Sixth Form Tanzania Trip
Last year, in collaboration with Challenges Abroad, St Bart’s were successful in an application to the Department of Education’s Turing Scheme. This scheme offers education providers the opportunity for funding to support students with study and work placements around the world. On securing the funding, our Sixth Form students were selected to be part of a global citizen project supporting the work of the Future Sense Foundation in two primary schools in Arusha Tanzania.
On 28 March 2025, 30 amazing Year 12 students, accompanied by staff: Mr Wilder, Ms Moore, Mrs Shopland and Mr Bateman embarked on a trip of a lifetime to Arusha, Tanzania. Our first flight was to Ethiopia where we were in transit for a few hours. Then we took our second flight to Kilimanjaro airport in Tanzania. Whilst we were away, we stayed at the beautiful Africa Lodge in Arusha Tanzania. This area became our home for two weeks where we slept, ate vegetarian food (to decrease our carbon footprint and be more sustainable), planned our afternoon lessons, and then spent evenings playing cricket, football and tennis (and sometimes with the locals). We also enjoyed local walks on some evenings, which took us around surrounding areas and varying landscapes. We all enjoyed a magical walk to watch the sunset behind Mount Meru. There was never a moment where we all weren’t enjoying ourselves! We visited a local Masai market which was full of vibrancy, rich colours, African music, local foods and crafts, and then went on to the African Arts and Culture centre which displayed a wealth of local artwork and sculptures.
St Bart’s students were given the task of in the mornings of cultivating a plot of land and once the ground had been prepared, planting vegetables that would serve the school community. Many of the children in the schools would go without lunch. By planting vegetables and fruit trees, we would help provide the schools with healthy lunches for the children and the school community. Tanzania during March and April, is considered to be the rainy season, but we were all surprised by how green and lush Arusha was, with temperatures reaching nearly 30 degrees every day! We did experience torrential downpours, but once the rain stopped, everything dried up really quickly and the sun came out. Everyone worked tirelessly to prepare the land (despite very muddy conditions) and plant the crops – both schools were really pleased with the end results.
In the afternoons, the objective was to plan and deliver lessons and learning activities, to Year 5 and 6 children. Our students were taught basic Swahili at our accommodation, which helped them communicate with the children and was also used to incorporate into their lesson plans. The Tanzanian children were taught basic English language techniques through reading together, singing songs, craft activities, games (indoors and outside) and writing. Despite a language barrier, it was wonderful to see our St Bart’s students develop a special connection with the Tanzanian children exchanging cultures and really learning so much from each other. Every day, students came up with many exciting and engaging ideas to deliver to the children. We were also treated to some wonderful spontaneous songs and dances from the children which we all joined in with. So much joy and happiness was had by all. On the last day at the schools, Mr Wilder organised a huge football match between both schools and all our students. There must’ve been about 300 people on the pitch! It was a fantastic event enjoyed by everyone.
After our first week of gardening and teaching, we spent a full day at Tarangire National Park on Safari. We left very early in the morning in a convoy of five jeeps and travelled three hours to the park. We were lucky enough to see Elephants, Zebras, Monkeys and Baboons, Impala, Buffalo, Warthogs, Ostriches and a Secretary bird. Out of nowhere, a herd of Giraffes appeared about two metres away from us which was absolutely incredible and a fantastic end to what was such a memorable day. Tarangire is a national park in Tanzania’s Manyara Region. The name of the park originates from the Tarangire River that crosses the park. The Tarangire River is the primary source of fresh water for wild animals in the Tarangire Ecosystem during the annual dry season.
On the Sunday we visited Baraka’s beautiful family run coffee plantation high up in the hills near Mount Meru, a peaceful oasis situated amongst the banana trees, and an abundance of hibiscus flowers. Baraka Coffee Farm offered an outstanding 2.5 hour experience from start to finish. We were welcomed with lemongrass and ginger tea before diving into an educational journey through the entire coffee-making process from tree to cup. We were amazed to witness every step, including harvesting from the trees, grinding, drying, deseeding, sifting, roasting, grinding again, and finally brewing the coffee. Drinking coffee that you’ve seen processed from start to finish was a unique and rewarding experience. It was a full family operation, complete with songs accompanying many of the steps, which added a special charm. We finished the visit with a traditional Swahili breakfast and of course, a cup or two of freshly brewed coffee made by us all.
