English Vocabulary

Story Of Stuff PlayPumps Provide Water and Fun For kids in many rural parts of Africa, the colorful PlayPump is the first playground equipment they’ve ever seen. When they give a push and jump onboard for their first ride, smiles of wonder break out on their faces. The fun of whirling in a circle is just part of the amazement. As the merry-go-round spins, it pumps clean water up from deep underground and stores it in a huge tank. In rural Africa, clean water is a luxury. Patricia Molope, 17, explains that before her South African village got a PlayPump, people would pay a taxi driver to take them to a far-off well. The exhausting chore of carrying water traditionally falls to women and girls. Thanks to the PlayPump, getting water is quick and easy—and even boys join in. Two sides of each tank carry educational messages that remind people about good health practices like battling germs through hand-washing. Twelve-year-old Siyabulisiwe Khumalo lives in a South African community called Diepsloot. Fast Facts: