Trevor: Friday, June 22, 2007

We’ve definitely settled into the school’s routine by now. It’s going to be interesting making the transition back to the US to not waking up at 5:30 in the morning.

I’ve started to collect topic lists from each of the English teachers. I’m going use the lists, combined with the Department of Education curriculum, to make a curriculum for the Mapa School that has a consistent progression each year.

I’ve been teaching in Wilvin’s Grade 5/6 Language class, with mixed results. It seems as if the students know the grammatical definitions quite well, as they’ve been taught the subject matter since very early on in their academic careers. However, as far as applications, they seem to have some difficulty. I gave the students a book report project to complete in groups. Each group has a different story and is supposed to present a short summary to the class, including characters, setting, etc. The first group presented today, and their story was “The Emperor’s New Clothes.” I think the major problem that they had was with vocabulary, as they didn’t know what “Emperor” means. I stressed to the class the importance of looking up words that they don’t understand, so hopefully the next group will have a better understanding of their story. The kids here don’t lack intelligence; it’s just an issue of learning to apply their knowledge. I was very surprised when they had trouble with the story.

I guess we’ve officially entered the rainy season this week. It’s been raining very heavily at night. Sleeping under a nipa (palm leaf) roof is definitely an interesting experience. Wilvin and I maneuvered our beds so that they occupied spots where the roof wasn’t leaking. The rain cools things down at night, which is definitely appreciated. Having to keep clothes out on the line for three days before they dry has given me a new appreciation for clothes dryers.

While I’ve become accustomed to the school’s schedule by now, its setting is just as surreal as it was when we arrived. Waking up overlooking the ocean, on the side of a forested volcano, is incredible. If I was a student at the school, I feel like my attention might be constantly focused on the scenery, rather than on a teacher in the classroom.