Monday, February 8, 2010
Sami suma sapos... teaching 11 year olds to read
Today I taught reading. I have always taken being able to read for granted. If I don’t know a word the first time I see it, I can still sound it out, think about its roots, context, pictures, and figure out what the word means. But today I sat with two 11 year old boys (among others) who don’t know what sounds the vowels make. They also don’t know any consonants, and they don’t know how to put the letters together to make syllabic sounds or words. I was stunned. I was expecting kids who couldn’t read, but this? This makes me angry. Kids at the care center have to be in whatever grade the public school places them in for scheduling reasons, so these boys are in 4th grade but completely illiterate. It took fifteen minutes for me to help them sound out a basic sentence: “Sami suma sapos.” (Sammy adds toads.) In the DR, kids first learn the vowels, then two-letter syllables starting with m, s, and p – ma, me, mi, mo, mu; sa, se, si, so, su… So these boys should have been able to read this book (Sami Suma) since first grade. But because of a failed academic system that pushes them through school whether they have learned anything or not, these boys can’t read. I feel sad, angry, bewildered. But…But I am excited to work with these kids. I am excited to see more smiles on their faces as things “click.” Today that happened when I showed them how to use the pictures to help them figure out what the words are – if Sami is adding toads he drew on a chalkboard, then “Sami suma sapos.” It also happened when they realized that every page of the “Es un Elefante?” (Is it an elephant?) book said the EXACT same thing – it took them five pages to realize that, but they eventually did! I will keep looking for small joys, keep praising them for sounding out “no, no es” for the fifth time, and keep praying for wisdom in how to teach something that has always come easily to me.Food for thought: THIS HAPPENS in American school systems! I know that there are people living in the United States
Friday, February 5, 2010
"But aren't you my friend?"
At MTI we talked about how foreign customs or habits that seem strange to us almost always have logic behind them. I experienced an example of this this week!
Monday I became an English teacher - grades 5-8 - at the Care Center. Each class gets two 20 minute lessons a week, which is NOT very much time, especially when a third of the time is spent waiting for them to stop talking so I can teach!
When speaking to gringos (white people) here, the kids in Villa Asencion (and I think in the DR in general) either start or finish every sentence with "my friend." Examples: "Give me five pesos, my friend." "My friend, give me a drink of water." "My friend, what's your name?" Or even, "My friend, hello, my friend!" Also funny is that they don't finish their words here, so it sounds like "my frien..."
I tried to teach my classes this week that people who really speak English don't use "my friend" very much. I have always hated being called "my friend" because it means the kid saying it hasn't distinguished me from the myriad of tourists, missionaries, and visitors as someone who is staying with them for a while and is here to give them education and sponsors, not money or candy. As MTI taught me, though, there apparently is logic behind this dreaded gringo greeting. As I was teaching 8th grade, one of my students actually raised his hand (!) and said, "But aren't you my friend?" I had to stop and think for a minute. I responded, "Yes, I am your friend. But in the United States we don't talk about people being our friends very much." It was an interesting cultural moment - one of those instances that makes you think about your home culture in a way you have never before thought about it.
Here are some specific prayer requests for this coming week:
Monday I became an English teacher - grades 5-8 - at the Care Center. Each class gets two 20 minute lessons a week, which is NOT very much time, especially when a third of the time is spent waiting for them to stop talking so I can teach!
When speaking to gringos (white people) here, the kids in Villa Asencion (and I think in the DR in general) either start or finish every sentence with "my friend." Examples: "Give me five pesos, my friend." "My friend, give me a drink of water." "My friend, what's your name?" Or even, "My friend, hello, my friend!" Also funny is that they don't finish their words here, so it sounds like "my frien..."
I tried to teach my classes this week that people who really speak English don't use "my friend" very much. I have always hated being called "my friend" because it means the kid saying it hasn't distinguished me from the myriad of tourists, missionaries, and visitors as someone who is staying with them for a while and is here to give them education and sponsors, not money or candy. As MTI taught me, though, there apparently is logic behind this dreaded gringo greeting. As I was teaching 8th grade, one of my students actually raised his hand (!) and said, "But aren't you my friend?" I had to stop and think for a minute. I responded, "Yes, I am your friend. But in the United States we don't talk about people being our friends very much." It was an interesting cultural moment - one of those instances that makes you think about your home culture in a way you have never before thought about it.
Here are some specific prayer requests for this coming week:
- PRAISE God that I enjoyed and was energized by my time in the classroom this week
- wisdom in lesson planning and ESPECIALLY classroom management - that I would be able to come up with and implement an effective and positive reward/discipline system
- wisdom as I begin reading tutoring - they are essentially going to put me in a room with five illiterate 9 year olds and say go...
- that God will continue to energize me through teaching and that he will put more love in my heart for my students every day
- Holly, a Makarios staff member who went to MTI with us and has been living in Santiago, is moving in with us on Sunday - pray for healthy transitions for her, Lauren, and me
- that in the midst of teaching, I will find a good Easter sponsorship craft and have the time to get it completed in time
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Better late than never...
So I finally am getting around to posting my Christmas newsletter! (If you support me financially, it's the same as the hard copy you received.) I hope it gives you some more insight into/overview of my life here! As with all (I think) the pictures I post, click on it to view it larger.
Monday, January 25, 2010
No kids yet...
Unfortunately and due to circumstances outside our control, Kids Alive did not receive any Haitian children this weekend. We are currently looking for non-governmental channels through which to find and care for orphans. As always, you can read all about it at www.kidsalive.org/haiti-relief. Please continue praying for Kids Alive's ministries on the island as well as for all those who are caring for children in Haiti and in the Dominican Republic.
Saturday, January 16, 2010
An update and an opportunity.
