Hello everyone!
I am sorry that it's been awhile since my last update. I got busier than I expected, and time sort of slid away from me! I'm doing pretty well adjusting to life in Malawi so far. I've even been driving a little bit. I started out just driving to the grocery store, which is literally around the corner, but I am beginning to venture a little farther afield. I've found that when I have cars in front of me to follow, I tend to do pretty well. It's when I'm on a road that doesn't have much traffic that I try to go to the wrong side of the road when a car approaches.
My classes are going pretty well. My 3rd and 4th graders are rather exuberant, and I've had to have a few talks with them about what constitutes acceptable behavior and what doesn't, especially while they're waiting for class to start. The younger classes are also pretty hyper, but that's a little more understandable, since they're younger. And there aren't quite as many of them, so the hyperness and lack of focus is a little easier to deal with.
I'm also a TA for some of the academic classes. I go in for a few hours per week to grade tests and such, and be a second adult in the room if necessary. I was also called in on Tuesday to substitute teach, because one of the fifth grade teachers was ill. That was quite interesting, since I had never done it before! The kids were quite well behaved, though, so that helped. And the regular teacher had listed out when they did what, and what they were planning to cover that day, so that was good too. I really enjoyed it, but I was glad to be done. I hadn't realized until the very end how tired it had made me!
I am starting to work towards planning the Christmas show. I plan this with a few others, and it's been tough trying to find a time that works for everyone to meet. We still haven't yet decided on a theme, let alone started looking at songs, script, etc. I'm farther ahead on the May show than I am on the Christmas show! But that's because I'm the only one in charge of the May show, so I don't have to worry about waiting to talk to others. So that's been a little frustrating, but hopefully it starts to come together fairly soon.
Africa is currently one week into Spring, and it's already noticeably warmer. Granted, it wasn't very cold to begin with, but it's definitely warmer. When I got here, the temperature hovered in the mid 70's or so. It's now hovering in the mid 80's. Only ten degrees, but it's sure noticeable. I have been making somewhat regular use of the swimming pool, and I expect that I will continue to do so. And it's only going to get worse from here, until the rain comes in December to cool things off. It's still a little chilly in the mornings, and cool in the evenings, but not for long.
Please be praying for good time management for me, so that I can get done everything that I need to do, and for continued safety on the road. Pray that I would have grace and wisdom to handle my classes when they're getting out of hand. And pray that the people I need to plan the Christmas program with are able to meet soon so that we can do everything that we need to do before the show.
Thanks so much for all your prayers and support!
I am sorry that it's been awhile since my last update. I got busier than I expected, and time sort of slid away from me! I'm doing pretty well adjusting to life in Malawi so far. I've even been driving a little bit. I started out just driving to the grocery store, which is literally around the corner, but I am beginning to venture a little farther afield. I've found that when I have cars in front of me to follow, I tend to do pretty well. It's when I'm on a road that doesn't have much traffic that I try to go to the wrong side of the road when a car approaches.
My classes are going pretty well. My 3rd and 4th graders are rather exuberant, and I've had to have a few talks with them about what constitutes acceptable behavior and what doesn't, especially while they're waiting for class to start. The younger classes are also pretty hyper, but that's a little more understandable, since they're younger. And there aren't quite as many of them, so the hyperness and lack of focus is a little easier to deal with.
I'm also a TA for some of the academic classes. I go in for a few hours per week to grade tests and such, and be a second adult in the room if necessary. I was also called in on Tuesday to substitute teach, because one of the fifth grade teachers was ill. That was quite interesting, since I had never done it before! The kids were quite well behaved, though, so that helped. And the regular teacher had listed out when they did what, and what they were planning to cover that day, so that was good too. I really enjoyed it, but I was glad to be done. I hadn't realized until the very end how tired it had made me!
I am starting to work towards planning the Christmas show. I plan this with a few others, and it's been tough trying to find a time that works for everyone to meet. We still haven't yet decided on a theme, let alone started looking at songs, script, etc. I'm farther ahead on the May show than I am on the Christmas show! But that's because I'm the only one in charge of the May show, so I don't have to worry about waiting to talk to others. So that's been a little frustrating, but hopefully it starts to come together fairly soon.
Africa is currently one week into Spring, and it's already noticeably warmer. Granted, it wasn't very cold to begin with, but it's definitely warmer. When I got here, the temperature hovered in the mid 70's or so. It's now hovering in the mid 80's. Only ten degrees, but it's sure noticeable. I have been making somewhat regular use of the swimming pool, and I expect that I will continue to do so. And it's only going to get worse from here, until the rain comes in December to cool things off. It's still a little chilly in the mornings, and cool in the evenings, but not for long.
Please be praying for good time management for me, so that I can get done everything that I need to do, and for continued safety on the road. Pray that I would have grace and wisdom to handle my classes when they're getting out of hand. And pray that the people I need to plan the Christmas program with are able to meet soon so that we can do everything that we need to do before the show.
Thanks so much for all your prayers and support!