The power of positive thinking never fails to amaze me. After coming off a pretty challenging week, it would have been easy to start last week with a negative attitude. Instead, I decided to remain upbeat, and I ended up having a pretty great week!
On Monday, St. Lucia celebrated Independence Day. Since it is a national holiday, school was closed. Brittney and I were able to spend the entire day at the beach, and (of course) got some ice cream! It was interesting to see that Independence Day is celebrated here very similarly to how we celebrate at home. The beaches were packed with family and friends grilling out, playing games, and simply enjoying time with loved ones. Brittney and I were very thankful to have this day off to relax. Hooray for 5 day weekends!
On Tuesday, it was back to reality (cue Eminem). For science we finished up our unit on animal adaptations. To wrap things up, I read the following prompt to the students: “This morning when you woke up, you felt a little strange. When you looked in the mirror you realized you are no longer human, you woke up as…(insert an animal—real or made-up). After looking a little longer, you also realized you woke up with TWO different adaptations that help you survive in your new environment!” Each student received a blank piece of paper on which they told me what type of animal they woke up as, the two adaptations they have, why they need these adaptations, as well as a description of the environment they live in. Let me tell you, these students are extremely creative! While some woke up as a dog or a cat, others woke up as a unicorn or even a “kish” (a mix between a kitten and a fish). Their adaptations ranged from things such as sharp teeth and camouflage to having jet packs on their legs so they are able to escape predators. They had so much fun with this, and I loved seeing their creativity shine through!
On Monday, St. Lucia celebrated Independence Day. Since it is a national holiday, school was closed. Brittney and I were able to spend the entire day at the beach, and (of course) got some ice cream! It was interesting to see that Independence Day is celebrated here very similarly to how we celebrate at home. The beaches were packed with family and friends grilling out, playing games, and simply enjoying time with loved ones. Brittney and I were very thankful to have this day off to relax. Hooray for 5 day weekends!
On Tuesday, it was back to reality (cue Eminem). For science we finished up our unit on animal adaptations. To wrap things up, I read the following prompt to the students: “This morning when you woke up, you felt a little strange. When you looked in the mirror you realized you are no longer human, you woke up as…(insert an animal—real or made-up). After looking a little longer, you also realized you woke up with TWO different adaptations that help you survive in your new environment!” Each student received a blank piece of paper on which they told me what type of animal they woke up as, the two adaptations they have, why they need these adaptations, as well as a description of the environment they live in. Let me tell you, these students are extremely creative! While some woke up as a dog or a cat, others woke up as a unicorn or even a “kish” (a mix between a kitten and a fish). Their adaptations ranged from things such as sharp teeth and camouflage to having jet packs on their legs so they are able to escape predators. They had so much fun with this, and I loved seeing their creativity shine through!
On Wednesday, we continued working with verb tenses in grammar. I created five different centers that the students rotated through in small groups. They really enjoy being able to move around the classroom as well as work in small groups as opposed to always working individually. Wednesday also marked exactly one month until I am home! I cannot believe how quickly my time here has gone by. To be honest, most of the time I actually forget I am here. I have become so accustomed to the culture and my surroundings that it feels like home. I would basically describe it as being pretty similar to the freshman year of college.
While Thursday and Friday were by no means bad days, nothing huge happened. Thursday morning began with the entire Grade 3 together for class. We began the comprehension skill of predicting outcomes. We used the book All the Magic in the World, and I HIGHLY recommend it to anyone! Fellow teacher friends, moms and dads, babysitters, EVERYONE--this book is fantastic. Friday morning I received a package from my parents! They sent me some candy and one of my favorite sweatshirts. Even though it had been in the mail for a month, it still smelled like home, which made me tear up a little bit.
While Thursday and Friday were by no means bad days, nothing huge happened. Thursday morning began with the entire Grade 3 together for class. We began the comprehension skill of predicting outcomes. We used the book All the Magic in the World, and I HIGHLY recommend it to anyone! Fellow teacher friends, moms and dads, babysitters, EVERYONE--this book is fantastic. Friday morning I received a package from my parents! They sent me some candy and one of my favorite sweatshirts. Even though it had been in the mail for a month, it still smelled like home, which made me tear up a little bit.
To be honest, I am still exhausted from the weekend. It was so much fun, though! Brittney and I spent Friday evening dancing in Rodney Bay with Brittney’s cooperating teacher. Brittney and I were both tired from the week and her teacher had a bad headache which meant we didn’t stay out long, but we still had a great time. Saturday was the day we have been waiting for since before we even left the US! A few teachers from Brittney’s school were gracious enough to take on a “tour of de island”. We started out in Gros Islet, which is where I live, and drove down the West coast to Vieux Fort, which is where Brittney and I flew in, and looped back up to Gros Islet. We saw so many beautiful views and were able to experience things that Lucians have been ensuring we do since the day we arrived in St. Lucia. Enjoy all the pictures below! |
Sunday was a very relaxing day. We attended another birthday party for one of my students. We spent the entire day on a huge boat! It was so exciting to see my students singing, dancing, and playing games with one another. We didn’t expect the party to go as long as it did, but that meant we were able to catch the sunset out on the water!
I would consider myself a relatively patient person. I believe it is pretty much a pre-requisite for being a teacher. However, living in St. Lucia demands a whole different level of patience. Everyone here lives on what we call “island time”; this basically means they live without much regard for a clock. If something is supposed to take place at 7, it is likely it will not start until 7:30 or 8. While there is nothing wrong with this way of living, it is VERY different from the way I live at home! For the past few years I have led a busy, fast-paced lifestyle. I was raised to be on time (I know my mom is probably thinking back on my middle school years and questioning whether or not that is true…), so this has been a huge change for me. Brittney and I are both very independent people, which makes life here pretty frustrating. We are completely dependent on our host families for every meal, and are constantly having to rely on people for rides. We walk anywhere we possibly can, but that really limits all the places we are able to go on our own. On Tuesday I spent almost two hours waiting in line at the bank just to simply sign a piece of paper to get my debit card back (the ATM retained it last weekend…such a fiasco!). We often joke that we spend more time waiting than actually doing whatever it is we were waiting for. My patience is being tested, but I am learning to roll with it!
Better a patient person than a warrior,
one with self-control than one who takes a city.
—Proverbs 16:32--
one with self-control than one who takes a city.
—Proverbs 16:32--