More Insight

   This second week of teaching has given me more insight about the students, the school sub culture, my cooperating teacher, and a sense of belonging and acceptance related to this place. I feel privileged to be here. Yesterday I told some teachers that I think I could not have started my teaching career in better place than this school. The environment reminds me of Dordt. It is a small school, students and teachers know each other pretty well, and there is a supporting community among teachers and outside of school (and there is a small Dordt-Northwestern competition gong on too!). This school also reminds me of my high school because I was in a private christian school that had around 300 students. I feel more acquainted with the students because I am learning many names and also information about them and their personalities. Each morning during prep time, Mrs. Pollema and I have one student that we pray for. Before we pray, Mrs. Pollema gives me some insight about the student so that we can pray for them with understanding. I love how God works in this way.

   On Tuesday I was able to play guitar and sing a worship song in Spanish with SPAN II. I also had the opportunity of connecting with a student because he is related to a couple I know. He started to talk to me about his family and how he is involved with his church and school. I enjoy opportunities like this to establish good relationships with students.

   On Thursday I also had the opportunity of connecting with the students through chapel. I gave a short message on relationships and God's desire to have a relationship with us. I talked about God's characteristics (loving, caring, gracious, forgiving, etc.) and ended the message with a song. Many students came to me afterward and thanked me for the message. I praise God for letting me express a bit of His heart for them. I truly felt as if all those students (7th-12th grades) were my children and I was talking to them as a mother and from my heart.

   I have several comments and observations about my cooperating teacher:

<> She connects words in English and Spanish that sound alike to help the students remember them.
<> She uses student's knowledge to build more knowledge (she constructs knowledge!).
<> She shares with her students various resources like a webpage, videos about mission trips she made to Belize, Spain, and Italy, fun videos, and useful links.
<> I really like that she has a Spanish website. In that website she shares links and resources, information about me (a picture and and introduction of myself), assignments, announcements, etc.
<> She teaches in a very calmed, relaxed, and fun way. This helps students feel safe and relaxed too.
<> She connects her class and activities in her class with how to live a Christian life, applying it to our everyday lives. Ex: she said that once in a while we can have fiestas "just because" in the same way that God freely gives us grace and we don't need to earn it. =)
<> She used the "Macarena" dance to review the months of the year. We moved our bodies and learned using TPR. Great!

   The time for me to teach is coming (next week!) and I am feeling really excited and a little nervous. How can I meet my students' needs is the biggest question right now. Will I be adequate for teaching? How will I practically demonstrate to my students that I care for them? My career as a teacher seems to be more "serious" right now. I pray God will give me strength, courage, and wisdom for this new season in my life.

   To finish, I am posting a video that I shared with Mrs. Pollema and later she shared with the students. FUN!