Wednesday October 21, 2009

Hi Everyone,

A note to the inexperienced teacher:

If you are ever in a situation where your class does not have enough seats/desks, take a special note of who does not have a seat. In the rare (please note the obvious sarcasm) event that your class gets a bit rowdy and a few students are out of their seats it is helpful to know which students don't have a seat to return to. So, before you hastily tell your students to return to their seats, think fast and make sure their seat exists! It is also helpful to understand the language so you understand all the things your 18 wild students are getting excited and worked up about!

Needless to say, today was eventful. I made my students rotate so the same kids weren't stuck w/out a desk and chair which was good for the students but challenging for me. I really like all of my 5th and 6th graders though so it is easier to handle the very-nearly-out-of-control moments!

Tonight my church celebrated Father's Day. It was quite an event and one I'd gladly repeat. If you were a father her you would have gotten turtle, fish, chicken, (and I bet pig but I never actually saw it to be sure), ramen, rice, rolls, and donuts presented to you by all the women of the church. You would have also received a flower crown and a toothbrush or deodorant as a gift. All of the women sang for the men and patiently waited for the men to finish eating before they ate. I don't know how the women do it. THey didn't eat until quarter to 9! I would have been starving!

Bona fed me before the party cause she knows I get hungry "early" (even though 6 doesn't really seem early to me)/ I also got to eat at the same time as the men. I got donuts, rolls, rice, and turtle. Let me tell you a secret, turtle is DELICIOUS!!!! I ate it only guessing it was turtle (it's funny how often I am unaware of what I'm eating here and somehow I survive) until I was nearly done when a sweet lady asked me if the turtle was good. I can't really describe the taste but the texture was like a beef roast. I hope I get to eat it again! :)

By the way, my unexpected turkey is still the best (my fav) meat I've had here, but turtle and hot dogs are a close second. Ha ha ha!

There was a fight today at school. A 5th and 6th grader were fighting over something that I never quite understood. The principal broke it up but not for quite a while. The thing is, all of the 7th and 8th graders were around just watching (and probably encouraging) the fight. Why, you might ask, were the 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th graders not in class? I don't know. It probably has something to do with the fact that each day at least 2 teachers miss school. Some of the teachers haven't been to school since Tuesday (which you might recall was their first day teaching as well). It is annoying; at any given time just under half of our students are NOT in class. I want to take a vacation.

As I write I am looking out my window and I bet you can't guess what I see. All of the 5th and 6th graders are trying to catch a bird. By trying I mean they have caught it and probably injured it , then they let it go again just to catch it. Poor thing.

Other than teaching, not much changes from day to day. Last night I got to watch the Prince of Egypt because a new family on the island (the pastors family) has a nice collection of movies. The mom (can't remember her name) let me borrow some. I've now seen High School Musical 3, Journey to the Center of the Earth, and the Prince of Egypt. It's been a fun 2 weeks w/movies. We even watched HSM 3 on a school night!

Love,

Heidi

Sunday October 18, 2009

TOday at lunch I was like a starving wild cave girl. I was served what looked like chicken, a drumstick and something like a breast and leg, and was excited it wasn't fish! After further inspection I knew my food wasn't a chicken from Kaben (I've eaten enough of those to know what they look like) so I asked Bona what it was. "Turkey," she said as if it was as normal as fish. TURKEY!!!! I didn't believe her but after my fist bite I knew she was right. TURKEY!!!!!!! It was so delicious! Turkey on Kaben? I was in heaven because I love turkey and it wasn't fish! I couldn't believe how intensely I picked the meat off the bones. Being my niave (and spoiled?) self I wasn't quite sure where to seach for my meat but it didn't take me long to find it. I even hit a jackpot with what I think was the best white meat I've ever eaten. TURKEY!!!!

You might be wondering where the turkey came from. Well, yesterday a plane came and someone in Majuro bought these turkey parts for Bona, put them in a big container/bin and sent it on the plane. Today she served it to me! I'll tell you two things I ignored that I don't think I'd ignore in different circumstances. First, my meat was a pretty pink all over; and second, the meat had definitely not been in a fridge for at least 1 1/2 days. I ate it knowing both of those facts and SAVORED every bite.

