School Days

The past few school days have been a little hectic for me. I've been teaching time to my students. This is my first time ever teaching on the topic of time. Also its the first time the majority of the students are learning about it. I've never really introduced a topic to a whole class. I've usually just built on lessons and practiced with them over what they have already been taught. This was a challenge for me for many reasons. I felt a lot of pressure because I was introducing the foundation or the base of the lesson (the most important part). It was my first time teaching on this subject where they say and tell time differently than we do in America. And for some reason my lessons wouldn't load on the SMART Board, so I had to do them orally with out all the clocks and pictures and interactive things (Can't depend on technology)....Lots and lots of stress because I wanted to do well and it really wasn't going well.

After looking back on the past few days, I think the lessons were average. They were definitely not successful, but not an absolute failure either. A large amount of the students new time really well and then there were others who had never had it before. So on the assignments, some students couldn't even do them and others breezed right through them. I need to work on differentiating better. My teacher kept wanting me to move forward with the material, but I didn't feel we should if there were so many students still struggling. You can't move on until they understand the base because everything move into goes back to it. Anyway, I'm working with my teacher and learning through experiences...the successful and unsuccessful ones.

 

Today we had a Splash Gala. Its for the preppy's, students in grades first to third grade. Its kind of like a big swim meet and our field day put together. The student's are on teams and they get to practice their swim strokes doing relay races and fun things. They had one race where they had to swim across the pool with a board balancing a cup of water. Another one where they raced with funny glasses on and caught tennis balls in the pool. 

I and a girl named Roberta were in the freezing cold pool for the majority of the day. We cheered on students and helped the young ones, team tadpole and goldfish. They are the beginner swimmers, most of these kids are terrified of the water. Their races were simple things like: getting them to jump off the side into the pool, floating, doggy paddle, swimming with a noodle, kicking with a board and blowing bubbles. I really enjoyed it, even though I spent most of the day getting splashed in the face with their kicking and being latched onto. I would have two students on each arm swimming to the end of the pool with them, help them out and go back to the end to get two more. I got my exercise and sunburn for the day, but loved ever minute of it.

Roberta is a gap year student from New Zealand. A gap year student is the year after high school and before college. Most students travel to another country and work. She will in SA until December. Roberta stays in the girls intermediate hostile and gets them where they need to go as well as weekend outings. She helps out with cricket and swimming and also works in the computer lab at school. In exchange of working at Kingswood, she gets to stay in the hostile and eat in the dining hall for free. Her birthday is this weekend. She's turning 18 and having a big party. The theme is for everyone to dress up like something that starts with the letter B. Roberta is going to dress up as a bow. Some other people are going to be a baboon, balloon, banana and some other cool things. Unfortunately I won't be able to go, but I'm sure it will be a great time. 

This is a short week because were starting half term. Half term is like our spring break, so we will be out of school for 6 days. Tomorrow we have a big Gala for the older students and will be done at one o'clock. Holly and I are leaving at two o'clock for a road trip on the Garden Route to Cape Town. Were extremely excited because we hear the Garden Route is awesome with a lot of cool things to do. We also hear that Cape Town is the best place in SA. Tracey, one of Debbie's friends, is a travel agent/guide. She is going to take the trip half way with us and then were going to take a tour bus the rest of the way. I'll have my computer with me, but I'm not sure if we will be able to get internet connection along the way. If not, I'll post all about my trip when I get back to Grahamstown:-)