Getting a bit personal.

Today was such an educational, eye-opening day.

My teacher, Erin, went to a seminar type thing over the weekend and decided to implement something she learned during the LO (Life Orientation) lesson at the end of the day. She put out an empty tin and told the students to write down any problems they might be having on a slip of paper. They would put their problems in the tin, and then we would all go outside and sit in a "care circle" in order to discuss everything that was in the tin. She also got out a small Tigger stuffed animal who would be passed around the circle so everyone in the class got an opportunity to talk about whatever problem.

I swear, I saw about three students put slips of paper into the tin, but come care circle time there were a good handful of slips in there. There was everything from "My friends are fighting and trying to drag me into it" to "This girl gives me nasty looks when I answer a question right" to "My parents are fighting, what do I do?" to "My dad hasn't had a job in a long time and my parents are having trouble paying their bills."

Obviously my heart broke any number of times. Especially when almost every student in the class chose to share that their parents have fought in the past or are fighting now, as well. I've only known these kids for a little over four weeks, but I already wish I could take all their problems.

I also attempted to give advice every time Tigger was passed to me, just to make sure the anonymous student knows I care about them. I know how much students look up to their teachers, and I know how excited the students get when I teach them :) So, I figured the least I could do was show my support and try to help them in any way I could,

The "Care Circle" is definitely something I'd love to implement in my own future classroom. I've seen that it can be successful, and it's a really good way to encourage unity, friendship, and problem solving among the students.

Today also got me thinking: I want so badly to help all of these kids with their social, emotional, mental, etc etc problems. Why didn't I just major in child psychology?! Oh, well - there's always a Master's degree!

(OH! And I promise my next entry will be much more uplifting/happy. I'm going to another game reserve on Saturday! Animals!!)

First Time For Everything...

The past few days have been filled with firsts for me! Well, actually, only two that I can think of...

1) I saw elephant, zebra, ostrich, warthog, and various antelope in the wild for the first time. One of the grade 5 teachers took me to Addo Elephant National Park. It's a ~500,000 acre nature reserve that houses a ton of different animals, including lion, leopard, rhino, and water buffalo, along with the animals I listed above. It's fenced in, but there is virtually no human intervention. The only things man-made are the watering holes. What you do is this: drive around in your car for HOURS searching for any sign of wildlife. If the weather is warm and sunny, you have a way better chance of seeing lots of animals up close. If the weather is cool and sunny (like it was on Saturday), there's less of a chance. But, boy did I still see some amazing sights. About 10 minutes into driving after lunch, we came upon a herd of no less than nine elephant (including four calf) on the side of the road. It was just stunning. I couldn't take enough pictures. I'll be going back one more time for sure, hopefully more! I REALLY want to see the lion!

2) I missed a day of student teaching. I have been part-time student teaching since this time last year, and I have not missed ONE day of it. Now, after being in the classroom full-time for not even 2 weeks, I miss a day :( I woke up with a terrible sore throat, congestion, headache - and it got worse before it got (a little) better. I feel okay now (just okay, though), so hopefully I can return to school tomorrow. I missed my students!

You'd think after resting in bed all day I wouldn't be tired. But, I'm exhausted. Must be blowing your nose takes a lot of energy...

My first week.

I would say that my first week at Herbert Hurd Primary School went quite well. All I did was observe, but I'm there full-time for 10 or 11 weeks, so there was no need to jump into teaching immediately. The students, however, kept asking "When is Miss Brodnax going to teach us? Can Miss Brodnax teach us English tomorrow? Why is she so quiet?" To which my mentor teacher replied, "She's going to teach you in three week's time. She's just watching all of you right now, writing a report about you for her university." That made all the kids sit up a bit straighter :)

The layout of the school day is really different from the layout I'm used to in America. Here, there are no set times for lunch or specials. They have a different order of lessons every day, and subjects like art, music, and P.E. are worked in one day a week. There are two fifteen minute breaks - one at 10:40 and one at 12:50. Those are the times that teachers and students can be away from each other and eat. There is also no cafeteria. Students either bring their lunch or buy food from the tuck shop (I got a yummy toasted tomato and cheese sandwich there one day). I actually really like this setup. It seems less stressful than taking your students to the lunch room, making sure they get their food, racing back to your classroom to gobble your sandwich before you have to go get them again.

Oh, and did I mention the school day is shorter? :) Learning time goes from 8am to 2pm, and I haven't heard any complaints from any teacher about there not being enough time to teach something. Plus, their school year is about 20 days longer than ours with lots of breaks throughout. I honestly think more American schools should look into that.

But, now, I have a 4-day weekend in which I plan to do hardly anything but keep on re-reading the Harry Potter series (I'm on book 2). I'll be observing some more the three days of next week, and after that, I start helping out more. Can't wait!

My first day.

Before I get to my first day of student teaching, allow me to tell you about my weekend!

On Saturday, I had pizza with bananas on it. It was surprisingly delicious, so now I'll have to make my family put bananas on frozen pizza. We also watched National Treasure, one of my favorite movies. What I realized, though, is that it's kind of strange to watch a movie full of American history while in another country.

