Colby

Meet Colby, she is my dog.

A friend of mine was moving back to the US but she could not take her dog with her so I said I would adopt the dog. 

Colby is about 5 years old but has a lot of energy. She loves to run, not very good at fetch but she might get the hang of it one day...

It is nice to have someone run up and greet me when I get home from school :) 

Play

A few of my TAs were in a play. 

Brian is in the suite and Cassandra is kneeling. 

 George is the one in the striped shirt. 

The play was about people being more alike than different so we should humble ourselves be good to everyone. 

The only difference is our similarities. 

A Lunch

I got to go out with some teachers and staff for lunch. 

It was nice to get to know people outside of the school setting. 

Yeah we all work together but to have time to actually get to know each other was kind of nice. 

University

Jackson left for university in Connecticut a month and a half ago. 

Nancy (on left) left for university in Texas a week ago. 

Rina (in middle) is leaving for university in Philly today!   

Teta was accepted to a school right outside Kigali and she started this week. 

George is waiting to hear back from a university in PA but for the mean time is going to attend a school in Kigali. 

Tracy is starting her second term at university in Kenya. 

All of my TAs are growing up right before my eyes.  

New School Year

This was the Second First Day of School in Rwanda. I felt a little more prepared and a little less frantic this time around but still had some butterflies in my stomach.

I started this school year with 7 old TAs, 6 new TAs and of course Bella. 

Patrick, Kudra, Amos, Brian, Allen, Tony

Solomon, Keza, Diana, Vicky, Anah, Cassandra

Antoinette, Bella, and Me

After some training, games, talks and singing...They were definitely ready to start. 

Today went great and now it is for sure, they will make a great team. 

Can't you tell :) 

Professional Development

All of the administration at Green Hills left the busy city of Kigali. We drove about 3 hour up into the mountains.

It was beautiful! 

We drove up into the mountains to learn more about teaching and education. We have speakers from Canada come talk to us. 

To us teachers this was a great opportunity. 

Refugee Camp

Because of the unrest in Congo many people are fleeing.

Some are coming to a refugee camp on the boarder of Congo and Rwanda.

The little white roofs are only one wing of the camp.

There are over 20,000 refugees living here.

Men, women and children fleeing for their lives, unsure of what is in store for them next. Please pray they have hope and for a better future.  

Spring Cleaning

As a special education teacher you use a lot of materials to teach, especially when you teach all levels. 

It might not be spring but my office really needed to be cleaned! 

Anah and Cassandra came to help and now look at the office...

The materials are ready for the school year...Now I have to get ready. 

To Rwanda

Time well spent in the US:

- Family

- Friends

- Sleep

- Chicago

- Zoo

- Horseback Riding

- Batman

It is always hard to leave Chicago but it will be nice to go back to a regular routine and seeing everyone in Rwanda.

Until next time Chicago....See you on Skype

Siblings

I love my brother and sister! 

Mallory and Me

Mason and Me

We had lots of fun.

Lexi

My family from Alaska came to visit. 

This is Lexi. She is 2.

She is getting really good at the Maddy face :D

Babysitter

While I am in that States, Isabella is watching Bella. 

They are getting a long great! 

Training

Elim is a school who serve people with special needs. They have allowed me to come to their school and learn from the teachers, staff and students. 

I have learned different ways to 

 adapt books 

make schedules

allow independence

It has been a great experience. I am very thankful to Elim for allowing me this opportunity. 

Back to Chicago

I flew home to Chicago this week.

After a year of non-stop going. It is nice to sit back and watch the beautiful city walk by. 

I will be home for one month. 

Teacher Assistants

To celebrate the end of the year my TAs and I had a little party. 

Jackson 

Brian, Allen, Solomon, George

Nancy, Teta, Anah, Rina

Cassandra, Keza, Diana, Me, Doreen

Missing: Tracy and Bella 

With some going to college and some getting other jobs, next year is going to look a little different but these TA have paved the way! I will miss this team but excited to see what will be in store next year. 

Apology Accepted

One of my students got very upset and I could not figure out why. After about a half hour of talking loudly and some tears, I was finally able to understand.

When I talking she heard me say she would go first, when I really said she was not going to go first. She could not tell me why she was upset or what she heard but after talking for a while, it all came together.

Once I figured it out, I was able to apologized for saying and doing the wrong thing.

She accepted my apology and we continued to class.

With the territory of being a special education teacher you must be willing to apologize.

Cross Cultural Training

3 of my Teacher Assistants are going to America for college.

I put on a workshop about American culture.

America:
- fast pace
- things are readily available
- nod head to indicate 'yes'
- time is money

We went over American values, greetings, surroundings, sayings, and more. The US is very different form Rwanda but I think they will do great.

Rina

Rina is going to Haverford, Pennsylvania 

Jackson

 Jackson is going to New London, Connecticut

Nancy

Nancy is going to Abilene, Texas 

If you live close to any of those places and you are interested in mentoring, helping, befriending or taking out one of my TA's to lunch please let me know. 

School is Out

I just had my last parent teacher meeting! I am still standing, I am very tired but still alive.

I just finished my first year of teaching, and creating a special education program, in Rwanda.

I remember the first day of school sitting at my desk saying to myself, 'What am I supposed to be doing, how do I do it and how did I get here...?'

Now I am sitting here saying to myself, 'What just happened, how did this all happen and is this all real...?'

It is pretty powerful what a little step of faith can turn into. As hard as it is, sometimes you just need to hold your breath and jump.

Improvement??

This is Ibrahim. He is in grade 3. 

I asked his teachers to fill out a progress report for him on how he has improved this term. 

The reply I got back was, "He has not improved...He has changed!" 

The teachers are learning how to see the students for what they CAN do. 

Noah

The student's name is Noah and the teacher assistant is George. 

They are working on math here. 

We just finished our second round of standardized testing. 

Last test Noah answered one question on the whole test. 

This time around he scored above average!

There is improvement!