Book troubles and Shell Island

8-24-08 Sorry for the long break between posts, but our electricity was out for four days and the Internet's been a bit sketchy. Plus, I haven't had many chances to actually write another post--I've been too busy writing lesson plans, grading papers, and recording scores and such. Also, I was trying to consolidate my various lists of e-mail addresses into one master list that will be easier to send out to everyone.

We are on the brink of our second week of teaching--right now, we're all gathered around the girls' dinner table, laptops set up and books spread out across the top of it. Five of us are currently working on our lesson plans for the week of the 25th through the 29th. (I actually finished mine this morning, before we went off swimming, snorkeling, and trying out dive equipment. I'll get to that later.)

It is sometimes difficult to figure out what to teach when there's not a lot to teach with. There's a great lack of textbooks out here, and that makes for a tough time sometimes. For some of the classes, there are student textbooks, but no teacher editions. For other classes, there is a teacher's edition, but no student editions. Sometimes there just aren't books, or enough of them--and sometimes the books are outdated, but are the latest that we have. For example, my freshmen through juniors have grammar textbooks, but I have to teach out of one of their textbooks. They have no literature books. My seniors have literature books, but no grammar textbooks. Luckily, I have a teacher's edition of the literature book--and, oddly enough, a teacher's edition of a grammar book for the senior level. For World History, I have textbooks that were printed in 1997 (and no teacher's edition), and for Advanced Reading, I just have the books that they read out of. At least I have books--some of the lower grades don't have any textbook for English, and so their teachers are hard pressed to figure out what to teach.

But I don't really have complaints (even though it may sound like it)--I'm just stating the facts of the school here on Ebeye. I had a lot of interesting times last week (and some frustrating ones, too)--but I enjoyed it. I'm enjoying this craziness, believe it or not. (Though, if you know me, that may just make sense.) I mean, the biggest problems I've had thus far have been classroom management related, not material related. But I'm getting tips and such on how to deal with the kids when they're pushing the limits and seeing where they are.

Plus, planning has gotten easier, since I've been in the classroom and with the kids. I have a pretty good idea of what they grasp and what they don't and how fast we can go. I've learned that a lot of what goes into teaching is an extreme preparation and a gutsy confidence which borders on bravado, sometimes. At least, that's how it seems at the moment--but I suspect that I will never hear that in an education class! (Maybe I'll be surprised next fall.)

Well, my mom requested that I post what a typical day is like--and so I will. I get up approximately from 5:30-6:00, take a shower (which may or may not be taken in the shower), get dressed, have personal worship, eat breakfast (Cheerios and vanilla soy milk--breakfast of champions--oh, wait, that's Wheaties...), and then head to school. It's about a ten-minute walk, but it's definitely cooler then than at any other part of the day. We have staff worship at 7:30 AM (which to me has echoes of camp in it), and then the day begins at 8:00. First I have the sophomores from 8:00-9:00, then the freshmen from 9:00-9:45. Recess is from 9:45 to 10:00, and then it's Junior English from 10:00-10:45. I teach the seniors next, from 10:45-11:30. Then it's time for lunch, which I either have to pack or walk back to the apartments to fix a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Sometimes, when there's no power, we will walk down to Triple J (the local everything store--groceries, clothes, furniture, fast food) and order something there. Then, from 12:45 to 1:30, I have World History with the juniors--and then, my free period. The last period is from 2:15 to 3:00, in which I have Advanced Reading with the juniors. Friday is a shortened schedule, and the reason for that is twofold. One, it's Friday, and the sun always goes down here at about 7:30. So, in case we need to buy some food at Triple J, we end at 2:00ish. The second reason is that we have chapel after classes, from 1:00-2:00.

Today was an interesting day. We hired a taxi (trucks with taxi signs on them) and drove out the half hour or so to Shell Island. There's a half-sunken, abandoned pier there, and the dive instructor fellow said that there's two submarine searchers sunk within a couple hundred yards of the beach. The pier is more like huge concrete rocks sticking out of the surf--and the lower part that is constantly covered by the ocean is slowly becoming a reef. We jumped off the top of the pier thing into the deep side, paddled around a bit, and then I borrowed Emily's mask and snorkel and tried it out. It's really fun!!! More paddling, then climbed back up onto the concrete, went up the steps, and walked back to the shore, where we ate a semi-potluck. I say semi because we were supposed to bring our own food, but we all ending up sharing anyway. Alan hurt his foot with some board's splinter--and of course the only first aid equipment we brought was the vinegar Ryan had brought in case any of us had run-ins with coral or jellyfish. (Alan was very determined to still try the dive gear out, even with his hurt foot, which had stopped bleeding by the time the instructor arrived and felt fine--or, at least, he said it felt fine. So he tried it out.)Then we waited around and the dive instructor fellow (who is very nice) came, to let us try out the stuff and see if we want to take the dive class.

Well, I tried the stuff out. Mind you, it was the first time I've ever worn flippers, I had only snorkeled for the first time that morning, I had no weight belt on (on account that none he had with him fit me), the tank slipped around, and I'm not the best swimmer in the world (yet :P ). But I did get something right! I understood how to take in long, deep breaths and how to exhale in long breaths in a regular fashion--and I figure it's because of playing the bass clarinet, which takes a lot of air (and which I really miss playing!). SO, I'm looking forward to ordering my dive gear (mask, snorkel, fins) and taking the diving class and working my way towards being certified. Yes, it will cost money and will be hard work--but it will be fun. Plus, whoever said that all the fun things in life must be free and easy?

Then we rode the taxi home, bumping along the causeway, and arrived back to discover that we had no power. So we did what we did last week--draw water from the fresh water well and rinse off in the courtyard. Actually, we went up to the apartments, grabbed our shampoo and washed up a bit out in the courtyard as well. Fun stuff--because the water is cold and the sunshine is warm. Then we went back up to our apartments, dried off, dressed, and set to work. The five of us (Megan, Landen, Emily, Lorraine, and I) had shell pastas with alfredo sauce and slices of tomato for dinner and that brings me up to now--and I'm going to bed. More later.

~Ashlee