A Spring of Hope is focused on supporting schools in rural South Africa so it is natural that we are often supported by school children in the United States who want to help children who are the same age as them, but who live 7,000 miles away. We want to make it easy for you, as a teacher, to organize a project for your students, which is why we developed our “A Drop In The Bucket” program.
This program is designed to engage children and teach them about the World Water Crisis and A Spring of Hope’s work in South Africa through a creative curriculum. We provide interested teachers with student materials and a guide to teaching about the World Water Crisis, sharing information about their partner school in South Africa, and various fundraising ideas that have been successful in classrooms.
Our Program Director works with teachers to share information about a school in need of a borehole and/or garden project in rural South Africa. She is available to present virtually to your students about A Spring of Hope and she can advise on special fundraising projects that may interest your class.
For more information please review our Information Packet and contact us at if you are interested in getting started and/or have additional questions.
Downloads
Download the A Drop in the Bucket Information Packet here. (PDF)
Download the sample lesson program here. (WordDoc)
Download a low resolution copy of the Storybook here. (PDF)
Download a low resolution copy of the Workbook here. (PDF)
We will provide you with printed copies of both the workbook and the storybook when we send you your bucket. We are proud to use the high quality, affordable services of Printing Center USA for our booklet printing. We highly recommend them for all printing needs. For more information on all the services they provide, visit their website.
Fill Out the Form
To receive the bucket and books, please fill out the following form and we will be in touch shortly.
Recurring Donations
Collecting pennies in the bucket is one way for students to participate in elevating the lives of students in South Africa. Another way is to urge students to encourage their parents to make a recurring monthly donation. Drilling the borehole, which costs between $5,000 and $10,000, is only the first step to self-sufficiency for our partner schools. They also require funds for irrigation equipment, gardening supplies, sanitation improvements, and repairs to existing infrastructure. A recurring donation is a great way to provide the funds for these added costs. Select a monthly donation amount from the form below. You will be redirected to PayPal to finish the transaction and can cancel the monthly payment at any time through your PayPal account.
“A Drop in the Bucket” in Use
Please feel free to share with us the results of your unit on A Spring of Hope, South Africa, and the world water crisis. We’d love to hear any creative ideas on how you adapted the curriculum and to see any art created by the students. You can post it to our Facebook page or email
Kristin Fredriksson of Woodland Elementary School in Costa Mesa, CA introduced the program to her second grade class and raised $532 for Salani Primary School in Welverdiend, South Africa. Kristin and her husband then matched the amount, making the total donation $1000. She expanded on the basic ideas provided by A Spring of Hope and did an entire unit on South Africa. To inspire the children, she taught them Michael Jackson’s “Man in the Mirror”, whose message really resonated with them. They learned about Nelson Mandela and did a Venn Diagram, comparing him to Dr. Martin Luther King. They created art and wrote an amazing essay about Mandela, where the students decided which character traits he most embodies. They also watched a video called “Eureka, The Boy Who Flew South Africa”, about an 8-year-old boy who travels from his shantytown to the city just to attend school and compared their lives to his. For Science, they discussed different uses for water, and brainstormed on ways to reduce consumption at school and home. They then collected dirty water from puddles formed from recent rains and used different materials (nylon, coffee filters, socks, etc.) to determine which was the best filter. The students were completely engaged and totally immersed in the country and difficulties the children and people face.
We are so grateful to Kristin and her second grade students for their amazing work, motivation, kindness, interest in and support for Salani Primary and A Spring of Hope!
Below is a sampling of the wonderful art Kristin’s students created as part of their studies.
