Another week passes...not sure how I feel about it...

Another week of teaching gone...Another week closer to having to leave this beautiful country and all the kids here I have grown so close to...

Monday Assembly!

What a week! Monday began with, once again, teaching number patterns and doubling and halving. What is the point in moving on if the learners aren't understanding a topic. Honestly...I feel as though it is a mix between language barriers and attention skills. BUT what can you do?:) So I retaught and gave another assessment to check understanding. It was good though! Then, I had an activity planned for environmental studies about social groups. The learners seemed to have a blast. They received a note card with the name of on social group and they were to find all the people in the same social group as them without talking and only using motions. IT WAS GREAT :) Then I had them draw a picture of the social group they would like to be a part of...what little artists I have. AND FINALLY at the end of the day on Monday I was able to do the first drawing for prizes. I have changed my strategy to giving the learners who are on task and quiet little pieces of paper to write their name on throughout the day and then at the end of the day I draw 2-3 learners names out to pick a prize from my prize bag! :) It's sooo fun giving away fun stuff!

After School RAIN!!

After Monday came Tuesday...of course...and it was a rough day. I had a boy sneak out to break on me when I was dismissing learners individually because so many were being loud and misbehaving. The boy's name is Brian and I told him he would be staying in for break on Wednesday, but after watching him get beat right before Wednesday's break by my teacher, I went up to him to check on him and he had tears in his eyes...as my heart broke there was no way I could keep him in, so I let him go out.

Along with this event on Wednesday were many other very impacting events. I planned like crazy on Tuesday night in order to have math groups Wednesday so that I could give more one-on-one attention to those learners who were still struggling with number patterns and/or doubling and halving. It was a lot of work but after looking over the assessments from Monday, I dividing my learners into 4 groups: those who clearly understood both, those who needed more help with number patterns, those who needed help with doubling and halving, and those who needed extra help with both. Then I came up with various enrichment/practice activities for those who understood as well as a couple for the other groups. I re-taught the concepts to the smaller groups and had the learners who understood doing activities like: double and halving bingo, number patterns with dice, make your own number patterns, and doubling and halving grid. I went into Wednesday thinking it was going to be CRAZY! But surprisingly enough, it was great! It was crazy, but not as bad as I thought it would be and although there are definitely things that I would change for next time, the kids loved it and most really began to understand both concepts.

Class Photo...Say CHEESE!

As the school day came to an end, my day wasn't over yet. Jessica short (as the kids call the other Jessica) and I (Jessica Tall) began walking home with Tia, one of Jessica short's learners. Boy was that an experience! It was such an eye opening experience. As we walked kids crowded around, touched us, held our hands, and walked with us for majority of the way...although some began to drop off, many continued with us. I don't even know that all of their houses were the same direction as we were going, but they wanted to stay with us, lol.

The Walk :)

Once we got to Tia's house we met her family and talked with them. We learned that there were 16 kids and 8 adults all in their VERY small house. I couldn't believe it! I fell in love with one of the little baby/toddlers there though. From the moment I saw her I couldn't help, but smile and play with her. After she warmed up to me, she sat on my lap the rest of the time.There were also several other kids that snuggled up with me :) It was a great experience...from walking home to learning about their family and then also walking back to the school to be picked up. Overall it was a fairly good Wednesday with a mix of thoughts and feelings.

God is the same everywhere I walk! :)

Houses in Katutura

Little girl I saw while walking

Jessica and I with some of the kidos in Tia's family

Cutest baby ever!! Loved HER!

Some of the other girls snuggling up :)

And finally, Today! Today was a pretty normal day...I gave the learners the letters from my students in the States and they were sooooooo excited! :) So excited that it was a little hard to get their attention after handing them out. Once everyone read their letter and got their friendship bracelet on, we began to write the sentences that will soon be in their letters back to the students in the States. In doing this, I found my learners are VERY good at writing sentences!! YIPPEEE!! They loved writing and as they finished I gave them a Namibian flag that I drew and my teacher made copies of for them to color for the front of their letters. The only rough part was when my teacher came in at 12:29 and informed me that the learners were suppose to be dismissed at 12:30 today for "preparation time"...I hadn't given homework, all the learners were still working and after telling me that my teacher left. I think she may have been a little annoyed with me, but how was I suppose to know. After giving homework, packed up and praying my learners finally left to class at 1:08, 2 minutes before they usually get out...whoops.

