one more night, give me just one more night

This amazing experience is actually coming to and end and I'm not so sure how I feel about that! I'm very excited to see everyone back home, but I'm extremely sad to leave this place. At least I'll have the memories. This is the most incredible thing I've ever experienced. Actually going to a country completely unknown to me and just diving in. I've learned more in the past 5 weeks than I could have ever hoped for. I really wish it would have lasted longer but I'm so grateful for the time I had. In relation to teaching it has been a very different experience than back home. I was uncomfortable at first back home because everything was new to me. I learned a lot from my teacher as well as the students. I had a lot to plan around for structure. Here seems to be almost the complete opposite. I am bringing all of that to them. I have been able to share with my teacher here all that I learned back home. There is not much structure to anything here. So when asked to teach something I literally have no frame. It has allowed me to be very creative in planning. It amazes me because if this were to happen a couple months ago I would probably panic and not know where to start, but here I have actually enjoyed it. I have become very good at coming up with things spur of the moment, and finding fun activities to teach things. They are very direct instruction here. Writing notes and having them copy for much of their day. It was so rewarding to be able to make instruction more interesting for them and have them actually appreciate it. They told me numerous times how much they liked when I taught. That was satisfaction in itself. It i incredible to me how close I've become to all of these students in my short time here. I'm going to miss them more than I can explain. Along with this island! I feel like I'm leaving a part of me behind. I knew this trip would change me, but I had no idea just what I was in for. I think the best decision I ever made was signing up to come here. I know this blog couldn't do this experience justice, but hopefully I have shared a little bit of the impact it made on me.

Time is of the essence...... or is it?

I’ve been teaching perimeter in math for a week now so I was asked to prepare a test for them. I told them about it on Friday so they would have the weekend along with the past few days to study for it. They have been doing well considering they had never even heard the word until a week ago. The main problem they had was with the addition, not actually how to find the perimeter. I’ve been using single digit numbers so I could see if they understood the concept and it was the addition that was tripping them up. Of course, it was. Supposedly they are able to add double digits, fractions, and mixed numbers, but I find that’s not the case. The teacher hasn’t said anything about me using single-digit numbers, so I’ve just stuck with it to allow them to practice perimeter. The test went well. They had a lot of questions, but at this point I’ve realized it is more of a battle for my attention than actually needing me to explain the questions, which are very straightforward. I’ve found ways to avoid that through my days hear thankfully! After getting them all quiet they finished their tests on time for once! This is a big deal because nothing seems to be on time here. Most of them did excellent with the exception of about 3, who actually did the best during our class activities. I’ve found it was laziness and not paying attention to what they were reading. Which is normally the case with them because they are racing to be the first one done. I have told them, as I’m sure their teacher has, time and time again to take their time and read carefully because it is more important that they do the work right, not to be the first done. I have got to find something to get this point across to them before I leave!

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder :)

Today I was asked to teach penmanship. This is definitely not my strongest suit. These kids probably have neater handwriting than I do. Regardless, I was willing to give it a shot. Then I was told they were doing cursive and that they know all of the letters, but I would need to write sentences in cursive that they could copy. Sounds simple right? I haven’t written in cursive since I was about their age! Rather than embarrass myself and say I didn’t remember how, I trusted my memory (and my strong ability to wing things at this point) and just did it. I must say I was impressed. I remembered a lot more than I though, and there was a poster of the cursive alphabet on the wall that I was able to look at to refresh my memory. The kids on the other hand didn’t know how to write all of them like I was told they did. When asking for assistance they were scolded and told that they should already know how to write that letter, instead of being shown how. I did my best not to step on any toes, but provide them with the extra support they needed. To top it off they all were telling me what beautiful handwriting I had, something I've never once been told in my life! They're just too much. It was an interesting day to say the least.

dophins, and stingrays, and sharks.. oh my!

This weekend was one to remember! One of my students came over Saturday to spend the day at the pool. We had a lot of fun swimming and playing games. I know this would never happen in the states, but her mom invited us out on their boat and we already had plans so I just invited her over instead. Like I said before, everyone is just so welcoming here. Now to the best part; We went on a catamaran ride to go snorkeling and then on to Caye Caulker. AMAZING! We swam with stingrays and sharks, not to mention all of the beautiful fish. I actually pet a stingray. Not a trained stingray, but just one swimming around the ocean! Our guide said they are so used to people it doesn’t bother them. We were in a “national park” in the ocean called Hol Chan. It is very popular place to go snorkeling and apparently known around the world. It was one of the most amazing experiences! We spent a few hours in Caye Caulker afterwards. I got some beautiful jewelry that this woman handmade with turquoise. We left to return to San Pedro. The catamaran ride back was probably the most relaxing thing I’ve ever done. I didn’t want it to end. We got back around 5:00, just in time to get stuff ready for teaching this week and go to bed. It was one long day!

Teacher, teacher, miss, miss

This was my first day of teaching. It went much better than I expected. Its hard trying to plan interesting, educational lessons without the resources and materials I have back home. I did the best I could with what I had and it turned out well. In math we did perimeter and I had students go around the room and find the perimeter of shapes and things such as posters, their desks, books, etc. They seemed to enjoy it. They are used to sitting and taking notes all day, so I think it was an appreciated change.

There's no place like home

This week’s about teaching inland vs. teaching here on the island of San Pedro. I didn’t get the experience of teaching while inland, but based on my experience on the island I’d have to stick with it. Everyone is so welcoming and the children are so loving. It makes you feel right at home. I actually started calling it “home” while we were inland. Kind of weird. Anyways, I had a blast inland but I was very excited to get back here. I will be teaching this week. I am excited and nervous all at the same time. I’m sure it’ll go well I just don’t really know what to expect. Wish me luck!

Welcome to the jungle

This week’s blog is about privilege. I’ve never realized just how privileged I am. I was given an education without having to pay for it (with the exception of college). I have a family to go home to who supports everything I do. I think everyone seems to take their privileges for granted because they don’t even realize they are privileges. To start off with I’m talking down to bathing. Considering the week we’ve had. I’ve never thought of bathing as a privilege but I will never take it for granted after this week! I had to go 4 days without showering. Having air conditioning is also a great privilege. I know these aren’t the most important things, but they are things that are taken for granted back home and you don’t realize how nice they are until they’re gone. Having a nice place to sleep is also taken for granted. Not only have I thought about this while I’ve been here (and while sleeping in a screened bunkhouse in the jungle... hence the title of this post), but also while volunteering at the homeless shelter back home. Seeing people put in a lottery just to find out they have to sleep on the street was heartbreaking. Regardless of the privilege, it should never be taken for granted. This trip has definitely taught me that, along with a world of other things!