I apologize for my silence about life since I returned to the island... it's just that so much has happened this past week, and it has been an emotionally difficult week for me.
I arrived in the DR on Monday afternoon to a week of rain. All day, every day, inescapable rain that dampens everyone's spirits. Because of the rain, the river on the way into Caraballo flooded. Normally to get to school we drive a truck or van through the river, but when it is flooded we can't have school. So Tuesday we didn't have our teacher work day, and I thought, "Ok, but I'll get to see the kids tomorrow if the river's down."
Tuesday evening the earthquake hit. It was a scary experience, not necessarily because our apartment building swayed for almost two minutes, but because there was a tsunami watch for the next few hours and we live less than 3 miles from the ocean. There was not a tsunami, we are fine, but everyone's nerves were rattled and hearts were broken for the devastation in Haiti. We work with a largely Haitian population, so I personally know people who have yet to hear from their families in Port-au-Prince or have confirmed that their families died. The situation in Haiti is terrible.
I have felt a little trapped here. Because of the earthquake, we didn't have school the rest of the week. (We did finally go in for a teacher work day yesterday.) When it rains here, there isn't much you can do. There aren't coffee shops, libraries, museums, or movie theaters. So I sat at home for 3 days, feeling a little homesick and bored. I have also felt trapped (as have my fellow missionaries here) in that I live only 6 hours or so from Port-au-Prince, but it is too dangerous and too unorganized for us to go and do anything there. For now, what we can do is pray and send supplies with our Haitian friends who go to search for their families. We're letting governments and large relief organizations work right now, and wait for the day when it is safe and we can be of use in Haiti.
Kids Alive, however, has received permission from the government to bring 50 Haitian orphans to our sites in the DR! We think we will receive 10-15 of the kids in Caraballo sometime this week. I am so excited for this opportunity to more physically help some of the most vulnerable survivors of the earthquake by providing for their immediate needs and giving them a lot of love! (The Kids Alive site in Haiti will also be receiving children.)
Please be praying for wisdom for Kids Alive leadership as we bring the children across the border, find them homes, and continue to raise the money needed to care for them. Pray for strength and encouragement for the relief workers in Haiti. Pray for those who are mourning around the world, as this earthquake has affected many nations.
Thank you for your support and prayers. If you would like to donate to Kids Alive's efforts in Haiti and now in the DR, please go to www.kidsalive.org/haiti-relief.
I arrived in the DR on Monday afternoon to a week of rain. All day, every day, inescapable rain that dampens everyone's spirits. Because of the rain, the river on the way into Caraballo flooded. Normally to get to school we drive a truck or van through the river, but when it is flooded we can't have school. So Tuesday we didn't have our teacher work day, and I thought, "Ok, but I'll get to see the kids tomorrow if the river's down."
Tuesday evening the earthquake hit. It was a scary experience, not necessarily because our apartment building swayed for almost two minutes, but because there was a tsunami watch for the next few hours and we live less than 3 miles from the ocean. There was not a tsunami, we are fine, but everyone's nerves were rattled and hearts were broken for the devastation in Haiti. We work with a largely Haitian population, so I personally know people who have yet to hear from their families in Port-au-Prince or have confirmed that their families died. The situation in Haiti is terrible.
I have felt a little trapped here. Because of the earthquake, we didn't have school the rest of the week. (We did finally go in for a teacher work day yesterday.) When it rains here, there isn't much you can do. There aren't coffee shops, libraries, museums, or movie theaters. So I sat at home for 3 days, feeling a little homesick and bored. I have also felt trapped (as have my fellow missionaries here) in that I live only 6 hours or so from Port-au-Prince, but it is too dangerous and too unorganized for us to go and do anything there. For now, what we can do is pray and send supplies with our Haitian friends who go to search for their families. We're letting governments and large relief organizations work right now, and wait for the day when it is safe and we can be of use in Haiti.
Kids Alive, however, has received permission from the government to bring 50 Haitian orphans to our sites in the DR! We think we will receive 10-15 of the kids in Caraballo sometime this week. I am so excited for this opportunity to more physically help some of the most vulnerable survivors of the earthquake by providing for their immediate needs and giving them a lot of love! (The Kids Alive site in Haiti will also be receiving children.)
Please be praying for wisdom for Kids Alive leadership as we bring the children across the border, find them homes, and continue to raise the money needed to care for them. Pray for strength and encouragement for the relief workers in Haiti. Pray for those who are mourning around the world, as this earthquake has affected many nations.
Thank you for your support and prayers. If you would like to donate to Kids Alive's efforts in Haiti and now in the DR, please go to www.kidsalive.org/haiti-relief.
Monday, January 11, 2010
O Christmas Tree
The rest of us getting and decorating the tree. We got the tree the day after Molly and I got home, and we were FREEZING! In our defense, the wind was whipping across the field, and it was really cold...
Clockwise from the top: Mom, Molly, and me picking a tree; sister love; Katy decorating; Dad and Molly after chopping down the tree; Dad, umm, what is he doing? Striking a pose, I guess!; Mom and Dad hanging their "Our First Christmas 1980" ornament (an annual tradition); next year's Christmas card?; Molly and I; and the family picture.
Clockwise from the top: Mom, Molly, and me picking a tree; sister love; Katy decorating; Dad and Molly after chopping down the tree; Dad, umm, what is he doing? Striking a pose, I guess!; Mom and Dad hanging their "Our First Christmas 1980" ornament (an annual tradition); next year's Christmas card?; Molly and I; and the family picture.
Zeke the gangster?
Every year, we go to Wata Wata Farms, part of Bob White Acres, to tromp through the field and chop down a Christmas tree! Zeke usually goes too, and this year he went gangster style, sporting my Grandma-knit hat:
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