A Normal Sunday Morning

It felt like a normal Sunday dusting the lizard poo out of my room, airing out the mattress and scrubbing the bathroom floor until it was gleaming only for tenth class to trample mud in it within five minutes - yes, they even have school on Sunday! Before breakfast Raja came rushing upstairs to tell me that Balu was cooking dosa so I should come quick. Excited at the prospect of my first cooking lesson, I rushed downstairs just in time to see Balu pour a heap of salt into the mixture - good to know that my favourite food is nice and healthy. Balu showed me how to pour the mixture on to the pan, spread it out, oil the edges, and flip it at just the right moment. It turned out to be easier than cooking pancakes because the crispness means that flipping is easy. I think the boys were impressed with my cooking (I was pretty surprised too), because after two attempts I had managed a paper thin dosa, crispy on one side, soft on the other. Next step will be mastering the batter which seems to take two or three days to prepare. It turned out that Balu doesn't like dosa and Raja had already eaten so I was left with a plateful of dosa to work my way through. Whilst I was eating and Balu was cleaning up, Raja came running in screaming like a girl, swatting madly at something, which turned out to be the largest grasshopper I have ever seen. Balu simply walked over, took the cloth, placed it over the grasshopper and threw it outside. No wonder Raja calls him 'insect boy'.

So it was strange to pack up my things, take down my mosquito net and get ready to leave.  Having realised that the sun heats the water in the bathroom throughout the day. I treated myself to a warm shower in the middle of the day, put my hair in two plaits and changed into semi Western clothes for the journey. Next thing I knew tenth class were commenting on my 'super' hair and 'super' t-shirt, and even Venkayamma madam mentioned them. People were still commenting as I walked through Tangutur to the bus stand with Balu and Raja, who was carrying my big rucksack. We squeezed into a van and as we neared Ongole an 'I'll pay. No, I'm paying. No I want to pay'  argument broke out. After deciding that the boys would pay for the van and I'd pay for the rickshaw, I realised how much I feel like an older sister figure to them. I'll miss their company over the next two weeks.

The two volunteers from Ongole, Rebecca and Kyekue, and I headed to the station, where everyone seemed to want to take pictures of the three Western girls, to catch our sleeper train to Chennai. From there we will be going straight to Pondicherry to meet two other volunteers, Leah and Kirsty. I can't wait!

Progress: Month One

I think it's fair to say that this past month has been more about me than about my project. Getting settled has taken a long time, and now that I do feel ready to really get stuck in, the children have quarterly exams so I no longer have my normal timetable. However, teaching the nursery and kindergarten children has made me realise that I still haven't completely adapted to the heat or the overexcited noisy children. I feel like I constantly need to lie down and by the end of the day I am often struggling to work up the energy to tell the children off for fighting or refusing to do their work! It's been a busy month, and definitely a steep learning curve, but I am beginning to notice changes, and most importantly progress.

Personal Progress

As I mentioned in a previous post, being alone has definitely sped up my progress in terms of making the effort to intergrate into the community. I have been challenging myself to talk to a new person each day, branching out from the people who speak the best English, and today I was rewarded, being invited to two different teachers  houses for tiffins - although thanks to the extreme 'Indian time' in Tangutur who knows when I'll actually make it, inspite of my enthusiasm. However, I definitely need to learn the names of all of the different curries I've been eating, because the favourite topic of conversation seems to be food: "Have you taken meals? Which curry? Which tiffin?" Sitting outside I am probably asked seven or eight times at lunch time (I really should start counting!) by the students in tenth class, whose classroom is next to my room. They always peer around my door to look inside and if my washing isn't hanging in every available place, I sometimes let them in to be nosy. They like looking at my pictures and cards from home. They always ask about the boys in my pictures and I can tell they are commenting on the clothes I am wearing, but I've managed to distract them with the Telugu words on my walls; so far I can just about manage body parts and family members, still some work to do...

Project Progress

Although I love my project, I'd be lying if I said that it was perfect. Before I left for India I had an image in my head of teaching classes of attentive children English words and phrases through fun activities and games - now I realise how naive that thought was! Discipline is still an issue for me. Everyday I see the way the teachers punish the children, and everyday I am told that I should do the same. Keeping discipline in my classrooms is near on impossible because the children are always fighting and 'practising beating'. I've grown to be thankful when I see teachers with canes (which some of the children carry in their bags too), because I know the punishments without a cane are much worse. It is also frustrating that the children are beaten for making mistakes, because it means that they will never admit that they don't understand. What makes it worse is that the teachers change the test scores, so that their parents will never know that they are struggling. Today I sat with a kindergarten teacher who was rubbing out children's answers and correcting them. She would then pass them to me, and I marked the papers. It took all my self control not to say anything.

