Tuesday, September 13, 2011

back in the groove

We have been back at school for a whole week now and I have to say I'm quite impressed with the way my students are adapting to our new schedule of having both grades together all the time. Apart from the classroom being a little louder then I like (which is to be expected), things are working out rather smoothly. It's funny how quickly we fall back into the routines.

My students are currently studying 'animals' in science class and have been keeping my on my toes with some great questions. i however have not been able to answer them all and was wondering if anyone can answer this one:

"How come an oppossum (and bat) can hang upside down and all the blood doesn't rush to it's head like it would in a human?"

The obvious answer is that they're created differently but that wasn't a satisfying answer for them. :S

We also had an interesting discussion today about angels and demons. It's crazy what their little minds can come up with and yet they can't get their minds around (what we might consider) "simple" math or language promblems. Kids sure keep life interesting! :)

Nothing too exciting planned for this week so I might not blog for awhile...

Thursday, September 8, 2011

off to a good start!

Our first day went well... for grade 1 & 2 it's really just a reminder of the rules, checking out the "new" things in the classroom (which includes a computer this term... we'll see how long that lasts) and getting to know each other again. It's only 1/2 a day of classes so we spent a lovely afternoon swimming, splashing and generally having fun at the pool and river. the water was freezing but the sun was so warm it felt rather refreshing.:) we ended the day by finishing up the movie "Milo and Otis" which the kids started on Tuesday night. Overall a good day.

Today however is when the real work begins. Right into class work and such this morning. We'll see how it goes having both grades in the classroom at all times...

Tuesday, September 6, 2011

laughter breaks the silence

The peaceful, relaxing silence has now been replaced with children's laughter and shouts and a sense of excitement. TOday the students are coming back to school and tomorrow begins our third and final term of the 2011 school year.

the past few days i've been busy desparately trying to get my classroom in order (i left it in a bit of a mess) and figuring out my schedule and what i'm teaching etc. of course i could have done that anytime over the past 6 weeks, but i am such a procrastinator that i always leave it till the last minute... praise the Lord it's done now. i'm not fully organized curriculm wise, but that will sort itself out over the next few days. it will be an interesting term in that i'll be teaching all the core classes to both grades. this means that i'll have both grades in the classroom when teaching math, language/phonics, and reading. usually we try to split them up at this time and have one teacher teaching math to one grade while the other grade is having language with another teacher. unfortunately we don't have the staff for that this term. I will be getting some help though as we have 3 more young ladies coming to help out for 6 wks. i've requested one as a TA. I'm not sure who it'll be yet as they don't arrive until Sept 15th. I guess i'll just have to wing-it until then. Another short termer who has come to help out wherever he's needed is Michael Geesey. He's a Sakeji alumni so it's nice that he could make it back for a visit.

Some prayer requests for this term:
1) That my students will work hard and finish the year strong
2) For those who are struggling to get the extra assistance they need
3) That we'll have a great term; that God will give the teacher's the patience and engergy they need and that Christ's love will shine abundantly in our school.