Week One: Getting to Know the Basics!

So it's been a whole week since school started, and what a week it has been!

I am the Creative Arts, Music, and ICT teacher for Basic 1 (B1) and Basic 3 (B3). Plus I am to help out wherever I can in the Nursery classes. It's alot to cover so I will break it down for you guys.

• Nursery-There are two roughly 30 student classes. I go in on my free time to help out wherever I can. I also help them with motorskill activities, so basically I get to play a variety of games with them! :) So far we sing "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes" then a quick ound of "Simon Says" (most just follow what I do), ans then some "Red light, Green Light" (Modified to dancing on green, and slow-motion dancing on yellow). I make sure to throw in lots of silly faces for them, and pretty much try to get them to have fun while developing those motor skills. One of the nursery classes needs more help on thinking up activities for the kids, and I am more than willing to be able to help out with that! :)
• B1-Made up of 38 5-6 year olds. On the first couple of days they were ROWDY! I'm sad to say that I even yelled at them on the 2nd day! My patience had been worn thin, and I even noticed that it also affected how I treated my B3 class. So after that "fail" Lizziey and I both decided "No more yelling, no matter what". This meant that we had to find different, more creative ways of getting their attention. So I got to work and found some cool tips that have been working so far. I say "Give me 5 (loudly, and showing 5 fingers)" and then we all start counting down to a quiet "One". Another trick I learned was to start clapping some random beat, and soon everyone has stoppe what they are doing and are trying to copy me. I also do "Signals on" (a trick form the B3 teacher Mimi) which I raise one hand above my head and the other hand making the quiet signal (index finger to my mouth). If they are being loud, I speak louder in a monotonous/robotic voice, so that they can hear me over the noise without my yelling. :) 
• B3-Made up of 36 7-8 year olds. They are by far my favorite class! I do have time when they are too loud or do ot pay attention, but they are the best behaved kids I have. All I need to do to get their attention is to sit in a chair in front of the class that faces them with my "signals on". I quietly and patiently wait for them to settle down. If that doesn't work within a couple of minutes, I just start giving out worksheets to those who do have their "signals on". Then they all quiet down so that they can get a worksheet. Easy as pie!Again they do have their ROWDY moments, but what class doesn't?

I am not expecting any of my classes to be quiet on every period. In fact I allow them to talk amongts themelves, as long as it doesnt get too loud, on certain subjects or activities. I am trying to stress the importance of "there is a time for everything". So they can be loud outside, but quieter inside; they can be be a little louder for music time, but need to be quieter for creativity. Yesterday was a success for B1, because I got them to be mostly quiet for library time, in which they read books individually in their classrooms while "pretending" to be in the library. 

One thing I will say about all of these kids: They absolutely LOVE to read! Which makes me super duper happy! :D I am still working with Lizziey to get the library finished. It is A LOT of work, and it's usually the last thing on our long list of things to do, so it gets cancelled often. We will not give up! We will keep working on making a good library for these kids, but in the mean time they are still learning about libraries and books in general. 

I've learned a lot in this first week, and I know that I still have a lot more to learn. God has been there with us every single step of the way. Every day I do my morning devotional, and every evening I manage to fit in some bible study time. I'm so glad Lizziey showed me Osward Chambers' "My Utmost for His Highest", it has quickly become one of my favorite devotional. :D There have been more than one occasions where God sends us "little gifts" that brighten up our days. Both Lizziey and I feel a special connection to God through nature (especially with the stars), and on that day when we got to see them (stars) I remember that Lizziey was having a pretty bad day. After the stars came out, our of al worries just melted away and we remembered that God was in control of our lives and that He has the best of intentions for all of us. I loved something Lizziey said that night, and it's that "God can see our entire life, like we see the stars in the sky".  Meaning that our past, present, and future are just one to Him and He sees it all at once (and everyone's life) , maybe similar to how we see the stars. That though just amazes and humbles me! It lets me know that even though I am small and insignificant to the world, I am unique and significant to Him. How amazing that of all He created, He chose to love US, despite all of our flaws!  :)

Well, today we finally get to go to Accra. Wonder what adventures we will have there...

Madasi for reading. God Bless,
Jamie

Founder's Day

            Today the people of Ghana celebrate the birthday of their first president. They call this day Founder’s Day. What this means for me? No school!

