January 14,2011

Well, the 1^st week of school is officially over and I survived J by the grace of God. The first two days were basically orientation and many of the kids did not show up until Wednesday due to the heavy rains in the morning. I am thankful that the Lord has been giving me the grace and strength to do what he has called me to do. There are so many things that I am having to adjust and adapt to while teaching. By the end of the week I was finally fairly comfortable with the format of teaching. My final number of students will be between 25-30. The classroom poses an interesting dynamic in that the pupils are somewhat fascinated with me but also testing me to see what they can get away with. After the first day I felt like I had just refereed the entire day. Breaking up fights, telling kids to stop talking and do their work, reminding them that we don’t walk across the tables or chairs and oh yeah teaching the lessons. J We are still waiting on the new tables and chairs to be built for my class so for the time being we are using the small plastic chairs the 3-4yr olds use in the mornings and the short tables from the 5 yr old classroom. So I am sure things are a little uncomfortable for the kids. I am using a small chalkboard, which is less than half the size of the one I used in the states. This poses its own issues being that ALL information and notes the pupils need to know must be written on the board for them to copy. I can only fit so much in the space and must wait for the entire class to finish copying before I can erase it and write the next bit of information. The board is also low to the ground so I spend half the time squatting to write. I am not complaining, I am just giving you a taste of how things are. Thankfully by term 2 we will be in our own big classroom with plenty of room and the proper chairs, tables and chalkboard The kids are suppose to bring in their own supplies, like pencils. I decided to make them leave them at school with me to insure they will “be prepared” for the next day. One of the things I have brought in is 2 pencil sharpeners but many of the kids opt to use what they are most comfortable with, a razor blade. In all honestly it made me very nervous seeing this for the 1^st time but it’s a cultural thing I guess and their normal I am thankful for the rest of the teaching staff and their support and encouragement to me during this 1^st week. They have made themselves available to me in the event that I have any questions or need anything. I am confident that God will continue to work in and through me with thee kids as I rely on God to help me shepherd their hearts. I am firm when I need to be but I know they know that I care for them. They cheerfully greet me in the morning and all want to shake my hand and get some attention before they leave. I just smile when I think of them. They have my heart..that is for sure. I will get some pictures up of them once week 2 starts.