You might say the Shaik sisters are well traveled. At 14 and 16 years old, Amara and Aneesa Shaik have already stepped foot in 16 countries, lived in India for a year and visited Nicaragua. Twice. And while most of their trips have found their parents tagging along, their recent month-long trip to Nicaragua, was pretty much on their own.
The idea to return to Nicaragua was prompted by Aneesa’s Honors Orchestra project at Newport High School, where both girls attend. Interested in making the project something she was really passionate about, the world traveler decided to create a music curriculum for children in a Spanish-speaking country.
“At first, I thought, this is going to be so easy because I’m really good at Spanish, and I’m so good at music,” Aneesa said. “But it was really not easy.”
Expanding on the lesson, and actually going to Nicaragua, was her idea. But if Aneesa was going to make the trip happen, it wasn’t going to be easy.
First, her sister Amara would be joining her. Second, the girls’ parents, Google researcher Dawn and physician Moin, had a list of pre-requisites: Find an adult who was willing to travel with them at the family’s expense who can stay for at least half the month; take self-defense; pay for half the ticket; and plan their own volunteer experience.
Both girls got on the task list right away. They made a list of possible adult travelers (the winner was Katie, who was the Shaik’s babysitter in Wichita, Kan.) and enlisted their Uncle Bobo & Aunt TJ – who used to teach combat skills in the US Army – for self-defense. To pay for their tickets, Aneesa opted out of holiday presents and Amara taught flute lessons.
In regard to their individual projects, Aneesa’s was already taking shape – and Amara planned to work as her sister’s assistant. When Aneesa asked friends and family to donate money to help her buy a set of rhythm instruments, and she raised twice as much as she needed within days, plans changed a bit.
“I felt like, if we had extra money, that I should try and do something on my own,” said Amara, who decided to teach paper quilling.
The girls arranged to hold their lessons at the Libraries For All headquarters, a nonprofit organization they worked with in 2010. But upon arriving in San Juan Del Sur on June 23, things did not go as planned: The person in charge of nonprofit Libraries For All headquarters, where they planned to hold their classes, was out of town. They also had no students – and were at a loss.
Thankfully, the organization connected them with a couple who helped them connect with the nearby school and get settled. After recruiting a handful of students, the girls taught their first lesson half-way through their second week.
“Once everything finally got organized and we were teaching for real, it was a huge learning experience,” Aneesa said, “even though we were the teachers.”
The first thing the pair learned? That they might not be cut out for teaching.
“I could do one-on-one tutoring, but the crowd control thing –no,” Aneesa said.
The girls said the fluctuating class sizes also proved discouraging, as they sometimes weren’t sure if anyone would show.
Even so, the trip proved worthwhile. For Aneesa, it came in the form of a 9-year-old girl who took her music class.
“She was just an incredible student,” Aneesa said. “She understood everything, she caught on to everything.”
It was at that moment, Aneesa said, she realized what she was doing mattered.
“It didn’t matter if I had 12 students and only four of them showed up consistently,” Aneesa said. “I made a difference in that girl’s life.”
For Amara, it was the combination of it all – teaching, speaking another language and taking in the local culture.
“You’ll learn a lot in school,” Amara said. “But life lessons make you who you are.”
