A Busy Week

Ndi Made Gwana! (good evening in Venda)

                Well, I think that’s how you spell it at least!  Nobody is really able to write in Venda, only speak it.  This the mother tongue for everyone here, and English is the designated educational language.  I am doing my best to learn phrases, but it’s so different from English, I’m struggling!  Just memorizing the students names is tough. (Tshifhumulo, Mukhwethw, Vhuhuavho, etc.) Good luck trying to pronounce those, and those are just first names!

                As for the school situation, here is the current update.  As of Monday, I have basically become the full time Grade 3 teacher.  My teacher has stepped into grade 1 to cover for the sick teacher.  She is not recovering well, and her students are starting to show some decline in learning, naturally. The school cannot afford to hire a substitute, and there is also a great shortage of teachers in South Africa.  So if any of my teacher friends are looking for a job, I’m sure I could find you an opening in Limpopo!  Jumping into fulltime with students I do not know, a curriculum that is new to me, language barriers, major discipline issues, and drastic cultural changes has been a little draining.  I’m learning so much though, it’s amazing to me.  Watch out, because when I come back, I’m going to be a professional dancer, the students are teaching me quite a lot.

On Monday, the students had a morning assembly, as they do every Monday and Friday.  This consists of everyone standing, shortest to tallest, under some tarps in the center courtyard area listening closely to a teacher talk to them.  I was introduced to everyone, so now every single student cannot wait to greet me using my name.  I come via taxi in the morning with the students I live with, and the minute I get out I hear, “Kaily, Kaily, Kaily” coming from all over so I just smile, wave, and say good morning.  Students get a kick out of my accent, so they want to be the ones to hear me say something.  And they all can’t wait to touch me, hug me, or just look at my skin.  Today, I was asked if I had a tattoo by one of my students.  They saw some of my veins showing in my leg, and hadn’t seen that before, so assumed it must be a tattoo.  Nope, that’s just the joy of having pale, see-through skin, my friends. 

In the back of the school there is a big garden and a shack where women have fires and cook some traditional food for children to have during lunch.  My family is in charge of the “tack shop” where students can buy juice, snacks and meals.  In that shack where they cook, there is a bathroom (by the way, none of the toilets have covers, and you usually bring in your own role of toilet paper.  The plumbing for the sinks is to let the water leak from the sink and go to a drain in the ground, I found it funny, but it works!).  I like to walk there and go to that bathroom because the people over there are so friendly.  They can’t speak English, so we just smile at each other, but it’s kind of nice.  Also, no one else really uses those toilets, so it’s a chance to find a little quiet for a minute.  Trust me; nothing at that school is quiet.  Everyone yells, has so much energy, and there are 500 students in a tiny area. 

The supplies at the school are different from what I am used to, too.  For example, I had students draw a picture while I read a story to work on overall comprehension of the story without having them worry about writing.  I searched quickly for a book on the shelf (since everything I do for class seems to be based off the top of my head, thank goodness for practice teaching in previous semesters and strategies past teachers and professors have pounded into my memory) and didn’t find a book.  So, in honor of my father and his great story telling skills, I told a random story to my students.  Fun, but not all that complex of a plot, haha. Then today, for math, I took students outside to collect stones and leaves to use as manipulatives; dirty, but fun. 

By 1 o clock, students were pooped, and so was I.  The sun was hot and drained them all, so I decided to let them sit on the floor.  I pulled up a chair, and took a while showing them my pictures and American money.  I taught them what squirrels were, what snow was like, how to pronounce my families names, had them pretend to“ride a horse” like Hannah and I were doing in a picture, and let them ask me some questions.  Their assignment for tomorrow is to introduce themselves to me in a letter, and bring one item or picture that describes them.  I’m excited, and hoping that this can help me get to know their names tooJ.

Outside of school, I have been enjoying time as well.  My teacher took me to Louis Trichard yesterday, which is the closest town to where I am.  Mulinda, the grade 7 boy who lives with the family I am with came too in order to help me take the taxi back home without getting lost.  My teacher, Cecilia, has been a big help to me.  I am so thankful for her.  She is such a strong Christian too, and encourages me in all the right ways.  As with any working relationship, we butt heads in areas, but I listen to her and learn much from her about how to love and treat students in the classroom.  They do not have a “Bible” class, but I would argue that she is teaching them more Bible stories and teaching them to love God even more than any Christian school back home with a Bible class.  God is brought into any situation, it’s interesting and pretty amazing.  It’s not like she’s forcing it either, God just naturally comes up in conversation and discipline times. 

Wow, there is so much to reflect upon here.  I feel very safe here, very accepted by most people, and well taken care of.  I am the only white person anywhere to be found (except I saw one other in Louis Trichard yesterday) but as time goes by and people get used to seeing a bright white face around, I know it will be no issue.  Other than some staring, I am treated similarly to everyone else. 

That’s all for now, I love to hear from you all.  Your comments, thoughts, and prayers are welcomed and appreciated!