Today church was an hour and a half which is much longer than the 30 min. I'm used to. We got a new pastor and I think he means business!! Church did consist of a lot of singing of different groups like the youth, the middle aged, and the older folks. I really enjoyed it! When my students were up there singing I was so proud! :)

WHile my students were singing I was also trying to figure out how many of them I didn't know still (most Kinder and 1st graders) and tried to figure out how many students came on the plane (I think 4 but I'll know tomorrow!).

The plane also brought my infamous principal, Tuna. I believe I'm in for quite a treat now that our school is fully staffed at 6 (instead of the 2 for 5 months then the 3 for the past 2 weeks) and the students will have a full schedule! I imagine my schedule will change yet again and I'm excited to see what it will be.

Monday October 19

Alright, new and improved schedule!

8:15-9:15 Reading 7/8

9:15-10:15 Reading 5/6

10:15-10:30 Recess

10:30-11:30 MATH!!!! 8 :)

11:30-12:15 Reading 3/4

12:15-1:15 LUNCH

1:15-2:00 PREP!!!! :)

2:00-2:45 English Language Arts 5/6

2:45-3:30 English Language Arts 7/8

I am thrilled about this new schedule. Yes my school day is now 30 minutes longer and my lunch is 15 minutes shorter but now I get to teach MATH!!!! :) Granted, I don't actually know enough Marshallese to teach in Marshallese but the books are in English and I believe math can be taught with few words (this is not in my letter but now, I learned math is HARD to teach with few words....can anyone say WORD PROBLEMS! Ha ha ha ha!!!). I'm so excited!!!

My 5/6 classes are going to be a challeng3e because I know have 18 students but I only have seats for 12 students. Good thing we're used to sitting on the floor here cause that's the only place I have to put them. I wonder how that will effect the dynamics of my class....only time will tell. It also sucks cause if I ever decide to be ambitious and make a worksheet or play BINGO (I've made 12 BINGO boards so far!) I have to make 18! How nice a copier would be right about now.

Tomorrow (Tuesday Oct 20-Happy Birthday Grandpa!) will be the first day of our new schedule and our full teaching staff! Things can only get better.

My principal also said she will talk to the Ministry of Education about getting text books out here. I think I can expect them by Feb. but cross your fingers and hope they come soon cause I imagine life will get a bit easier with them. Who knows, maybe I'll get them and not use them (I can't imagine that) but I'd love to have the option.

Math will be interesting but I'm ready for the challenge. My students do have math books at least. Some of my 8th graders can't do simply addition but I'm going to change that! I can't wait for tomorrow at 10:30! :)

Other interesting news, I took my magazines to school to let my students find pictures to use for a project we're doing. It was interesting to see what the popular pictures were: cars, families, and food. Also, many of my older boys put really good looking men on their covers (People did a best looking bachelor section....mmmmmmm good looking men!). I think they liked the muscles, that's my guess anyway.

And now I have new classes to plan for!

Can't wait to hear from everyone again (to date it's only been 3 weeks since my last mail.)

Much love,

Heidi

Sunday December 13

For all of you who haven't heard, I have returned to the states indefinitely (this post on the rest from here on out will be written by me). It is with mixed emotions that I share this news but unfortunately I have some personal matters awaiting me here that requires my immediate attention.

I wished many days out there that I could be home, but at the end of the day I was always impressed by the experiences I had and left with a heavy heart. My principal will be teaching my classes which gives me great comfort because I do believe she will be a more affective teacher than I was.

I slowly, but surely, grew to love my host family and I dearly miss my host mom Bona and my 2-year old sister Roxiana who became the light and joy of my days!! Her smile was contagious and her laugh could make anyone smile.

I am excited to be home with delicious food, quick communication, and a bug-free world (well at least compared to Kaben) but I will miss the challenges and rewards of being in Kaben. Some days were LONG and HARD but I have learned more and grown more than I ever imagined possible. My time there is invaluable and I will forever carry these experiences with me.

Thank you for all of your support, as it made the past 5 months mean even more!

I will now try to fill in on the past 2 months since I actually arrived home before my mail (go figure!).

Love,

Heidi