On Sunday, we went to the beach! It was a beautiful day, ergo the beach was pretty crowded. But now I can say I've seen an ocean that's not the Atlantic!

Okay, now I'll tell you all about my first day of student teaching. I got there at 7:40am or so and went straight into a staff meeting. The principal was talking about school stuff and birthdays and whatnot, and then he said my name! He welcomed me to the school, said where I was from, and completely embarrassed me. One of the teachers even added me in during the prayer, hoping I feel comfortable and find a home at Herbert Hurd. Honestly, I could not have felt more welcome.

My first impression of my mentor teacher, Erin, is as follows: SO COOL! She jokes around with the students all the time, she isn't strict or mean but firm when needed, and she is basically the teacher I have been planning to be for the past year and a half. I am so incredibly excited to get to know her better personally and as a teacher. 

My first impression of the students is as follows: So. Well. Behaved. Yes, they chatter, but compared to what I've dealt with in Athens, they were like angels. They stand up to greet the teachers in the morning and the afternoon. They say "ma'am" all the time (even to me!). And these particular kids seem very sweet, and they could not stop complimenting me. "Ma'am, I like your hair. Ma'am, I like your smile. Ma'am, you're very pretty." (Just imagine those words being said by a 10-year-old in a South African accent! I almost died!) If nothing else, being a teacher is definitely good for my self-esteem.

I can't believe my student teaching is here already. It seems like last week I was applying to get into the program at UGA. And now I'm beginning the last leg of the journey. Crazy!

One for the history books...

I have found out the hard way that an ice cream cone from Steers is the best medicine for the lowest bowling score EVER.

That is all.

p.s. My score was 21... no comment.

Sound familiar?

Let's see. Today, I went shopping at the mall. Later, I watched the first two Harry Potter movies while eating a burger and fries (chips). Wait, where am I again? Because that sounds awfully lot like a normal day in the good ole U.S. of A. Needless to say, I definitely felt right at home today!

I'm living in a house with four other people - two girls and two guys. All of them have been extremely welcoming and nice to me. Driving me back and forth from the store, dealing with my international credit card issues, making sure I've eaten something, inviting me to do fun stuff (like having a week-long Harry Potter movie marathon). One of my housemates even offered to buy a dachshund puppy! The only thing was I had to take it home with me. Heh! :) Don't I wish!

Tomorrow is setting up to be a busy day. I'm tagging along with my housemate, Neil, to his classes at the university - which they seem to call Varsity? Then, I think we're having dinner with his parents, who are my "official" host family. Then, there are plans to go bowling. I may or may not post my score. Don't get your hopes up.

Off to an interesting start...

Well, I'm finally here! After preparing and anticipating for 2 months or so, it's really happening. Crazy!

I have a week of free time before starting my student teaching - sometimes I forget I'm actually here for educational purposes. :) I haven't seen much of the city yet, but even if I had been driven all around the area, I wouldn't have noticed the sights. I was way too busy trying to adjust to 1) riding in the driver's seat as a passenger, and 2) going the wrong way on the road. At least I won't ever be the one driving down here. That, I'm sure, would turn disastrous real fast.

As of now, I've spent more time traveling to Port Elizabeth than actually being IN Port Elizabeth. I boarded a plane in Atlanta at 5:45am Eastern Time yesterday (Saturday) to catch a connecting flight in Washington DC. Side note: That was probably the best flight I've ever been on. Had the row to myself, saw the sun rise, no turbulence  Just great. From DC, I flew to New York City. Cut to me wandering aimlessly around one terminal in JFK because it is the most confusing airport I've ever been to. From there, I boarded a plane bound for Johannesburg, South Africa. All of this happened before noon. My flight from JFK took off at 11:15am Eastern Time on Saturday. I landed in Johannesburg 2:10am Eastern Time/8:10am South African Time on Sunday. That was a long flight.

This flight, that lasted for 14 hours and 35 minutes, would have been fine were it not for one factor: my personal TV was broken. Each seat came equipped with a small touch screen monitor, allowing passengers to choose what they wanted to watch (they could even listen to music). I would have been easily entertained if my monitor had actually been in working condition. But, of course, it was not. I could have watched multiple Matt Damon movies, silly childrens' movies, and EVEN BONES. But, nooooo! I had to be tortured by the girl in front of me who watched Bones and eventually leaned forward to block my view. Curses!

To top it all off, one of my suitcases went missing. I waited and waited and waited but all in vain. I reported it to the people at the baggage enquiries desk, wandered some more around the Johannesburg airport, then sat on the flight to Port Elizabeth worrying about how or when I would ever get my things back. My nail polish! My Jackie Kennedy brooch! My snuggie! Oh, and my asthma medicines, too.

When I get off the plane at Port Elizabeth and wait for my luggage... Lo and behold! My prized possessions had found their way to me after all! I don't know how that happened, but I'm not questioning it. I have my nail polish, my brooch, my medicine, and, most importantly, Napoleon the Snuggie.

Now, I'm all unpacked and ready to make a long, long list of the things I need to buy. One of my first and foremost questions about South Africa will finally be answered: "What's shopping like there?"