Forest Knolls Elementary School, there are about 550 children in grades K-5. The lower grades (K-2) have classes of about 16 children each; there are about 22 children in each class in the upper grades.

Every day, children here study mathematics, reading, writing, science, and social studies. They also have a half hour of recess--play time with friends, usually outside. There is a cafeteria, so children may buy a hot lunch or they may bring a sandwich from home. There is a gymnasium, so they can learn basketball, volleyball, and lots of other games. They also learn art, music, and computers for one period each week. Some children spend time learning to speak and read English, since they have just come to the US. In third grade (age 8), children learn to play the recorder; in fourth grade (age 9), children can choose to learn to play an instrument like the trumpet, the flute, or the saxophone.

Most of the girls in our group of sixteen are ages 8 and 9. They like to do lots of different things! Many play soccer; some take dance lessons or piano lessons; three are learning to figure skate, and some are on a swim team. Many have pets like cats, dogs, fish, and turtles. Most like to play games and read books. Most also have to help their families with chores at home. What do children there do with their time out of school? - by Mrs. Karen Nelson Maisto, teacher

We have also started a pen pal program between other school kids and children of the donors living in Bacolod, Manila and the U.S. If you have a son or daughter ages 6 - 16 years old who is interested to meet and be friends with one of our students, email me so that I can "assign" a "pen pal." The program is very interesting because children learn from each other as they write to each other, e.g. different culture and way of life. And our students "put into practice" writing in English!