Despite all the difficulties, I feel grateful to be on such a welcoming project. I am hoping that soon the older students will let me help them out with their speaking, once I manage to persuade them that being able to speak English is the most important thing, even though speaking doesn't feature in their exams. The teachers will be more of a challenge. Trying to explain that in English we say 'aubergine' not 'bringal' or that they are pronouncing/writing the alphabet wrong never goes well, and seems to give them the impression that their English is better than mine. Saying that, I have managed to persuade them that it is 'zi-la-fone' not 'x-la-fone' and that 'Thursday' is not pronounced the same as 'Tuesday'. It might be baby steps, but it's a start.

So one month India is complete and there is still a lot to learn. This Sunday I have two weeks holiday and have booked trains to Tamil Nadu and Kerala - all very last minute so we're not sure if we even have seats! It will be nice to have a break from the intensity of being the only volunteer on my project and spend some time with some of the other volunteers. I have been working on a new plan of action for my classes, and hopefully giving myself two weeks to refresh will mean that I can focus all of my energies on the teaching when I return.

Feeling 'at home'

We are pleased to see you adding some personal decorations to your walls, with noone to remind you of the dangers of too much blu tack!

It seems fitting that the recycled gold border paper is prominently displayed to give you some colour. Perhaps some of your followers can send you further adornments, postcards and momentoes to brighten your space.

PS Try to keep your room clean and tidy!

Lots of love,
Mum x

How does this compare to a class room near you?

For all those familiar with teaching and learning in everyday British classrooms... projector? interactive whiteboard? coloured card? paper? books?

Makes you think.

 

Venturing out of Tangutur

It might be baby steps, but slowly I am venturing further and further afield. In the first few days on my own, even the walk down to the nearest shop was nerve-racking, and the busy bus stand just scared me. Now I will quite happily nip down to the post office or in to the bus stand to buy my favourite fudge without a second glance, and it's nice to know that slowly people are getting used to me!

Over the last few school days I have braved the crazy crammed full school buses which speed off to the different villages around Tangutur. Even getting on the bus was a challenge. The children were so excited to see me on the bus, they all screamed for me to sit next to them. And then I foolishly got my camera out. Everybody wanted individual photos. Individual photos with the Indian-no-smiling-photo-pose-face. So frustrating when all I really wanted were a couple of natural shots to show you all back home! But still, I definitely enjoyed my bus rides and got a completely different perspective of life around me. In comparison to Tangutur itself, the surrounding area is extremely rural, with many of the children being dropped off at the end of long tracks across fields or through almost jungle like areas. From a different bus, I saw the prawn farms which surround many of the villages as well as lots of different tiny temples. It was lovely to spend some more time with the children and get to know them a bit better - the buses are particularly good for finding out which children are related!

Another bus which I braved alone, was the public bus home from Ongole. On Sunday morning, I had crammed into a van with twelve other people, including Ramana, and headed for the UCLI school , where two other volunteers, Kyekue and Rebecca, are working. I spent the day with them planning our holidays which are next week, as well as taking a sneak peak at their school. They are in a Christian school and so they were helping out with Sunday school when I arrived. I soon realised I was one of few people wearing a Bhindi! Their daily life is completely different to mine, each project with its own advantages - we have decided I will celebrate Christmas with them, and they can come to me for Holi!

Where on earth is Tangutur?

Perhaps some of you are feeling in need of a little 'Geography' to put in to context where Andhra Pradesh is located before homing in on Tangutur, which is just south of Ongole.

Having helped select and pack a world map to support Katie's teaching in India, it seems only fitting that your knowledge of Indian Geography is enriched. I hope Katie will smile at this! Geography was by far her favourite subject at GCSE!

Lots of love, Mum x

PS Feel the need to update this post as in receipt of a very impressive sketch map of Katie's local patch. I think I can use with Y6 and Y7 in Map Skills. Some of my colleagues will be twitching at the thought of another model making Homework. I love the idea of a map in a bowl!

