Let's Go To Africa!

This week, we're visiting a boy named William Kamkwamba in Malawi.  
​Can you find his country on a map of the continent of Africa?  

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The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind

When 14-year-old William Kamkwamba's Malawi village was hit by a drought in 2001, everyone's crops began to fail. His family didn't have enough money for food, let alone school, so William spent his days in the library. He came across a book on windmills and figured out how to build a windmill that could bring electricity to his village. Everyone thought he was crazy but William persevered and managed to create a functioning windmill out of junkyard scraps. Several years later he figured out how to use the windmill for irrigation purposes

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Let's Make a Windmill

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Resources to Learn More

Here are some great library books and materials for learning about windmills and wind energy!

Wind energy by Kris Woll

When the wind blows by Stacy Clark

The boy who harnessed the wind by William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer

Bringing the rain to Kapiti Plain : a Nandi tale by Verna Aardema

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Here are some great YouTube videos about windmills, wind energy, William Kamkwamba, and his country of Malawi in Africa!