            The rumor is true: holidays and weekends are way more exciting when you are a teacher. Yesterday I washed my clothes by hand in a bucket because the washing machine left them smelling gross.  I hung them on the line overnight, put on some comfy pj’s and hopped in my bed.  How ready I was to be able to sleep in all morning!

            At 7:30 am there is a knock on the door. A man asked Jamie to open the door because the Sister’s were not here (the Sister’s leave for mass all the time. We rarely know they are leaving until after the fact or 5 minutes beforehand).  She throws on a decent shirt and heads out to open the door for these random men. I, in my slumber, consider that my friend could be hacked to pieces by opening the convent door for men we do not know (and since no one mentioned anything to us) But instead I close my eyes and return to dreamland….

            The men didn’t injure Jamie, and she returns muttering something about how the door was already open….The men were supposed to be here; they came to work on the kitchen! In fact, these strong Ghanaian men removed the entire right side of the house’s kitchen today. They did this with a hammer. And grunting. And pulling really hard until something cracked. Did I mention the house is made of tile where every little noise reverberates?

            But I, Lizziey Brown, can sleep through anything. So for the next hour I laid in my bed while Jamie did her devotions and got ready for the day. At 8:40 I got up and said, “It’s time to go run, Jamie!”

            “Lizziey, I think it’s raining.”

I step outside to see if it is in fact raining. Ghana has had a lot of mist recently, which I  actually enjoy. But it wasn’t misting this morning; it is pouring down rain. I stand on my veranda and see my clothes on the line, getting their second bath in two days.  The sun finally came out after an hour of rain but my clothes will be just as smelly as before I washed them. I’m glad it’s a holiday so I can scrub them again! 

            So how is teaching a class of kindergarten, a class of 2^nd graders, and a class of 4^th graders? First, like many schools in the US there is a lack of communication. Second, like any school in the US teachers must not just be teachers, but also parents. Third, like any school situated in an impoverished area my students do not take care of their supplies.

            Communication is getting better as I am learning to be proactive about things I had not even thought about. For instance, I created lesson plans for this week with the books that I had been given. I then find out that my students had been given completely different books. I find this out 5 minutes before I start teaching. So I had to revamp my plan. The students had no idea anything changed, but I was sure frustrated.

            Early in the day I was told that for Creative Arts class in Basic 2 I need to have the students do the activities in the text books because the parents paid for the books and they want their children to do their work in them. I was puzzled by this statement since the art projects we had completed so far consisted of folding paper and drawing a picture from memory.  I responded that I would try to figure out how to have the children use their textbook for tangible projects.   Fast forward to Creative Arts class for Basic 4. I asked the kids to color the two pictures in lesson one because of my previous conversation. I was then told in THAT class that I am not to use the books because some students only paid a usage fee and do not own their books. I laughed a little this time.  After school I talked to Sister Esther and Sister Maggie. They told me to use the books when there were activities and not to use them when there weren’t. Exactly what I was doing to begin with.

Discipline is a major issue at school. Jamie and I joke that the rule is “Fear Thy Elder.” That joke, however, is not too far off from the truth.  Discipline here looks much different than in the US. I’ve seen students slapped with rulers, made to kneel with their hands up, screamed at, and asked to stand on a desk after tipping it over.  And, honestly, there are times I don’t blame teachers. Parents expect us to discipline their kids.  I have students who push each other, hit each other, and bite each other.  So far I made one kid in Basic 4 hold my hand in assembly for acting up (that shut him up for the rest of the day, too!).  I have those who are fighting stand next to each other until they can shake hands and make up. I’m still working on how to discipline without force, how to get my students to learn while still letting them know they are loved, they are human, and they deserve this opportunity to learn.

My students also don’t take care of things. I’ve used colored pencils three times and I am already missing many and have had two of the boxes destroyed. It’s frustrating and sad. But so is teaching in any impoverished area. But there are also little things here that make teaching more difficult. Each student owns one pencil. Ghanaian pencils are crappy. They break all the time. In kindergarten I spend most of my time sharpening pencils two or three times during the work time.  My 4^th graders are lazy, so I’ve given them a ton of work which in turn means more grading for me.