First snapshots of life in Tangutur

Not so alone

The support of Nuala and Caitlin has really helped me to feel ready to continue with my project alone. As strange as it may seem, I look back on their departure with fond memories. We left Tangutur over three hours before their train (its a half an hour journey to Ongole) and soon realised we were running some 'errands', which involved Ramana and his son Raja running around in the dark in search of plants for the house - so entertaining to watch! We then stopped off at an Indian takeaway, in which Ramana bought enough food to feed a small army. However it soon became clear that our van did not want to start. So we all piled into an already full Rickshaw, seven of us in total as well as Nuala and Caitlin's bags and the takeaway and sped off towards the station. When the train finally arrived Nuala, who had just hugged me goodbye, got caught up in the moment and tried to hug Ramana whilst saying thank you. Big cultural nono and he quickly pushed her away! The sight of Nuala sat in her berth on the train head in hands, mortified, still makes me giggle!

That evening was probably the best evening of my time in India so far. I sat downstairs with the family, and for the first time ate with them, food on laps, in front of the TV. It was strangely comforting, perhaps because it was the first time I truly felt like part of the family. I am now beginning to see the benefits of being 'alone' and am realising how lucky I am to be able to sit on my balcony helping Raja with his (ridiculously hard) maths homework, discuss the Adventures of Robin Hood with Ramana or watch Telugu TV with the family, which I'm slowly becoming addicted to!

It's not just with the family where there have been changes. The students in Class Ten, whose classroom is next to my room, are always popping round to say hi and ask me questions (as well as using my toilet), and I find myself beginning to ask them questions too, testing their English and seeing how far our conversations can go. Hopefully one day they will let me sit down and help them with their English pronunciation! The same can be said of the teachers, who are always chatting and have even offered to do Mehndi on my arm! I feel like I am trying a lot harder to engage with the people around me, no matter how poor their English, because I have to. Every day I try to push myself more to start conversations, how ever small or basic they may be. At the same time, the teachers and children have been teaching me little bits of Telugu so hopefully soon I can string a few sentences together!

All my love

Just a short post to say, all my love to Abi and her family. Her dad managed to hang on for her return before he passed away, and I am so glad Abi got to spend that little bit of precious time with him. We are all thinking of you out here in India, stay strong.

x

Ganesh!

My first festival in India, Ganesh's birthday, has been so exciting. All around Tangutur there are giant Ganesh decorated with flowers and offerings. Every night for the past week there seems to have been a different procession or event going on for us to see; from a Indian style children's dance show (we heard Raja was dancing so stayed all night to see him, but he didn't show!) to small plays in the middle of the street - too many events to describe, so here are my top three...

1) On the evening of Ganesh's birthday I went up to Ramana's other house, ate (disgusting) festival food, watched a bit of Indian TV and then went outside to sit on the balcony, to find a group of men absolutely soaking wet. Slowly I began to work out what was going on. A coconut was suspended in the air with one man lifting it up and down. Men took it in turns to try and whack the coconut whilst a group of boys threw buckets of pink water at them. It was so entertaining, especially when men were soaked with water before they even took their place below the coconut, so that they wouldn't back out!

2) Walking to the shops one day, we managed to get caught up in a procession. A Ganesh was lifted onto a trailer and pulled down the street towards the sea by a tractor. In front of the Ganesh, offerings were made and people danced to Indian drumming. When the Ganesh went past and we had eaten the rice we were given, we suddenly realised purple powder was flying everywhere and we were being targeted. It was so fun getting involved with the procession even if everyone was laughing at us!

3) Some of the evening processions are slightly scary, because of the secretive drinking which goes on. However, Raja and his friends took us to the final procession of the festival in Tangutur. From the distance we could hear Western music playing and as the procession went past we saw a group of boys "disco dancing" to "I Gotta Feeling" - its fair to say we all giggled. Then came the extremely loud Indian drumming and delicious lemon rice which was a great end to an amazing festival.

Despite the unsettled start with Abi's depature, this week has been so exciting and fun, and I can't wait to have another meal out on the streets with the local people at the next festival!

Changes

Last night Abi left for England. It has been a rollercoaster of a week, but I know that she has made the right decision as her dad is very ill. Now that she is safely on her way home, it is time for me to start making adjustments and accept that my year is going to be completely different from my original plan. I am determined to stay strong and  have as bigger impact in my project as I can, but I know that the challenge is now even greater. I will now have to face the cultural and language barriers alone and will have no one to share the ups and downs with. But I now have a unique opportunity to fully immerse myself into another culture and become completely independent.

