What a week of rugby we have had here in SESI Araras. This week's name was 'Let's Play'. And we did just that! Everything the kids have taken in over the last eight weeks got put into practice playing small sided and full sided TAG Rugby games with all age groups. And I have to say, I was very impressed. At the beginning of the week it was the older guys and girls, and they struggled to get to grips with the idea of running with the ball in hand. Following a conversation with one of the teachers here, I finally got to the bottom of why nearly every child initially freezes and then runs backwards when they catch the ball. From a very young age, basically when they can walk, sport becomes a huge part of life here and they begin to learn. However, they are taught that when they gain possession to stop for a second and assess the situation, whereas in rugby, as we all know, the support player will assess the situation and then move into an advantageous position to gain possession and make ground. However, I am pleased to say that in one week I have managed to undermine many years of teaching for a large number of the kids, getting them attacking ball in hand and running into space! Some cracking tries and some even more impressive offloads were great to see. The festivals at the end of the month / term are looking very hopefully indeed!

With only three weeks of teaching left this term, and sadly just three weeks of blogs for me in Araras, I am very proud of the work the staff and kids have put in to embrace Rugby. I forget sometimes that it is just a mystery to them! I still get stopped in the street and asked if I am the English rugby teacher at SESI or recognised by the man who works in the post office whose son I teach. There is a huge future here for Rugby and I am very happy and again proud to have been part of the beginnings of that future!

Outside Rugby, we have had a massive event here called 'Robotica'. This event is one of a kind and is growing globally at a serious speed. It is a programme to combine fun, imagination, creativity, engineering and problem solving. Elderly people face problems every day, especially with mobility. These problems are down sized and built out of Lego and teams from different schools build robots out of Lego to beat them, for example fetching something off a high shelf. The robots are controlled by computer programming so once it's set off that's it! It is astonishing what has been achieved - they really are incredible! And, it being Brazil, the day turned into a giant party with dancing, singing, drums, lights and anything else you can think of!

Well that's all from me, I know it's not as warm in England as it is here, but I hope everyone has a great weekend pulling on their white or checked shirts to support our boys!

Tchau