And with that...we head into a three day weekend. Hopefully I get into town this weekend to finish up some of the final gifts and wants, so that I am not cramming the last few days.

Thought and feelings so far...

I don't even know where to begin...

I have seen houses made from metal scraps with no electricity or running water. I have taught for a week in a school that has very little supplies and broken desks and chairs. I have had to watch teachers beat and yell at kids and have been asked by my learners to do the same or they won't learn. I have watched learners walk home in the pouring rain bare foot.

I have also been surrounded by beautiful mountains, watched the most amazing sunset from a cliff, and seen huge sand dunes everywhere. I could not help but think about how big my God is. All of the mountains and sand dunes were so big and so beautiful, it was breath taking.

I have also experienced the uneasy feeling of walking around in a town where not many speak English well and all are trying to provide for their families by selling hand made jewelry. And I cant forget about the tent schools either. I have visited a school that was held in one big tent with one table and a chalkboard in the scorching heat.

I don't even think I have completely processed everything I have seen and experienced. My heart has broken at some of the things I have seen and I have also experienced complete joy and amazement.

This experience has not been what I expected at all. I have felt alone yet surrounded by people. I have felt failure and success. I have learned, but at the same time felt as though I have retained anything. I have missed home but at the same time have not wanted to leave.

How can I love people more? How can I teach these kids in a meaningful way? How can I spend the light and hope of the Lord? How can I fully soak in all that I am experiencing? I don't want to forget the things I've seen. I don't want to waste this time hear. I want to do the Lord's will in this place.

I am here in Namibia Africa...I am in the place I have only dreamed of coming to...I have experienced things I have only imagined in my thoughts...I have pictured what it would be like and I don't know that one thing has been what I pictured.

Lord guide me as I continue on this journey.

School Profile...AI STEENKAMP PRIMARY SCHOOL

For one of our assignments we had to get together with our group at AI Steenkamp and do a school/classroom/community profile. It actually turned out to be very insightful, so if you are interested in learning more about the school I teach at read this...

AI STEENKAMP PRIMARY SCHOOL

A.I. Steenkamp Primary School (Steenkamp) is a school which serves pre-primary through grade seven learners in the township of Katutura located on the outer edge of Windhoek, Namibia. The mission of A.I. Steenkamp Primary School is “to provide the best quality education and to help our learners to seek the light for a better tomorrow,” which mirrors the school's motto of fiat lux-let there be light. Steenkamp serves approximately 1,400 learners with a staff of 43. The school is broken into two sects: lower-primary (pre-primary through grade three) and upper-primary (grade four through grade seven). Each grade level is divided into five classes, A-E for example 2A. Although class sizes vary, on average, there are 38 to 40 learners per class.

The school day at Steenkamp goes from 7h10 to 1h10 beginning with a staff devotion. Although the teacher prospectus clearly states teachers and learners must be in their home room classes by 7h10 for attendance, in reality, morning devotions do not usually begin until this time. Therefore, learners do not typically begin their first period class until 7h30 even though it is scheduled to begin at 7h20. Lower-primary classes remain in the same classroom with the same teacher for the duration of the day. However, upper-primary learners travel as a class for eight different periods a day to various classrooms. The school week begins with a Monday morning assembly which lasts approximately thirty to forty minutes. The entire school receives one break a day from 10h to 10h30, which is after upper-primary's fourth period. Steenkamp has a complex timetable which allows for learners to rotate through different subject areas including: english, maths, social studies, environmental studies, afrikaans, kkg, life skills, religious moral education, physical training, science, and arts. Learners attend core subjects, such as english and maths, everyday, where as other subjects, such as physical training and arts, are attended two to three times a week.

