Molweni/Uhambe (Hello/Goodbye)

Thursday November 10, 2011 was my last day in grade R. I could not successfully teach the students because of the language barriers. They could not understand anything that I was saying to them. I’m so glad that I did get the opportunity to teach the Days of the Week song to them, along with Lindsay! They really enjoyed it, and they practice it at least 3 times a day. I hope that I can visit their classroom one more time before the end of our trip. 

 

Today was my first day in Mrs. Gladys 2^nd grade class, with Garreth.  I really enjoyed it. There were little to no language barriers. I could tell that the students were understanding by their facial expressions, responses, and involvement. It felt amazing when the children responded to my “good morning class”. I can definitely see myself growing more as a teacher from this class than in grade R. The first thing I did was introduced myself, and in return allowed the students to introduce their selves. After reviewing the days of the week, I taught them the calendar song. I have never seen students so excited to learn. I thought they would refuse to stand up and do the Macarena dance, but surprisingly they all did the dance with no complaints. After that, I called some of the students up by two’s and had them do it in front of the class. They were ecstatic and it turned out well.  Garreth taught a literacy lesson and I assisted him. There are not enough books for the students to take home so we had them copy the words from the book to take home and read over the weekend. The book was very short, but this lesson helped us identify the different leveled groups in the classroom. We plan to use what we learned today, to help us split the class into groups for future lessons. I thoroughly enjoyed my first day in 2^nd grade. I’m certainly excited about this class and opportunity.

Emafini

There are no words to describe how I felt when I saw the students at Emafini Primary school! They were all so excited to see us. I felt extremely overwhelmed, but in a good way. They were so welcoming, and so kind. I’m glad that it is exactly how I pictured it in my head. I thought I was going to be culture shocked, but it was the complete opposite. I felt like this is the place that I need to be. As I was walking towards my classroom I started to tear up because of all the different emotions I felt at the moment. As I walked in my classroom the students started singing immediately. They were welcoming me into their classroom. The classroom wasn’t as nice as the classroom back in the United States; it was located in a little trailer in the back of the school. The pictures on the wall resembled typical stuff that Kindergartners (grade R) are required to learn. It was fascinating to learn that the students did not really speak English. They only knew a few songs because their teacher had taught them. Immediately I knew that the language would be more of a barrier than I expected. Their schedule is a bit different. They don’t have specified times when they are doing any particular subject. This would definitely be something frowned upon in the United States. Also, they have their lunch and then an unsupervised break.  The break is for everyone in the entire school, including teachers. It just amazes me at how much discipline the students have to stay at school even when no one is watching. I definitely don’t think that could be something to try in the U.S. After the break grade R has about 30 minutes to do an activity, pray, and then go home. Prayer is also a very big thing throughout the entire school which is one of the things I admire the most.

Safe Arrival!!

My first plane experience went really well. I was really nervous at first, but after the plane took off I was very relaxed. The stewardess made sure that I was very comfortable. On the second plane, from NY to Johannesburg, I was not as nervous. The plane ride was much longer. It took 14 and a half hour to arrive. My legs were tired from not moving. The food was so delicious. It gave a preview of some of the food we could expect in South Africa. I’m really excited to see what is to come next.