Gabriel's Botswana Classroom

I love the kids I met in Botswana!

My Story

I visited several schools in Botswana. The teachers are good but they don't have enough classroom space or materials. At Bonnington, my mom is going to provide professional development to help the teachers, but they only have paper and markers for supplies.

The Teachers are Very Excited

Here is an email my mom received today from the special education teacher there.


Current Classroom Space


Bonnington Jr. Seconday School has 50 kids with disabilities. This is the whole classroom space for all of those children. They don't have any reading books or math books. They only have chart paper and markers. The booklets on the table are used for the children without disabilities.

Kopelo Pelong-Music from the Heart

When I visited, I played to violin for the students with disabilities. The kids, who were my age, were interested in learning to play instruments, too. Our friend in Botswana, Barry Nolan, has a non-governmental organization (NGO) called Kopelo Pelong, which means Music from the Heart in Setswana. He is going to give music lessons to the kids. Right now, there isn't any classroom space for that.

Kids Have Class Outside

How much do I need?

(These are estimates because you can bargain for these prices in Africa. The dollar is stronger than the Pula so we can make a little go a long way.)

The Classroom (BASIC)

For $100, I can buy 170 bricks. It will take 672 bricks to build the building. I need 36 bags of mortar. We will need 4 cubic yards of sand.


Cost for bricks: $400
Mortar: $100
Sand: $60
Labor: $1000

I need money for a roof, but I don't know how much that will cost. I will update the site when I know.

Basic School Supplies

I can pack 100 pounds of materials when I go there. My school, St. Anne's Belfield, Charlottesville, VA, will help me get some supplies. My mom can buy more in South Africa when we get there.

Paper, pencils, children's books: $500

Curriculum Materials

Curriculum materials for math and reading: $1000

Travel Costs

$3,000 for two plane tickets to take the supplies. My mom will give free reading instruction to the teachers. I will help build the building and work with the children.

What if we raise more?

If I raise $5,000, we can build an entire classroom. That is like 50,000 Pula. If I raise $10,000, we can build the classroom with shelves, and a bathroom, tables and cabinets; and we can buy curriculum materials and musical instruments for the school.

Please consider helping with my campaign.