Learners and teachers are expected to attend school every day and arrive promptly unless prior arrangements have been made or illness occurs. All learners are also expected to wear full school uniform. For girls this consists of a blue and white plaid jumper, a belt, black shoes and short white socks. For boys this consists of grey shorts in the summer, grey pants in the winter, a grey button up shirt, black shoes, and tall grey socks. All learners are also required to maintain a certain level of cleanliness which includes combed or plated hair for girls and short combed hair for boys. Not only are learners required to keep themselves clean, it is essential for them to join hands with the staff to keep the school environment clean. Often times staff can be seen asking leaners to remove papers or scraps from the school yard. Homework is a necessary part of each learner's education and approximately two hours should be assigned every night. All learners write in exercise books, which are required to be covered with brown paper, have a cover sheet which denotes the name of the learner and the subject area, as well as their class name, and is then covered with thin plastic. As well as taking responsibility for covering their books, learners' families must also take responsibility for any injuries which take place on school premises. Papers are signed by families releasing the school from liability of injuries including death, which have occurred in the past.

School fees are supposed to be paid by all learners in the amount of N$250 per year, which help pay for the daily functions of the school. Although these fees are a requirement, only about 400 learners actually pay the full amount. This money goes to pay for some of the school's costs, such as maintenance, transportation, and phone lines; the majority of Steenkamp's monetary support comes from Namibia's Ministry of Education department. Steenkamp receives N$9 per learner for cleaning costs such as toilet paper and N$60 per learner for purchasing textbooks, which are based on the fifteenth day attendance statistics. Because Steenkamp is a state school, the staff salaries are allocated directly from the Ministry of Education. There is no system in place for daily substitute teachers. In the event which a teacher is absent, learners are either self-monitored, or supervised by a teacher who is free during a given period. If a

teacher is planning to be absent for a minimum of thirty days, for reasons such as maternity or surgery, a relief teacher is hired to take their classes for that time.

The Ministry of Education also provides the standards of learning for each grade in each subject area. There are uniform syllabi, which are distributed to each and every teacher for the subjects and grades they teach. Teacher then are required to teach according to each benchmark and standard listed in these. To assess that these standards have been met by each learner, clusters of schools create standardized tests, which are sent to the Ministry for approval and then given to learners three weeks before the end of the school year. Learners must receive a passing grade on this exam as well as in their classes in order to be promoted to the next grade the following school year.

Young Achievers Group Meeting

Katutura

Due to family situations and lack of financial means, only about two or three percent of leaners who come from Steenkamp will go on to study at the university level. This seems to be the case for the larger community of Katutura as groups, such as Young Achievers have formed to help motivate learners to seek higher education. Families in Katutura live in two different types of housing; stucco houses, which were built by the government, and shanty homes, which are made of metal, wood, and other scrap materials found throughout the area. The name Katutura, which means “the place where no one wants to live” was chosen by the black population when they were re-located there by apartheid in 1964. Katutura was originally separated into sects by tribe to prevent intertribal unity and overthrowing of the government. Because of this, there are strong relationships and community ties throughout the township.

More of Katutura

Education was much different before independence was granted to Namibia in 1990. Prior to independence, teachers taught with a teacher centered focus and learners were regarded little. The education teachers received was from a white South African perspective. Since it has only been twenty years since independence, schools are still in transition of new ways of thinking. This means many teachers who were educated before independence are still teaching and have to make monumental changes in their thinking. This 'new way' brings about a learner centered focus rather than a teacher centered one. Although progress is being made in the education system, Namibia is still a very young, independent country and has much room for growth. With the dedication and determination of emerging leaders in the field of education, there is no doubt that Namibia is on the track to a brighter future and a better tomorrow.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DADDY!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DADDY!!! I LOVE YOU THISSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS MUCH AND MORE!! :) HOPE YOUR DAY IS AMAZING! MISS YOU!

Your Daughter,

Jess

:)

Teaching...

Wake up, eat, teach, teach some more, plan, sleep and repeat...

