Well hello everyone--once I figure out how to share this blog with you :)
Here is my first blog post about my adventures in Jordan. I hope that this blog gives you a glimpse of the beautiful place that is Zarqa, Jordan while keeping you up to date on the happenings in my life.
First, I am here in Zarqa teaching in the American Academy of Jordan. This year is school's first year in business. Because the school is brand new, there is lots of work to be done. However, already the school is blossoming through the diligent efforts of Nabil who started the school and the many teachers who give their best efforts each day to work together for the 150 plus kids currently attending the school. I consider it a great privilege to be working alongside such determined, passionate, dedicated people.
My first few weeks of teaching were rather daunting as I was teaching both math and science to four different classes. However, now that we have more teachers, I will just be teaching math. Every day of school I am blessed by the children, from their kisses and hugs in the morning to the laughter they bring throughout the day. I only wish I could understand all the things they try to tell me. I do have a few students who speak English, but the majority of children in the school speak Arabic exclusively at home so their English is very limited. I am learning precious few Arabic phrases though which helps with communication. Here is your Arabic word for the day :) (Yes, I will attempt to teach you Arabic though I am highly under-qualified.) The word is "Marhaba" (which means "hello" in Arabic). I think it actually means "welcome" literally. I will check on that...
Moving on, life in Jordan is ....hummm...I am trying to think of one word to capture it....unpredictable. Yes, unpredictable definitely applies to almost every aspect of my life here. The culture here is so very different from my usual reliance upon plans and schedules. I am learning to adapt and go with the flow though. But don't worry, we do finally have a concrete schedule for school thanks to Aaron. Aaron is our English teacher at the school, who is absolutely harlarious p.s. Getting off on a rabbit trail, I am so thankful for the teachers here! Rachel is the sports, art, music, fun teacher! She has traveled a lot and lived in Jordan before as well, so I rely on her so much when it comes to figuring out my way around this culture. Nori is teaching KG. Nori is always full of love and encouragement, and she makes me laugh all the time. Aaron and Brandon are the newest additions to our American teaching staff. I already mentioned Aaron; what else can I say--halarious! Also, he is constantly pointing out my need to clarify and re-clarify what I say...would you like me to clarify that :) Brandon is the science teacher--hallelujah I will not be teaching both math and science anymore! In case you cannot tell, I was a bit worried about continuing to teach both subjects all year. The lesson planning was a bit overwhelming to me. Reading Brandon's blog is what pushed me to start this one. Although he insulted me in his blog by saying I was a baby (well his words were, "almost born in the 90s"), I will refrain from making any insulting comments at this time. Those are the four American teachers. In addition to them, two teenage guys came this week to help with the sports, art, and KG classes, as well as the after school program that is going to begin in a few weeks.
Well, since this blog is getting long and incredibly unorganized, I will postpone writing until another time. Off to plan math lessons for this week and make coffee :) Hope you enjoyed this glimpse into my life in Jordan. Until we meet again.
Here is my first blog post about my adventures in Jordan. I hope that this blog gives you a glimpse of the beautiful place that is Zarqa, Jordan while keeping you up to date on the happenings in my life.
First, I am here in Zarqa teaching in the American Academy of Jordan. This year is school's first year in business. Because the school is brand new, there is lots of work to be done. However, already the school is blossoming through the diligent efforts of Nabil who started the school and the many teachers who give their best efforts each day to work together for the 150 plus kids currently attending the school. I consider it a great privilege to be working alongside such determined, passionate, dedicated people.
My first few weeks of teaching were rather daunting as I was teaching both math and science to four different classes. However, now that we have more teachers, I will just be teaching math. Every day of school I am blessed by the children, from their kisses and hugs in the morning to the laughter they bring throughout the day. I only wish I could understand all the things they try to tell me. I do have a few students who speak English, but the majority of children in the school speak Arabic exclusively at home so their English is very limited. I am learning precious few Arabic phrases though which helps with communication. Here is your Arabic word for the day :) (Yes, I will attempt to teach you Arabic though I am highly under-qualified.) The word is "Marhaba" (which means "hello" in Arabic). I think it actually means "welcome" literally. I will check on that...
Moving on, life in Jordan is ....hummm...I am trying to think of one word to capture it....unpredictable. Yes, unpredictable definitely applies to almost every aspect of my life here. The culture here is so very different from my usual reliance upon plans and schedules. I am learning to adapt and go with the flow though. But don't worry, we do finally have a concrete schedule for school thanks to Aaron. Aaron is our English teacher at the school, who is absolutely harlarious p.s. Getting off on a rabbit trail, I am so thankful for the teachers here! Rachel is the sports, art, music, fun teacher! She has traveled a lot and lived in Jordan before as well, so I rely on her so much when it comes to figuring out my way around this culture. Nori is teaching KG. Nori is always full of love and encouragement, and she makes me laugh all the time. Aaron and Brandon are the newest additions to our American teaching staff. I already mentioned Aaron; what else can I say--halarious! Also, he is constantly pointing out my need to clarify and re-clarify what I say...would you like me to clarify that :) Brandon is the science teacher--hallelujah I will not be teaching both math and science anymore! In case you cannot tell, I was a bit worried about continuing to teach both subjects all year. The lesson planning was a bit overwhelming to me. Reading Brandon's blog is what pushed me to start this one. Although he insulted me in his blog by saying I was a baby (well his words were, "almost born in the 90s"), I will refrain from making any insulting comments at this time. Those are the four American teachers. In addition to them, two teenage guys came this week to help with the sports, art, and KG classes, as well as the after school program that is going to begin in a few weeks.
Well, since this blog is getting long and incredibly unorganized, I will postpone writing until another time. Off to plan math lessons for this week and make coffee :) Hope you enjoyed this glimpse into my life in Jordan. Until we meet again.
