Letters of thanks from Africa inspire Sparta geography students

Sparta - Two years ago, students in Carol Sobiechowski’s seventh grade world geography classes at Sparta Middle School collected over $600 to fund the construction of security gates for a South African school’s computer equipment. She hopes those students, now in high school, will see the letters of thanks she received recently from the African students, and know that their hard work and generosity was appreciated. The letters also serve as inspiration to the present students, who would like to continue the relationship with the African students. The initial purpose of Sobiechowski’s lesson two years ago was to learn about Africa. Coincidentally, her students learned that one of their classmates, Nelly Adamietz, was the cousin of Brooke Bender, a Peace Corps volunteer in Africa. With the help of Adamietz, the students were able to send e-mails to Bender, who told the Sparta students about life in Africa as a Peace Corps member. Her job was teaching students in three schools outside Pretoria, South Africa. Sparta Middle School students learned about the similarities and differences of the education systems in Sparta and South Africa. In her e-mails, Bender told the Sparta students about three different projects she was trying to raise money for. The Sparta students responded by raising $600 in three weeks. (Please see the attached letters from Africa.)