That was my week. It was great yet exhausting. Education here is not the same as education in the U.S. and teaching styles are so different. I decided on Tuesday that I needed to drop all expectations and just go with the flow of things...this made for a very interesting week. I taught English and Math all week and consistently battled to keep the learners on task and engaged in their learning. The learners here...they beat each other, chase each other and they run around like crazy. The crazy part is when my teacher is in the class they are almost perfect, but when she leaves they are done. I realized this week just exactly why this happens...my students are scared of my teacher...on Tuesday I watched as my teacher hit a learner with a ruler several times, on Friday I watched as she used a hard plastic rod to hit 4 boys' hands in front of the whole class for fighting, and also on Friday I watched her hit several learners across the head with her hand...And yes I could only watch. I have to remember in my head that this is the only way they know! Some of the hardest parts about it is that I have to just sit there and watch and then I have to continuously struggle to get the learners to behave and listen to me. During a conversation with the class about their behavior I had a boy raise his hand and tell me that I should just beat them in order for them to listen. I told them that I will never beat a child and that I believe there are other ways to help learners learn and behave correctly. As much as it sucks constantly struggling with the learners and trying to figure out a system that works, I have learned so much! I love at those kids and even when I am frustrated, tired and exhausted I just smile and give them another chance to have fun learning. It funny because they don't seem to listen at all during the day but then at the end of the day as I walk towards the van I am surrounded by kids touching me and following me cheerfully.

I did accomplish my pedagogy this week. Wednesday Paula came in and observed me teaching a math lesson! I was soo nervous, but it actually went very well! While Paula was there it was great and then the second half of the day was once again loud and rough. I've learned though that we must not dwell on the bad days, but look at all the accomplishments and good events that have happened and move on. Every morning brings new mercies!! SO every day is a new day and every day I love those kids more!

BRING ON THE TEACHING! :)

1st Day of Placement...Grade 3 here I come!

Part of my class!

Well Monday was my first day in my placement! I am in a grade 3 class with Ms. Beukes. I have 40 learners in my class and I love them all already. Although...they haven't been listening very well. Anyways...back to Monday...It was a rough day. Everything was so unknown...my teacher introduced me to the class and told me, "Go ahead and do whatever you'd like with them." So there I was in a class I had never been in, in a completely different country, in charge of 40 learners. So I just did a couple "get to know you" activities and had them make these reallycool "Who Am I?" hands. They seemed to love it though, which was a plus. Then my teacher came back and it was almost like she expected me to know what I was suppose to do and truthfully I had no clue! AND Management SUCKED! When my teacher left the kids didn't listen at all.Itried every technique I know and still nothing. If my teacher was in there she would yell at them and they would listen, but that just made me feel like a complete failure. And after that all I could think about was my Pedagogy (observation) that my profs had to do on wed. I had no idea how I was going to pull it off.

After school we went out to eat at Sardina's (or something like that) and I was completely out of it. I missed everyone so much and I think it was just worse because it was a rough day and I was still not completely well. Plus I was stressing about my Pedagogy. So when we got back toCasa my profs asked if I was ok and I lost it. They just told me not to worry about it and that I would be completely fine. I then talked to my dad on skype and just was so upset. All that said...it was just a rough day.

THERE WAS A HIGHLIGHT THOUGH!!! It was MONDAY so that means it was my day to go to the orphanage/children's home!! I love it there! I love hanging out with all the kids and I know you aren't suppose to have favorites, but there is one girl who I have really bonded wellwith, Bianca. I love her to death and on Monday she was hilarious. I was trying to take pictures with her and she was cracking up! I also let Syndia take videos on my flip camera and I was watching them today and they were so cute! Those girls just make me smile!! :)

Syndia, Bianca and I playing with the camera :)

Bianca and I! Love her!

Syndia and I! What a cutie!

Zebra River Lodge and the Dunes!

Wow I know its been a while since I've written...I'm sorry...I have been very busy with school this week, it being my first week and all, but enough about that for now. I REALLY have to tell you about last weekend!

