I am convinced these books are magic. Monday afternoon the kids are all tired from a long day at school, they miss the freedom of the weekend, and the energy they have seeing their friends again after the week is sometimes too much to control. Yet, of all the "teacher tricks" there are to organize a class of energetic 7-11 year olds, none have worked as successfully as simply pulling out a new picture book to read! It seems almost as if the book magically tells them to come in close and sit quietly... and if the book doesn't give them the clue, their friends definitely give them the hint as they anxiously await the start of the new story.
Reading Time
Everyone knows that March comes in like a lion... and when you are from Minnesota, you don't need to know the rest of the little catch-phrase, but the weather here continues to change as the lamb-like spring approaches! With all the changing weather, I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to review our weather vocabulary and practice clothing vocabulary for the different types of weather. We have a large box of lost-and-found items from camps and club events, so I grabbed the box and the kids modeled the clothing while practicing the lesson topic.
(Please Note: if you see an item of clothing that belongs to you, I would be happy to get it back to you and out of the lost-and-found!)
I have never had so many translators at one English Class! These teens love training their English translating skills, and I am so blessed to have such a strong team of helpers!
"Exploration Time" with the Little's is maybe one of my favorite times in the week. The way these 2-3 year-olds start applying their understanding of the world with the lesson theme is remarkable to watch. From making their own trains out of the cushion blocks (train theme) to putting all the puppet animals to sleep under the snow (hibernation theme), these kids are connecting their new English words to all the activities.
Playing with the train set and with her newly colored train.
These clever toddlers flipped over the building cushions so they could sit in the divots like seats on a train!
One Little's student took all the hibernation animal puppets and put them all to sleep under the "snow". The other side of the puppets have the animals awake - needless to say, I was impressed the toddler had all the animals on the sleeping side before covering them with a "blanket of snow".
While mid-March doesn't seem to have a preference to the lion or lamb, the animals have not all returned from hibernation yet. A few song birds have slowly began to appear again from their migration in Northern Africa, but what surprises me the most is that many of the ducks stay here all year round! They are able to stay on the river and the generous bread-throwing toddlers seem to please their winter appetites.
Teen class has slightly changed as the class continued to gap between advanced and beginning English learners. To accommodate the many different levels, I have started breaking up the class so that the different level students have different activities - that all simultaneously happens in our little office. I jump between the students as they are working and encourage their interaction with each other more as they discuss the English task. While sometimes it seems crazy to have three different leveled lesson activities for the day (advanced, intermediate, and beginner), I am excited about the opportunity for these students to really focus on their level skills and applying the English.
Teen Class - different activities and different levels
No longer are club numbers in Letovice surprisingly 50+ students... but it has become the norm! During one club time last week, I was jumping back and forth from helping kids at the snack bar, braiding little girls' hair, and watching a group of boys play ping-pong. As some of the kids jumped up on the bar stools at the snack bar and demanded immediate attention, I calmly stated I needed 20 more seconds to finish one braid. Just as I finished the braid, the ping-pong ball rolled behind the snack bar, so I retrieved the ball tossing it to the group of players, while calling to the little girl that I would be back in two minutes to finish the second braid, and then starting the microwave for the popcorn snacks. God has given me so much love for these kids and helping them brings me so much joy. One of the kids at the snack bar seemed to notice as he stated, "Kendra, it is so much work to help all of us and you are still smiling!" To hear this one kid notice God's joy through me was the greatest encouragement for the day. I may not be breaking out into song like a "Julie Andrews nanny-character", but if Mary Poppins or Maria VonTrapp ever came to club, the songs would likely have a different tune... "The room is alive with the sound of... everything!" or "A handful of popcorn helps the kids have more energy!"
Boys Wrestling and Girls Pampering the Youth Pastor's Baby
14 Girls Playing "Just Dance" together!
Club Smiles :)
Boskovice club tends to be more relaxing for me. The kids are a little older and more independent, but I enjoy most just sitting with these kids and chatting about the week as we get to know each other.
Showing our Elim bracelets
All regular club kids know that my mismatched socks are my only bold fashion statement as much of my wardrobe regularly includes black, grey, and navy. Occasionally, some children will try to gently point out that I mismatched my socks, and when I tell them it is purposeful I often get some surprised looks! Sometimes, the kids will ask why I mismatch my socks, so I explain the little joy it brings me to rebellious put on two different colored socks in the morning. However, once a young child questioned why my socks didn't match and instead of explaining, I simply asked them back "why do yours match?" The child was caught in a moment of thinking why DO his socks match until he finally answered "I thought it was normal..."
Nevertheless, I have recently found a couple little girls who also share a rebellious sock attitude! It is the little things in life - like colorful socks - that brings me so much joy!
Sometimes I can understand the main idea of Sunday Church Service, and sometimes I am at a loss for what the speaker is saying. Occasionally, I will have a translator to help me out, but sometimes the speaker is even too difficult to translate. Moments like this I use as my excuse to join the littlest Sunday School kids! God definitely gives children a unique faith that everyone can learn from. In Sunday School a couple weeks ago, the teacher was explaining heaven, and this is the basics of the conversation with one 3-year-old in the class...
Teacher: In heaven, it will be something like a party with a big table of food and a place God has for us. And probably many of our friends and family will be there too.
3-yr-old: Hey! That's great! I want to go!
Teacher: Maybe we will have a nice house in heaven - something like a palace.
3-year-old: Will there be a waterslide and swimming pool?
Teacher: We don't know, but that would be pretty amazing!
3-year-old: And will there be animals in heaven? Maybe rabbits?
Teacher: Maybe God will have some animals there and we can sit outside in the shade of a tree with the animals in heaven.
3-year-old: Okay teacher, I REALLY want to go there!
How easily a 3-year-old reminds me that home is in heaven with our greatest friend, Jesus. It really is something to look forward to!