Two other Project Trust volunteers are staying with me this week, and I cannot thank them enough. They have helped me to feel more comfortable in my village - which I have fallen in love with - and get to know some of the local people a bit better so that when I am alone I will have some company and people to go to for advice. Not only that, they have helped me out with the teaching; my classes are so loud and excitable that I'm exhausted by eleven o'clock! As much as I hate to say it, I think it's time to stop with the fun games lessons, and start being strict Katie, otherwise my children will never learn anything. So glad Abi left her Grammar Book because I've already had to read up on things for Class 2's lessons!

I also feel very grateful that I am living with my host's family. The children are all lovely, in particular Raja (who is the same age as my brother) who always talks to us and shows us where different things are in the town. He has promised to show us all of the Ganesh celebrations (turns out Ganesh's birthday lasts one week, not one day!) so will hopefully tell you all about them later in the week.

Hello, and welcome to India!

At 4am Indian time on Tuesday 12th September, 20 tired and sticky Project Trust volunteers arrived to Hyderabad airport to be welcomed by our Assistant representative, who introduced himself as "This is Abilash, Bhavari's son". After another hour in a van with our overloaded bags strapped to the top we arrived in Secunderabad exhausted. The next couple of days were spent resting and recovering (lots of sleeping!) as well as trying out the local cuisine - as well as a couple of (very spicy) pizzas. A tiring day of orientation was followed by a meal at Bhavari and Sugathi's house (our rep and his wife) which really made me feel like part of a family and it was strange to think that we would all be going our separate ways.

The next evening Abi and I, along with two other volunteers, boarded a sleeper train to Ongole which was a bit of an adventure; with luggage bigger than us even getting on the train was a struggle! We braved the toilets (which was a hole onto the tracks), noticed a rat nibbling at our bananas, and finally attempted sleep in our tiny bunks surrounded by lots of loud snoring men. But we made it to Tangutur, and so far I am loving it! Our host, Ramana, is so friendly and helpful, even if he does do everything in Indian time. The village is bigger than we imagined and the bus stand area is full of shops which all seem to sell a mix of everything! But we know where to buy Sprite (14 rupees!) so at the moment we are happy!

The school is tiny with very limited resources, but I am really excited to start teaching some of the children who are always so smiley and bubbly - constantly waving and shaking our hands. The children use slates and chalk and there is very little paper. So far we have been 'observing' the younger classes, which has swiftly turned into teaching - saying nursery rhymes, spelling out words and teaching the alphabet. I was surprised and slightly shocked at the teaching style - the teachers seem to prefer to sit in the corner helping individual children rather than addressing the class. Their English is quite limited and they speak with thick Indian accents, so hopefully I can help them a bit too! The methods of discipline are also shocking; the slightest step out of line or mistake in an answer and the children are beaten on the head or back with a cane. It is hard to deal with because the teachers find it funny, and I am one of the teachers now. Disciplining the children in my classroom (they are so loud and excitable!) will be difficult, because they are so used to being slapped or caned. But I can't wait for a challenge and hope that the power comes back on soon so that I can get my timetable.

Ganesh's birthday tomorrow so we have a holiday - can't wait to experience my first festival!

P.S. Know lots of you have been pestering me for a blog update - the power here is on and off all the time so I never seem to be able to get access to the computer. Have found the internet cafe now though, so hopefully will update more regularly from now! Will add photos soon.

Manic Packing!

Departure day has nearly arrived and the James Household is pretty hectic - typical me leaving everything until the last minute!

Just a very short post to say a huge thank you to everyone that has supported me this far. I cannot believe I really am about to go and spend a year teaching in India. Keep your eye on this blog for (much less brief) posts on how I am getting on!

My address for those who want to keep in contact by letter:

Sri Chaitanya High School
Tangutur 523274
Prakasam District
Andhra Pradesh
India

Or you can follow me on Twitter @katiebethjames

Lots of love x

Final training on Coll

My training group including all of the India volunteers!

My final training is complete and my tickets are booked. I visited the Isle of Coll for the second time last week for my training course, so that I could improve my teaching skills, learn more about my project, and meet my partner for the year, Abi; I can now breathe a sigh of relief, because she is absolutely lovely and coincidentally from an area I know well from visiting my Grandad.