As some of you knowwe went on another one of our trips around Namibia last weekend and this time it was to Zebra River Lodge and the sand dunes! Zebra River Lodge is actually Peter and Elke's second hotel/lodge besides Casa Blanca (my home right now), so we got a great discount for the whole weekend, including a trip to the sand dunes!

Group photo on the side of the mountain,, overlooking Zebra River!

Me on the mountain side getting ready for a beautiful sunset!

We headed out Friday early in the morning (of course skipping another Friday of school..lol). It was about a seven to eight hour drive, part of it even on dirt roads, which was quite the experience, but let me tell you, IT WAS ALL WORTH IT!! Zebra River Lodge wasBEAUTIFUL!!! It is a very secluded lodge surrounded by beautiful green mountains and rocks. We arrived to a small lunch and a huge pool all ready for us to enjoy! That night weheaded to the top of one of the surrounding mountains to watch the sunset, MY FAVORITE! I can not say it enough, IT WAS SO BEAUTIFUL! I could have easily stayed there for longer!

Panoramic of Zebra River Lodge

It's places like Zebra River Lodge and thesand dunes that makes you rememberand think about just how BIG our God is! I can not say how many times I thanked the Lord for bringing me here. This place...it made me speechless...it still makes me think...how is it that I EVER forget how big God is?

My room

The rooms we very nice. Although it was very hot at night and I was paranoid about spiders and other bugs all night so the first night was a little rough. I didn't sleep much, waking up thinking there were bugs crawling on my. If only we would have had a lizard/gecko in ourroom...lol...they told us they eat the bugs and spiders and don't hurt you to if you see one keep it. One of the other rooms had one but not ours...dang it. I know, I know it sounds funny for me to WANT a lizard/gecko in my room, but I would take that over spiders and bugs any day...haha.

Anyways, the second day (Saturday) we headed out in 4 wheel drive vehicles to the sand dunes...what a drive! It was a dirt road all the way there with various steep hills, dried up rivers, and other "obstacles" that made the drive fun and engaging! Paula, my professor drove and she was a champ! As we drove, the view was breathtaking!

View while driving to the dunes

Dune 45

A couple hours later, we finally arrived at the sand dunes,TALK ABOUT A VIEW! There were giant piles of sand all around! We stopped for breakfast/lunch at one of the first dunes, dune 45 (picture above), which we thought was the coolest ever...little did we know, there were much BIGGER dunes to come. One bummer was I was still sick, so I didn't climb to the tippy top because I got tired much faster and coughed way more! Half way up I decided to save my energy for the biggerones that our professor told us we were going to and I head back down. Even half way though was just gorgeous!

Bri and I on Big Mama

We then made our way further into the dunes and found Sossusvlei (the name of the part of dunes we were headed to). This was where we meet big mama (picture above) and big papa! They are two of the biggest dunes! We hiked half way up big mama..I wish we could have gone all the way, but time was short, so we hiked up and ran down the side...FUNNEST THING EVER! :)

Deadvlei

Then we headed to Deadvlei at the base of big papa. This was a dried up lake area that was full of dead trees. It seriously looked like a desert for sure!

OH and I almost forgot...DRIVING IN THE SAND!! It was seriously sooooo fun! I thought a couple times we were going to hit the trees! Paula said driving in the sand was similar to driving on a sheet of ice with very little control, but it was SOOO FUN RIDING!!

The river we forged!

It was even more fun riding home Sunday though...WE FORGED A RIVER!!! Yes, we drove straight through a muddy running river. We thought we were taking the short way when all of a sudden we came up on a full blown river running across the dirt road, so we all got out and Jan (my other professor) headed out to cross the river and find the best path to drivethrough.Nothing was promised but we went for it and it was BOMB! BUT, our luck ran short when just down the road from that river we hit another and this time the river had taken out part of the road making it impossible for us to even try crossing without ruining our cars. So, we headed back through the first river and down to a different dirt road which successfully took us back "home". AND it also successfully found us baboons...

Yes those are baboons on the side of the road! :)

Needless to say it was one of the best weekends so far here in Namibia!!