Dear Friends,
It has been a dream to one day live and work in Africa. Recently, I had the privilege of visiting the nation of Zambia.
Zambia is a beautiful land-locked country, with 19.2 million people. It has incredible wildlife, amazing scenic places, and lovely nature parks such as Kafue National Park. The people are friendly and very generous in hospitality. During my first time there I was able to visit several schools, both rural and within the city of Lusaka. In many of the junior classrooms that I spent time in, there was very little resources and very little time spent where children could engage in creative play. Having worked as a Pre-School and Primary teacher in New Zealand I have come to see that there is a need for a balanced approach in education; that there is a place for both Formal and Child-play learning in the formative years. Now I have the opportunity of living in Zambia with my husband Damian and there is an opportunity to be more involved in helping schools, by coming alongside, empowering and resourcing teachers so that they have a sense of being equipped in their teaching practice. We have the opportunity to resource some of the schools that we visited, also providing an on-going mentorship service. In no way do I want to take away from what the amazing Zambian teachers are already doing but rather to have a collaborative  approach and to come along side in more of a mentoring role, to encourage and provide support. It is just a small but practical way that I feel I can provide practical help to a real need over there. However, I would love for people to join the journey and to partner with the work over here. That is why I have felt to start a creative business called ‘Tinkerbird Design and Co.’ In creating a gift boutique, it is my passion to sell affordable gifts that not only raise awareness but also brings a message of hope, reminding people of the practical way that they can also help. The money will go towards initially starting up the business but long-term it is a desire to be able to create ‘Educational Kits’ for the schools. An Educational Kit known as a ‘Tinkerbird Box’ will come with both manuals and resources that will equip teachers in Classroom Management, Child-play, and in addition it will have hands-on resources for the teachers and students to use within the classroom. Manuals will also support teacher’s practice in various topics, such as Child-play and Setting up a Classroom. If you would like to somehow be involved or to support this please don’t hesitate to send a note, it would be lovely to have you part of the journey!  

So with that, welcome to the journey and thanks for being here!

Much love,

Susanna Marie Newmarch

‘Tinkerbird Design and Co’