Before the Ceilidh with Johnny (my desk officer) and Abi (my partner)

The training course was very intense but extremely insightful; I feel so much more prepared for my year abroad. The sessions varied from advice about Health and Security to discussing Global Citizenship. We also had to teach two English lessons in conditions simulating those of our project. This dramatically increased my confidence in teaching  as I now know that I have the skills to teach children whose native language is completely new to me. I am particularly looking forward to planning my lessons and exploring different teaching methods - fingers crossed Abi won't tire of giving me daily help with drawing my flashcards!

Thanks to information from the volunteers working on my project this year, I have found out that resources are very limited and conditions very basic. Very few classrooms have tables and chairs, and the children write on blackboards during lessons. This in itself will be a challenge which I am keen to embrace. However, it is also important that I bring with me resources to aid my teaching. Reward stickers, coloured chalks, children's books, posters and pictures will be particularly important and I would really appreciate some help and support with the provision of these. Whether its one pack of post-it notes, a map of the world, or some packets of blutack, I would be extremely grateful for any donations and I am sure my students will be too!

In terms of fundraising, I am only a couple of hundred pounds short of my £5100 target, so thank you everyone for your generosity. The training course gave me a few more ideas for a final push to raise the last little bit of funding and I currently have two Artist Screen Prints courtesy of Artizans Editions in Brighton in my possession, so keep your eyes peeled for more information on these!

The final night was celebrated with a special dinner and a traditional Ceilidh - an amazing end to a fantastic week!

Well fed by the Project Trust cook!

My Project Profile!

After several months of intense waiting, I recently received a much anticipated letter from Project Trust telling me where I will be heading next year!

I will be based close to Ongole, a town that sits 20km north of my project on the coast of Andhra Pradesh. Ongole has a population of 400000, yet my lifestyle will be rural as the main roads quickly disappear into backstreets frequented more by chickens and cow than lane of traffic.

My school, Sri Chaittanya (Geetanjali) School, in Tangutur has both primary and secondary pupils, but I will be working in the primary and nursery sections. The school does ask fees of many of the families, but it’s nothing like you would imagine as it still lacks adequate facilities and is in quite an old building. The school also has two buses which go out each morning and again in the evening to collect and drop off students from the local area. Most of the teaching is in ‘English Medium’ and I will have a very busy timetable teaching English, Spoken English, Handwriting and General Knowledge. A lot of the subjects will have textbooks which I can follow, but I definitely need to get some practice back home in the UK first!

As I previously mentioned, there will also be opportunities to set up extra-curricular activities. As with most school timetables in India, P.E. is not included, so perhaps I will be able to do exercise with the children, as well as activities in dance, drama, art and public speaking.

In terms of accommodation, I will share a basic room with my partner (who I won’t meet until training!) upstairs from the Principal’s office. Project Trust has warned me that the facilities are very basic and the washroom facilities are not within the confines of my room. I will however be fed at the schools and can look forward to traditional rice and curry!

My life will be mainly focussed on the state of Andhra Pradesh, where most of Project Trust’s projects are based. Hyderabad, its capital, is a massive urban centre, the fifth biggest city in India; Vijayawada is its provincial cousin, and in between is a massive expanse of overwhelmingly rural land. There I will have the chance to see flat fertile plains and villages which have remained unchanged for years. There is a huge variety of crops being grown, which help to support a very traditional lifestyle, characterised by the Hindu religion that predominates, well defined gender roles, and a warmth and regard for all others which will hopefully make me feel at home.

Telegu is the language widely spoken by the state’s 75 million inhabitants, and although English is widely spoken in the towns, learning Telegu will be an important part of my year, as I am serious about creating new social and professional opportunities for myself.

Unfortunately, I need to suppress all my excitement and focus on my A Level Exams which is proving quite a challenge! I am looking forward to two weeks’ time, when I can bury myself in literature about India in general, the local religions and ways of life, and have a go at learning some Telegu. Perhaps it will be also time to practise my cooking and cleaning skills, as I won’t be able to use the ‘Revision’ excuse – the James family can expect lots of Southern India inspired curries, I’ve heard the pooris, dosas and dhals out there are to die for!

In the meantime, I am still raising some funds. I still have over £1000 to go, but I would like to thank the Chichester Lions Club, the Chichester Soroptimists and the Chichester Rotary Club for their generous donations. If anyone has any fundraising ideas, please do let me know !

