But I have to admit that I am having fun being back in the classroom. I really do enjoy the teaching, even if my audience isn’t ideal! I am thankful, though, that I feel needed every day. For example, check out the recent student-made posters for picture day. Don’t let the whole “Early College” label fool you – my new babies need all the help they can get in all the languages they try to speak. :)
We were 300 kids over projections so the entire 6th grade moved to a new building about three weeks into the school year. Because we don’t have paras or support staff at the new place, the teachers have been working some long hours. The kids arrive at 6:50 in the morning and we usually stay until 6 working and planning. But when we do leave in the evenings, we have this view to guide us home. Now, I can’t complain about that!
And in other news...
In early September, Joel and I went on a camping trip. We’ve finally upgraded all of our camping gear. Our new tent sleeps eight, but it’s just big enough for our cots, card table, and gear. We camped just outside of Aspen next to a little creek. On Friday night, we went to the Aspen Jazz Festival to see Wilco. Joel and I don’t love most of the same music, but Wilco is a definite favorite for both of us. Apart from the concert, the food was the best part of the weekend. With our new stove, we ate like kings…ribeyes, mashed potatoes and grilled veggies for dinner and a full Paris Ranch breakfast each morning.
I've been teaching the two year old class at our church on Wednesday nights. (I am just not sure how or why I keep experimenting with younger and younger kids...it's so unlike me!) I have a really small class, and my first night showed me how unpredictable kids can be (or maybe how unprepared I am to work with them!). We were learning about the creation story, and to make it "real" for such little ones, I brought in pictures of animals, ones I knew they could mimic the sounds. Following the advice given to me while I was in China and working with primary teachers (thank you, Debbie!!!), I was focusing on repetition with sentence stems. For example....
Me: What animal is this? (Holding a picture of a lion)
Kids: A lion
Me: What do lions say?
Kids: ROAR!
Me: Who made the lion?
Kids: God made the lion.
And so on...the same basic conversation for pigs, ducks, cats, dogs, cows. And right in the middle of it all, one of my precious angels farts. And with a bold and proud posture, turns to me and says, "That's okay. God made farts too." Gotta love it! And I am sure that when their parents asked them what they learned, they will only remember that God made farts. Awesome!
The interview season is upon us, and October is going to prove to be an extremely busy month of travel. We are looking forward to the holidays since this will be the first time Joel will be off for both Thanksgiving and Christmas. This will also be the first time in many years that we will get to spend the entire holiday season together and with our family. Finally, we are living a somewhat normal life.