We visited Tumaini University Makumira which specialises in music and took part in a drumming and dance workshop which was great fun – a lot of hidden talent came to surface amongst our students and staff – especially Mr Wilder’s dance skills! Afterwards, we were treated to an hour of traditional African dance and drumming. The Cultural Arts Centre is a thriving centre of music and dancing, both traditional and contemporary, in the Arusha area. It is located behind Tumaini University in Makumira. The CAC mission is to provide a safe space for learning, creating, doing and sharing the arts.
This incredible two weeks closed with an ‘awards night’, at which students presented awards to our amazing hosts and the Future Sense Foundation staff. Teachers then took turns presenting students with individual personalised speeches and awards which ended with a karaoke finale that went on into the evening. One of our final highlights of the trip, was as we were leaving Tanzania, walking out onto the runway to our plane, turning around and seeing the magnificent snow-capped Mount Kilimanjaro in the distance. A sight we will all never forget. It was a life changing trip, both students and staff will never forget. ‘Asante sana Tanzania’.
Mr Wilder, Co-Head of Sixth Form, said: “We are so proud of our students embracing the global citizen element of this project and meeting every challenge with bravery and spirit. Each student brought their unique personality and had their own personal journey in different ways. It was a truly remarkable experience with memories that will last a lifetime. The joy of the Tanzanian people will stay with us for a very long time. A huge thank you to the team at Challenges Abroad and the Future Sense Foundation for making this happen and sharing our vision.”
“Undoubtedly the best experience of my life. I am so grateful to have been given the opportunity to really make a difference in so many children’s lives and to get a feel for the amazing Tanzanian culture. I couldn’t have asked for anything more!”
Charlie Seymour
“The two weeks that we spent in Tanzania were the best two weeks of my life. I know this sounds cliché, but it is the utmost truth. From having learnt about the history, the culture, the language and so much more, I have come home feeling so much more enriched. I think the rest of the people on the trip will agree with me when I say that the best part was engaging with and teaching the children in the two schools where we volunteered. Their eagerness to learn, their laughter and their zest for life truly was one of the most inspiring things we encountered whilst out there; even though they are not as fortunate as we are to have been afforded the same opportunities as us, they carry on being grateful for what they do have and smiling whilst doing so. This especially was a key takeaway from our time in Africa and I for one would go back in a heartbeat and do it all again, just to see the joy on the children’s faces when our buses arrived at their schools. Thanks so much to St Bart’s for this experience, and to anyone thinking about taking a similar adventure to help and support developing communities, you won’t regret it!”
Fleur Creuteur
“Settling back down now and I still struggle to put into words how incredibly fortunate and grateful I am to have had this amazing opportunity. This trip has seriously changed my view on everything, and I feel honoured to have been selected to experience the Tanzanian culture and way of life. It is truly something remarkable and is singlehandedly the best thing I have EVER done.
The people I flew out with were some of the kindest, most generous, and determined people I have ever met. Their positivity and strive to benefit the children helped elevate this life-changing experience to another level. I seriously don’t think I would have enjoyed it anywhere near as much as I did if it wasn’t for the amazing community of people. I’m sure I’ve made long-lasting friendships as a result.
To sum up this experience. I can’t. To see the comparison between our lives and those of just one Tanzanian child is purely shocking and eye-opening. Which is why it filled me and my 30 peers with so much pride and sense of achievement when we built the 2 allotments that will feed them for months. Not to mention the teaching that felt incredibly rewarding as we learnt Swahili to teach them life skills and cover other important topics.
The level of gratuity I have towards everything has been altered massively as a result of this trip, and it is something that I will be eternally grateful for. The people. The teachers. It was something that I will never forget and it has been an absolute privilege to experience it with amazing people. I would do it again in a heartbeat.”
Harry Lardner
Article and photos by Ms Moore.