Charity Concert Hits the High Notes!

A Guest Post by Colin James

An audience of over 130 guests gave rapturous applause to a range of local artists performing works from Bach to Adele at the end of a highly successful charity concert at Chichester High School for Girls last Friday evening. The event, managed by Chichester High School student, Katie James, raised over £1750 for charity Project Trust, which has selected Katie to teach English from August for a year in schools in one of the poorest regions of rural Southern India.

Chichester’s Opposite Sax hit the quality tone from the outset before handing over to xylophone virtuoso, Chris Beaumont, known for his musical connection with Sir Patrick Moore and version of “Have I got News for You!” Music lovers were then able to reflect on the outstanding quieter pieces from the Cellorinos, an all-female ensemble with their take on pieces from Ravel to Procol Harum’s “A Whiter Shade of Pale,” Breathe, the flute ensemble that won first place in the Arun Young Musician Competition as well as stunning solo performances from Andrew Martin, Adam Barker and Graham Elliott. After the first intermission Chichester Strings’ gripping performance of “Palladio” brought the guests rapidly back to their seats to be followed by Take 5’s wonderful renditions of the Glenn Miller era. Molly Peel’s beautifully evocative voice brought a contemporary feel with songs, arranged by guitarist, George Sullivan, with the event being brought to a brilliant finale by the sheer energy and improvisation of Jazz Quintet, a group arranged for the evening by Jason Mathias.

Katie, 17, who performed in four of the acts, paid tribute to the role of West Sussex Music Service for its support and development of over forty of the talented artists on show and added,

“Tonight would not have been possible without the support of an amazing backstage team of helpers from current and former local sixth form students. I also want to thank local businesses for their support for our Silent Auction.”

Big Day!

The day of my Charity Soiree has finally arrived! So excited for this evening but still so much to do - just finishing off the donation boxes (hence the mess!).


The programme for tonight: 


Opposite Sax
* * *
Chris Beaumont
Cellorinos
Andrew Martin
* * *
Chichester Strings
Take 5
Adam Barker
* * *
Breathe
George Sullivan/Molly Peel
Graham Elliott
* * *
Jazz Quintet


Silent Auction Prizes include:
- Sunday Lunch for four in The Richmond Arms at The Goodwood Hotel
- 2 entrance badges and a car park label to the Richmond Enclosure for Saturday 26th May 2012
- Two complimentary tickets to the Weald and Downland Open Air Museum
- Free admission to Nymans Gardens for 2 adults and up to 3 children 
- A Portsmouth Football signed by the team
- £50 Cassons voucher


Hope to see some of you there! 

Charity Musical Soiree, tickets now available!

Tickets are now available for this fundraising event, which should be a great night of good quality music, including performances from Adam Barker, Graham Elliott and a selection of local groups. The event will be informal with wine and other drinks and nibbles, as well as a chance to socialise around tables, rather than the typical concert setting. So bring along some friends and reserve a table now, email me at katie.beth.james@googlemail.com for more information.


Look forward to seeing you there!

Take a look at my Christmas total!

Proud to say that I have reached the £1000 mark! This is really exciting news, and has given me confidence to go on and raise the rest. Thank you for all the support so far. Take a look for yourself using the link below, or click the 'Donations' link on the right hand side of my blog.
 http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fundraiser-web/fundraiser/showFundraiserProfilePage.action?userUrl=KatieJamesIndia


Just another quick reminder to keep using my easyfundraising page to help me raise funds for free! Thank you to everyone that has had a go so far, and don't forget to use it for those last minute Christmas buys! 


Click this link or the 'EasyFundraising!' link on the right of my blog. http://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/katiejames/?u=1E53B7 

First Cake Sale Success

So its the last week of term, and time for a Christmas cake sale! Enlisted a team of bakers for a mass baking session at my house (thank you to you all) and as you can see we were successful! Over 100 cakes and 100 brownies made in one evening, boxed up and ready to sell.

Transporting all of the cakes to school in the mini was an interesting challenge, but all the cakes made it in undamaged. In the about ten minutes we took over £50, which was really exciting, and the total raised came to over £120 (minus ingredients), so overall a very successful day!


Just want to say a MASSIVE THANK YOU to my mom. Today wouldn't have been a success without you...cutting up brownies, decorating cakes, and helping with the selling...was all so helpful. xox