This update is a DOUBLE FEATURE, meaning it includes the traditional review of the last couple weeks in Czech, but it also highlights some moments from a trip I took last week to Croatia at the end!
With many different activities each week, it is hard when people ask me what is my favorite because of the diversity of the events; however, Youth Group is definitely a special time of the week. Watching this young generation grow in knowing each other and God is truly amazing. So many newcomers feel an instant welcome in the group, and I am continually proud of our youth kids for reaching out to their community. A couple weeks ago, one youth student who became a Christian last summer shared his testimony at youth group. The simplicity and genuine way he shared his story encouraged many others to consider deeper how God has been moving in their lives also. I praise God for these moments that bring this group closer together.
Playing a Game at Youth Group
Our Youth Group Team is growing!
Kid's Class finished our theme about Question Words with the final two "Who?" and "Where?" This theme was one of my favorite projects as the kids continued to show progress of the new words and applying what they have already learned in school to these activities. With the question "Who?" we talked about how the answer must be a person or character. We played many games that required the students to ask this question and look among themselves to see who would qualify. "Where?" was a fun day, and the students were especially intrigued when I pointed out that "where" has the word "here" hidden in the word, so they will always know how to answer the question "Where are you?" This little trick seemed to really click with the kids as they began chanting "where... here... where... here..." until they were out of breath!
Our Completed Question Theme Anchor Chart!
Color Tag! "Who has on (color)?"
A class favorite - Who Has a Cooke From the Cookie Jar? There are five cookies hidden in the laps of secret students! They had to find all the cookies to win!
Our Starting Question looked a little different this past week, and the kids loved moving their pictures to different places on the world map.
Kids practiced guiding their partner by saying "Where?" and "HERE!" in search for hidden treasures under the mats (similar to a book we had read about two boys digging a hole to look for a treasure).
The students worked together to place the pictures of these kids from around the world on the large map. Each picture had a small continent map and the name of the country the child is from, so the class asked each other "where is he/she from?" and then helped each other find the right place on the map.
The Littles are catching onto basic English vocabulary really quickly! In a lesson about outer space, the littles repeated a rocket ship song (a class favorite) and launched paper stars into the air with a parachute. They enjoyed watching the stars flutter back down onto the parachute and then laid under the parachute to watch the shadows of the stars as the moms helped move the parachute up and down. I also brought mini-flashlights for the students to pretend were rockets in the sky. Many of the littles carried these glowing little lights around all hour as the colors shined through their pockets! As many of these littles are preparing to move to preschool in the fall, I thought it would be good to start with some letter recognition activities. We started simply with the first letter of the kids' names, of course singing a song to hear the letter sounds, and then slowly transitioned into looking at the beginning letter for other English words they know, such as dog, cat, and house! I enjoyed watching the kids sort through alphabet flashcards and bring a different card for the song to the mini-easel as they each took a turn being the "teacher"!
Exploring with colorful flashlight "rockets" and stars.
Shining the flashlight colors on the night sky and decorating a coloring book cover with lots of letters!
Working together on an alphabet puzzle I created. The fun part about this puzzle is that many of the letters can fit in different spots. Some students decided they wanted to match the colors, some decided to match the letters, some piled three letters into one box, and others took it upon themselves to correct the work of the peers ;)
I firmly believe that working with kids keeps the heart young. I find so much joy in little things and am always trying to keep up with the latest fun activity to connect deeper with the kids. Recently, I found I could balance on a skateboard and decided it would be a great way to connect with the kids and youth as many of them are rolling around the city on different sets of wheels. I instantly found so much joy in the activity, not because I could simply stand on the board, but because the kids brought me into their group, gave me tips and compliments, and I was able to further build the relationship with them. One youth student and I took our boards for a spin around the neighborhood during free-time at youth group and ended up simply sitting on the boards on the top of a hill for a half-hour as we talked the program testimony and about God in this student's life. I know I am not usually the one to pick up a new skill quickly, but I am constantly amazed at how God has given me select niches of opportunity to be a part of these students' lives even more.
Rolling outside of club in Boskovice
Now that summer weather has arrived, many of the kids are outside after school, but they still stop into club to say hello and play a couple rounds of ping-pong or dodgeball. Their excitement is growing as summer activities, such as LetFest (our community outreach week) and our annual camping week is around the corner. Czech students only have two months of summer in July and August, so the two months are packed full of events and camps as they try to fit in everything they possibly can before school starts again in September.
Selfies with the Kids :)
We celebrated the 6th year of Elim Club being open! I am excited for more years with more kids to see how God will lead this organization in the future.
Playing a new game I found online called "Protect the President." A twist on their favorite dodgeball game: one student stands in the middle (the president) as the other students in the circle try to hit the president with the pillow-ball. The bodyguard can move around the president to protect, block, and catch the ball!
A couple sweet club girls brought me these flowers during club last week. My view from the snack bar couldn't have been more perfect. I am constantly in awe of God's beauty in this country and in these kids.
CROATIA: JUNE 1-9
Each year, the music school in Letovice takes a trip to Croatia to showcase their talented students. One young friend is a very gifted musician and actress; however, she is too young to travel without an adult and with five younger siblings at home, it is hard for her parents to take a week off; so they asked me to accompany her as a chaperone with the music school trip! We took a bus through Austria and Slovenia, and then a ferry ride to the island in Croatia. I have lived in Letovice for almost two years now and have been connected with this community for over 8 years through mission trips, so I knew many of the other travelers with our group (as well as some of the kids from Boskovice who also came).
Music and Culture
My friend was busy each morning with orchestra practice, so I frequented the pool in the morning - reading, relaxing, and swimming with the handful of club kids who love the TLC time :). In the afternoons, we were often in the ocean or exploring the stone, old city. Every evening was like a talent show as the students performed on instruments, dancing, singing, drama, and poetry.
Pool Time!
I quickly fell in love with the sea. We tasted salt the whole week as the ocean water became a part of us. My wavy hair matched the ocean waves, and the clear turquoise water displayed a beautiful collection of marble-like rocks on the ocean floor. The sun generously shared its energy as the heat nudged us into the water hour after hour. Peacocks in the hotel garden became our alarm clock for the week, but we didn't mind waking up early to explore the beach before rehearsals began.
Peacocks in the Hotel garden
Loving the Sea
Youth Group Friends
Club Kids
Church Friends
New Friends
Fun Times on the Ferry
Instant Friends :)
Watch a short video from my time in Croatia here! (mostly pool and beach time since the concerts were at night and hard for the video quality.)