what's to do on a Saturday!

Some folks might wonder what we do here as missionaries on Helene on our possible "day off" = Saturday!  May is known as one of the hotter months in the year (followed by September in second place) and we have just this last week come into the reality of this fact.  Waking up sweaty is such a different sensation than not waking up sweaty.  The sun is tremendously hot even in the early hours of the day that no longer do Larry and I sleep in til 6:30 or 7 and scurry around to get some work done before the heat.  The "heat" is already pouring in at 5:45 a.m.!  So, to beat the heat, Dominic and Deirdre and I decided to trek to Northside for a swim in the cool Caribbean Sea.  Wrong!  It was warmer than bathwater!  But to our surprise, some of our young friends had been busier than us.  Never have I seen so many iguanas captured in one place!  Their legs are tied behind their backs so they do not claw.  The boys never told us where they got them, but they certainly were proud of their work.  They were looking forward to a good meal.  And I was simply excited about cheeseburgers on the grill! 

1st week of school - part 3

Ok I just could NOT resist this one.  This little guy is the son of one of our teacher assistants who attends kindergarten and is dismissed from class earlier than the older classes.  He joined me for an afternoon and we had a great time working a puzzle!  How grateful I am for this opportunity that God has given me for this time.

1st week of school- part 2

Here's a look at another one of our seasoned teachers.  Ms. Shanna has been training and teaching with us since 2006.  This year she tackles the challenge of teaching a combined class of third and fourth grades.  Shanna is very relaxed in her classroom and the students seem to really be enjoying their first week of school!   

1st week of school!

Look, look.  See the class.  It's second grade in action.  Ms. Kiera has one of our larger classes.  She is in her third year of teaching and is doing a fantastic job.  She keeps a controlled classroom and is planning her lessons almost totally on her own.  Pray for her as her confidence continues to build and she expands her experience as a teacher.    

We were finally within hours of our first day of school.  Everything was set in place.  Any possible scenario had been played in our minds.  Like an orchestra, we were fine-tuned, well, ok, maybe not FINE tuned, but we were prepared and our audience (the students!) would not know every missed note.  Finally, the hour arrived and our 2009 schoolyear that had hung in question only months ago, became reality.  All this sounds so dramatic, but for the stage of the game we are in here in Helene, it is a crucial year.  After a month of training, we have four lead teachers and two assistants (prospective teachers) going solo as I serve in an advisor type role.  I stand backstage and provide props, cues, and encouragement.  It is somewhat difficult to not have my own classroom - (at my age I yet am not burned out by teaching, what's with that?), but I am so thrilled to see these ladies stretch and step up.  The rehearsals are over, and the curtain went up.  We pray that the spotlight is on Jesus as we minister and serve together.  

Heeeere's Dominic!

As I sit here and reflect on our Teacher Training which has absolutely consumed my life for the last 3 weeks, I am amazed how God puts together people and places for what He is already doing.  When Emily left Helene last year, I admit some anticipation about the 2009 schoolyear.  As I returned and we opened the school, it seemed her presence was everywhere, in everything I picked up or moved, "the memories were so thick, you could swat them away like flies"(sorry, that line from "Field of Dreams" was appropriate!).  But over the last few weeks, our times in the afternoon have become a new sense of what we are doing here in the Helene Christian English School.  A big part of the success in our training this year is due to the Lord sending a young man named Dominic Alvarez.  Dominic is a talented guy, very articulate, sensitive listener and exactly what we needed for training, an animated speaker.  We wondered how our island teachers would react to a "man teacher" in our midst.  They love him!  Everything from his Gameshow Review to his pictures on the board to our very serious moments in the scripture about how Jesus was a teacher, too.  How I miss Em, but thank you, Lord, that Dominic is here.

Teacher Training 2009

This week we completed Teacher Training 2009 with four of our former island teachers and two new prospects who will be assistants.  We have spent every afternoon for the last three weeks exploring positive expectations, classroom management and content mastery.  More importantly, we have experienced a strong camaraderie and friendship.  We have pulled our topics for training from previous years as well as some new activities designed to get to know each other AND the culture better.  This year I have seen these ladies speak more freely and stand before each other with more confidence than I have known before.  We are stoked to begin school.  On Tuesday when the school board meets, we will be told when our first day of school will begin.  Next week we will hold our planning periods - each teacher has a planning time one morning a week - and set up our classrooms.  We are getting off to a later start this year, but I believe we will finish strong.