| On the 10th of October 2006 the new
nursery building was finally opened. The children formed a procession that
marched from the old, decrepit building to the brand new, much larger and
better equipped new building. Apart from one or two campus children,
the nursery children all come from the local area and are all Sinhala
speaking. Rosemary is the Faculty member in charge of the Nursery. She is
grateful for her experience of relating to such groups in her British
Circuits! It will also be good for her Sinhala! |
Here the Principal, Reverend
Dr. Jebanesan cuts the ribbon to open the nursery building. Since
the opening the number of children enrolled has grown from 32 to 42.
There are now three nursery teachers whose salaries are paid from the
nursery fees each parent pays. Originally the nursery was free, funded
by the college. However, when another nursery opened up nearby and charged
fees, many parents moved their children in the belief that something must be
better if paid for. So, in order to remain credible, the TCL nursery
now charges (reasonable) fees although some parents are asked for very little. The
fact that the salaries are directly paid from the fee income helps ensure
collection of the fees. |
|
Here we see the children, parents, some TCL students and staff getting
ready to eat the kiribath (milk rice) and bananas. The dim
appearance is due to smoke from the indoor fire used to boil the milk,
an auspicious Sri Lankan sign used to bless the new house. |
The playground is enclosed by a new wire fence within which there are
swings and a climbing frame (not shown). Here we see Rosemary and
her Sri Lankan colleague, Arlene McShane, helping some children plant a
tree. |
