After thinking about it and being reminded, I realized that I never really said anything else about how the school is and what I do. I think the last thing I told you all was that we were working on my schedule? But then I just completely forgot to update about that! So since the weekend is coming to an end and I'm back in school mode, I'll update a little about the school!
Well, as I've said in my first (I think) post, the school doesn't necessarily go by grades. It kind of does, but there's not specific classes for 1st grade, 2nd grade, etc. This past week there was about 10-12 students in the school each day. That was a few less than usual apparently, because some students and their families were still in Anchorage from the break or where every they may have been and they just hadn't gotten to catch a plane to come back yet. So I'm sure this week will be a little different. Every morning we all gather in the gym and do a "morning message" and then say the pledge all together and then our day starts!
The school is sectioned into Elementary, Middle level and then High school. There's also a preschool which includes about 4 little ones! This week I got to meet two of them and spend some time with them and they're adorable. In the Elementary level - there's two teachers Paulene & Kitza - who is the sub right now - (Paulene does the preschool as well) and then there's a kindergartener, two second graders and two third graders in the "class". Now, again this was just this past week so there will be a few more students to add in there when all is said and done. Those kids are all in the same classroom, working on different things, with the exception of when they're pulled out for spelling or math practice on the computer. For as chaotic as that sounds, to have 5+ elementary students of different levels in the same room working on different things, it runs really smoothly in there and those kids know what they're supposed to be working on and when! Then there's the middle level which has one teacher, Derek. This week there was only one middle schooler and he's in 6th. I get the impression - or at least this is how it was this past week - that the middle level kids do a lot with the high schoolers. Then there is obviously the high schoolers with one teacher. This past week there was about 7-8 of them every day. They range between 10-12th grade and then a super senior which just means he's in his second senior year. Those "kids" - I feel like I can't call them that since they're not TOO much younger than me - are really great, I like working with them in that room. The thing that I find really cool, is that with the older kids, they have online classes so at certain points in the day, they all log into a class on their computers - which they all have Macs through the school - and they listen to their teacher (from a different village) teach the level reading class they're in. Same with math! And the high school teacher, Jeff, here in PTH, teaches an online class for his level math to kids in other villages. Basically, it makes it much easier on the teachers so that they're only teaching math at one level to kids who are at that level instead of having 8 students on different math and reading levels and trying to teach them all individually... hopefully I explained that well enough to understand. The students work at their own paces and get things done at their time. They go by levels and standards and then they take tests to pass that level when all of the other requirements have been met.
On a daily basis, my schedule goes in 15 - 30 minute incrimints. Basically, throughout the day, I pull students in all of the "grades" and work with the ones that may need more help and/or more test prep. I work with the same kids every day and in some cases, I take the kids upstairs to my "office" and we sit at the table and do the work that needs to be done or the practice tests we need to do. A lot of my time with the older kids is spent in their classroom with them helping them with their writing or math, etc. It's just easier to sit down there with them and help them (& socialize, too ;)). The little kids that I take upstairs with me think it's so cool to come upstairs with me. It definitely takes some getting used to, being that I have on average 15 minutes to transition and work with the kids, but I like it. It makes my days go by quickly!
Everyday I go over to Kasie's apartment with her and have lunch before it's time to head back into the school to finish the day! That's a nice little break in the day and it's cool to get out of the school for some time. I'm sure that may not happen every day, and if that's the case - we can eat in the gym at lunch tables with the kids!
One of these days I'll take some pictures of the school and it's surroundings so that I can share those!
Hopefully the weather is decent this week so I can explore, the wind has been out of control, still...so I'm trying not to blow away ;)
Good night!
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