Dutch Bay Primary School: First meeting

Primary Students, Dutch Bay School

Dee has promised to take us to the Dutch Bay Primary School for this area which is largely fishermen's children.    Today is the day.

  

 Dave and I picked up some art supplies in Nice that we wanted to bring the kids.   The rest of the gang pitched in with some exercise books they bought on the way.  Waruna offered a box of pens.  

 We took these things to the office first to be distributed by the teachers later.   It was the English teacher who showed us around the three room school as the others spoke Singhalese.  I am pretty sure that this school goes from grades 1-5. 

  Most of the children here are day students.  A few come from single parent homes where the parent is struggling with alcohol or poverty.  These live full time at a little house on the grounds with one of the teachers.    Also, some of the children's parents object to school as they feel that the child would be of more help at home although in Sri Lanka school is compulsory to grade 9 . 

 But I do get the feeling for the rest of the families school is highly valued. 

Primary Students, Dutch Bay School

The youngest of the primary children are so excited to have visitors. They spill out the doors rushing to see us, laughing and surging forward.   The teachers just let them greet us for a while and get used to looking in our cameras at their images and comparing henna on some of their hands to nail varnish on some of ours , and trying to understand each other without a common language.    

Dutch Bay School

These are enchanting children,  always touching each other but never pushing, not boisterous in that way, not loud..... so attractive and basically shy.

 Primary student, Dutch Bay School

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Dutch Bay School

Pupils at Dutch Bay

 Sutdents, Dutch Bay School

Pupils at Dutch Bay School

Pupils, Dutch Bay School

Primary School , Dutch Bay, Sri lanka

Pupil at Dutch Bay, Sri Lanka

Children of Dutch Bay, Sri Lanka

It is a magical moment of exchange....  but finally the kids settle down and go back to their seats. 

Dutch Bay School,  Sri Lanka

  I had such a hard time culling this lot of photos.  I can't resist looking at these images, frankly.  Glorious kids.