So teaching is a struggle. But there are happy moments. One of my students in Basic 2 has special needs and I love him. Another is dyslexic and I am excited to work one on one with him. At the end of the day, no matter how much they’ve been punished, all of my new little friends are excited to grab my hand and give me a hug. They walk me back to the house and wait for me in the morning. 

And so that has been my first week of teaching in Ghana. I’m getting used to the way school is run and soon I will settle into a rhythm. Ghana is a unique experience as every skill I’ve ever learned is put to use in this country. I have yet to have a boring day, or even a boring shower (I had a frog jump on me in the middle of my morning bath time yesterday!).  One night this week God painted a beautiful starry sky after a gorgeous sunset. I make sure to stop and admire the beauty every chance I get.  Each night, exhausted, I fall into my bed and am thankful that God brought me here. 

Roads to Discovery and Expectations...

After reading Lizziey’s awesome blog post “Thoughts from My Veranda”, I have been too intimidated to write my own post. But since I am under contractual obligation to do so, I will carry on! Reminding myself that we are partners, and that our differences are what make us into such a great team. Weaknesses we have in some areas are covered by the other’s strength in that same area. So without further ado, my post for the week:

View of  our shower and buckets.

Lizziey and I have survived our first week in Ghana! It feels like we arrived forever ago, but in my experience, the first week in anything new goes by extra slow. However, once that week is up everything starts to speed up and time just zooms on by. By now, we have: mastered the art of taking a shower with buckets (see Lizziey’s blog below), discovered how to do our laundry (without having our clothes smell like they’ve been worn by goats), organized all our school and teacher supplies, and figured out were pretty much everything is and goes (especially the kitchen appliances and food). We have also adjusted our internal clocks to “Ghana time” (*sigh* no more sleeping until noon for us!), befriended all the sisters, novices and little Jamilla (the 6 year old daughter of one of the cooks), and even managed to do the class schedules for the entire school! For us these are all great accomplishments, and even though we still have a lot to learn, we are confident that the time for learning all those other things will come.

Personally, I’ve learned that without the distraction of the TV and occasionally the Internet (when the electricity goes out, or just the internet goes out), I have more time available for other things. For example, learning to play the piano (props to my awesome teacher Lizziey), doing artsy stuff, and most importantly dedicating more time to God. However, the electricity and Internet have not gone out nearly enough to become an inconvenience, which also allows me to keep in regular contact with my family and friends!

Our Chacos! They're the perfect shoe for our excursions!

Apart from all the things we’ve done while in the convent and school premises, we have had the opportunity to go into town on two separate occasions. The first was this past Saturday, and the second was today. The first time we took a taxi ride, for 80 pesewa e/a (.80 cedi, and 1 cedi= 1.5 USD). I was so excited to get out, that I didn't pay very much attention to my  surroundings. I was aware of the amount of trash and people by the roads, but somehow my good mood served as a good buffer from these unpleasantries. I instead focused on how people went about their daily business, and how the horrible driving and traffic reminded me of home, making me feel even more at ease. In short I was happy, and I effectively admired the world around me through those rose-colored lenses. But today's excursion was a whole different story! Although less people were out and about today, I didn't feel quite as at ease as I felt the first time. Additionally, the smells emanating from the swampy trash lined gutters were much stronger and harder to ignore this time around. Trash talk aside, I did notice very interesting things on both days. For example: a couple of house gates had the "Gye Name" symbol; taxi drivers know every crater of a pothole on the many roads leading to the convent; "Proverbs 10:22", "God is Great Beauty", and "Jesus In U Plumbing" are normal names for shops; just because the music sounds lively and innocent, it doesn't mean the lyrics are quite as innocent, and last but not least goats are the latest in pet companionship, who needs a lap dog when you can have a pet goat... or fresh goat stew? But seriously the baby goats are sooooo cuuuuteeee!!!! XD Especially when they randomly jump up excitedly! 

This is a sheep, not a goat... But Lizziey took it, and it's a funny picture! :P

Next up on our adventure list is Cape Coast! We will be heading there tomorrow to have a teachers' retreat until Sunday. There we will meet the rest of the teaching and school staff as well as getting our initial orientation for school. I have no idea what to expect in terms of what we will see and learn, but I will be sure to tell you all on my next post!

Medasi (that means thank you in Fante, we learned that too!) and God Bless,

Jamie