First Day of School

Sirraphie School

Posters, bulletin boards, desks, chairs, pencil sharpeners, and students…all the years of teaching came rushing back to my memory Tuesday.  We began our newest adventure this week as we headed off to school Tuesday morning.  Two months ago we were given permission to teach in a village school for J’s work permit.  This also happens to be the village we have been meeting in each Tuesday night.  School year started a week ago, so we gave the students and teachers a week to get back into a routine before we started.

Third-Sixth Grade Classrooms

Some cute 1st grade girls

Working on her name tag

Our task was to teach English for first-sixth graders.  We were also supposed to teach Kindergarten, but not sure why we didn’t this week.  They didn’t mention it, so we didn’t push it.  It was already a full day.  The school has a total of 39 students.  It is very small.  There are only4 teachers for the entire school K-6th grade.  The school is extremely poor with no air conditioning and very little teaching or student resources.  It was so heartbreaking thinking about what these teachers and students use on a daily basis compared to what we have back in the states.  I took so much for granted!  We are definitely spoiled that is for sure.  However, the teachers and students are very content and so thankful for what they do have.  The students wear school uniforms and bring their toothbrushes and a spoon for lunch to school everyday.  The school is too poor to provide spoons for the students, so they must take them home nightly and bring them back daily. 

Toothbrush and toothpaste holder.  One was hung in each room.

Teaching how to shake hands.  They don’t do that in this culture.

 

The 1st grade boys hamming it up.

Posing with the 1st grade class

J working with the 3rd and 4th graders

Our 3rd and 4th grade class

School began at 8:30 with all the kids sitting in rows outside the school and then saying their pledge of allegiance and singing the national anthem.  Students were released to the classrooms at 9am.  No roll was taken or teacher in the classrooms.  It was very strange.  The kids seemed to manage themselves.  We were escorted to the first grade classroom where we began our English lesson.  They were to provide us lesson plans, but of course didn’t.  Thankfully, the teacher in me had some prepared ahead of time.  The first graders understood no English and couldn’t even write their names in English phonetics, so we put our language learning to the test.  We spoke in our new language for a solid hour except to teach an American greeting: hello, my name is, and nice to meet you.  Try teaching that to a 6 year old who speaks no English.  We had fun and so did the kids.  The kids made name tags in each grade level to help us remember their names, except the 1st graders are in symbols that we can’t read.  :)  We were exhausted after the first hour with our brains on overload and standing the whole time.  We tag teamed the last two classes and finished up around 12. 

J teaching!

Can you read that name?

The girls teaching us how to make the heart shape-common pose in pictures here.

We were invited to stay for lunch, so we enjoyed the royal treatment eating with the principal and the teachers.  We felt like celebrities.  They made us rice and several different local dishes.  Yes, L was able to get some of it down with no problem.  After lunch, the students came in and cleared our plates.  It is their daily job.  They are trying to teach the students how to clean up after themselves.  It was quite interesting, and not such a bad idea. 

In our last teaching session, we were able to share our story and some our message with the teacher.  All in the local language.  We are anxious to continue where we left off.  We had a great day, but now J understands how tiring teaching is!

After lunch the students gather for a recess.  All of them played jump rope.