Pendla

Volunteering this week was great. I feel helpful and welcome in the 3rd grade classroom. Monday we taught a lesson on conjunctions. We didn't do it too creatively, but we got the kids involved so I think that was good. During break we played follow the leader and I made the kids do such silly things. They loved it! After break the teacher, I'm not sure of her name yet, taught and it was cool to see how she teaches. She does a better job than the other teachers I've seen here, but she still relies on repetition and rote memorization too heavily.

Tuesday we finished our lesson on conjunctions with a game we made up. That worked pretty well, anytime you tell children they get to play a game at school they get excited! I was thinking on this day, as it was so hot in their classroom, about how once the schools in MN start to get hot that the kids go crazy! Once summer gets close, hardly any learning gets done in many classrooms. But here, they deal with that all the time. But the kids do good, they're used to it. They wear sweaters and high knee socks! Sometimes the teachers make an announcement to the class telling all the kids to take off their sweaters. I don't know why, but I'll be sweating hot in a t-shirt and most of the kids still have their sweaters on! The teachers think it's weird too I guess. After break we decided to take a picture of each student with their name written on the chalkboard behind them. You should have seen how excited they got! They were laughing so hard each time someone else had their picture taken and then they were so shy when it was there turn. I made them say "chees" and show their teeth and that was of course the funniest thing of all!

Today is my last day of class this week, whew it went by fast! Nothing too exciting though. Tomorrow I will be devoting myself to my large political science paper that is due on Tuesday. Scuba diving Saturday and Sunday (I'll definitely have things to write about that!) And already on Tuesday we leave for Cape Town (the biggest and supposedly the best city in South Africa). We'll be there as a group for 5 days. Then Sunday our spring break begins. Me and 8 other girls (3 of my roommates and then 5 from the flat below us) are taking a tour of the Garden Route. That is the coastline from Cape Town to Port Elizabeth. Some of the planned events are wineland tours, shark cage diving, bungee jumping (I'm not sure if I'll do this one), hiking, mountain biking, horse back riding, scuba diving....this is going to be an expensive trip! And busy!

Glad to see that Jessie and Anna made it back safely! How is everyone's reality hitting as spring breaks end? Well Mac and Mom, you still have yet to start! Have fun in Arizona!! If you are looking for things to do, ask Kay about maybe booking a ticket to the TrailRiders Rockettes!!