I’m greatly inspired by what could appear to be just a simple email exchange between the U.S. and Kantolomba team.
Each week the folks in Kantolomba send an account of how the English lessons are progressing, along with questions about particular aspects of the curriculum and/or general English-usage queries. The Sangha volunteers on this side respond. In the great care, attention to detail, and dedication on both sides I see a process of love. There is willingness to look, to be curious, and an eagerness to expand and grow.
No one on either side is “getting anything” for this in the conditioned sense. There are no big salaries, no important titles or public recognition; there is just the love of all involved. In some ways you could say it is “too late” for most of the folks in the cooperative who are stewarding the English learning process—they are well beyond the age where perfect English will launch them into a lucrative career. BUT, they oversee more than 800 children for whom it makes a tremendous difference.
I project it is the love that we all receive in the process that drives the dedication, the curiosity, and the generosity of care and attention. I get goose-bumps every time I read the exchanges. We have put one below for you to read first-hand.
If love can be demonstrated and experienced in English grammar, well, surely everything is possible!
Gassho,
Jen
Greetings from Zambia right here in Kantolomba.
This week our trivia words are THERE and THEIR.
Example:
There are three girls in that classroom.
In their classroom they are only three girls.
These two sentences seem to confuse the team here. Please elaborate to show them which is correct and which is wrong.
LOVE,
THE TEAM
Dear Theresa and Team,
Greetings to Kantolomba! Another great question. "There" and "their" can get mixed up, can't they, because they sound the same but mean different things. Let's start by looking at the differences between them:
THEIR has to do with possession; it means "belonging to them," to the people or things you have just mentioned.
For example:
After the children had finished eating lunch, they washed their hands.
At the end of the day, the carpenters put away up their tools and went home.
We use THERE to refer to “in, at, or to that place” - in other words, not here.
For example:
It took them an hour to get there by bus.
Where is she? Over there by the water pump.
THERE is also used to talk about the fact or existence of something.
For example:
There are lots of good books in the Living Compassion library.
There is a good source of clean water at Living Compassion.
Now we have looked at the differences between "there" and "their," let's look at the two examples you gave:
There are three girls in that classroom.
In their classroom they are only three girls.
Can you see that in your first example, we are using "there are" to talk about the existence of something? There are three girls in that classroom.
And can you see that in your second example, we are using "their" to mean "belonging to them"? In their classroom...
Can you see, too, that in your second example, instead of "they are only three girls," we need to use "there"? In their classroom there are only three girls. We use "they" as the subject of the sentence. For example:
What are the girls doing? They are singing.
Where are the books? They are over there, on the table.
Here are some suggestions for ways to practice using there and their:
For the more advanced English speakers: carry your notebooks with you. Every day for the next seven days, make a note of one example of when you have used or heard "there," and one example of when you have used or heard "their."
Send some of your examples in your next report, one from each person, perhaps?
For the beginning English speakers: advanced speakers, explain to the rest of the team in Bemba the difference between "there" and "their." Give some examples to practice with. Some suggestions: "Ask the children to wash their hands." "Remind the children to wash their dishes." "How many children are in the classroom? There are seven children in the classroom."
For everyone, practice the pronunciation of "there" and "their." Remember that if you're not laughing yet, you haven't practiced enough! And remember, there and their sound the same!
How are you getting on with your "the" and "a" practice? We would love to hear what you are finding out about them, even if it is just a short report! And let us know if you have any more questions about them.
Looking forward to hearing what you find out about "there" and "their."
With love to everyone,
The U.S. Team