Thanks be to God, I was only really sick for one day. The day after I wrote last I woke up and my fever was gone. I still was feeling achy and when I stood up I still didn't feel quite right, so I stayed home and rested a second day.
But now, I'm coming off of two very strange weeks. The week before last was pretty much a two day week; Monday was a half-day with a Mother's Day presentation in the afternoon (meaning not much work was accomplished because the students couldn't focus), Tuesday was a day off (Mother's Day), Wednesday I found out that Friday was International Children's day and that we were going to be celebrating by having a sort of field day--games outside from 10:30 until 2:20. So that week was pretty shot. Then I come back looking forward to the next three full weeks...only to then get sick for two days: another messed up week. Needless to say, I don't think we're going to cover quite as much material as I thought we would two weeks ago. But, if all goes well, we have another two full weeks before exams and the end of the third block.
In general lately, I've been frustrated with how teaching is going. I'm realizing how much of a problem there is in my classes with behavior. Some classes don't seem to have much respect for my instruction or demands. One second grader (an English-speaker), told me, "I don't know why they won't ever be quiet. When the other teacher counts to 5, they are all quiet but with you they just keep talking." I suppose I need to impose harsher consequences for not listening. So, I am a little discouraged by that and frustrated as well.
About Where to Live
Meanwhile, I've been looking for a place to live. I mentioned it a few posts back. If you missed that blog or have forgotten, I am looking for a place to live because the people I am living with now are going to be leaving and the school's lease is running out on our apartment. I was hoping that I could find a place to live with a Nicaraguan family to help me get to know the language and the culture a little better. I may have found a good place yesterday. One interesting thing is that it is not a Nicaraguan family, but a Honduran family. I spent some time with them yesterday asking questions and seeing the place. They arrived here in Managua 3 months ago. He came to pastor a church which I think has Mennonite roots. They live in a middle class home closer to Managua than where I live now (which is exactly what I wanted) and yet my driving time to get the school is approximately the same. As far as I can tell, it's a great family and I'd feel very comfortable there.
About Language
After our tests in three weeks, I will have three weeks of free-time. It's the break between first and second semester. I have been thinking for a long time that I will probably take one week during that break to do some intensive language training. There are plenty of schools around Nicaragua where you can go to live with a local family and take Spanish classes all day for a week. I think this would give me a quick boost in my learning, and it would be fun. The school to which I'll be going is in a town called Esteli, and it's supposed to be beautiful there. I know several others that had great experiences there.
About NCA Nejapa
I realize that there is not enough room to write everything i want to in these blogs. For several weeks I've been wanting to tell you about the financial situation at the school and offer you a link to a page with their specific needs. This keeps getting squeezed out because I don't want to put too much writing on the page. Anyway, here it is. There are plans to both expand and improve the campus at my school. They will be completing the main offices of the schook, building another row of classrooms which will house the high school, and generally filling in a lot of the gaps left due to not enough funding. Here is a detailed list of what they still need funding for: http://www.nca.edu.ni/SchoolNeeds.shtml. There you will find a description, priority, and total cost of each item that requires funding. Check it out, even if just for interest's sake.
Prayer Requests
-I will be meeting with Darling, the principal, tomorrow which I think will be to review my work. Please pray that our meeting is effective and that it will leave me with some good ideas of how to make myself a better teacher.
-Pray that I have wisdom in making any decisions about this living situation, and thank the Lord for the opportunities he's presented me with.
-Pray that I grow a lot in the area of behavior management and discipline.
-Pray that there is wisdom among the leaders of the school as Nejapa grows and develops.
hey, don't be too hard on yourself.. sometimes certain classes just *don't* listen! and it doesn't necessarily have anything to do with you. i mean, there are always things you can do to improve as a teacher (and you hafta cut yourself some slack!! it's only been half a year.. or so.. wow.. that flew by!); but sometimes, certain students just drag down an entire classroom full of otherwise great kids. as bad as this sounds: i think having a terrible class once in a while is just something you come expect as a teacher.. at least, that's my take on it! but don't take it too personally, i think.. it could happen to *any* teacher! here's to better classes in the future blocks!! :)
ReplyDeleteBTW -- your 3rd prayer request is concerning your students.. not you.. right? :)
ReplyDeleteHi Dave!!
ReplyDeleteI think that Ben is right....don't be too hard on yourself. This is new to you and you are learning. It takes a while to get to know your students and their individual temperaments and behaviours. Not only that, you are learning about a new culture and a new language...give yourself a break and give yourself more time.
Take a step back and look at all the unique individuals you encounter everyday...and you get to teach them and touch their lives (they are blessed to have you there!!)
I believe that if you ask God for wisdom and paitience, He will definetly answer you!! May He be your Guide in this and you won't fail.
I asked Chris for suggestions and this is what he came up with:
1) Do they have detentions where you are? He said that he knows that kids don't like detentions.
2) Be more strict on the ones that are acting out and misbehaving.
3) Make (obvious, but not neccessarily tellling the class ahead of time) rewards or special priveledges for the ones who are behaving. (e.g. I think that he is thinking about when he gets to have extra computer time in his class when he has done well and/or completes tasks early/on time.)
My thought: Does the school you teach at have any specific behaviour policies or guidelines. If they do, that might be a good palce to start. Also, I always find that "bouncing" ideas off of co-workers often helps me when I struggling with different issues.
I hope I've been helpful and sorry about the length.
We are thinking about you and missing you out here in Hamilton.
Your friends,
Monica and Tom and Chris and Geoffrey