In Kid's English Class the past couple of weeks, we paused our reading of the Little Prince and instead read two of Mo Willem's Elephant and Piggie books! The easy English and the humor in these short stories are perfect for my beginner learners. They have asked for more of these books to fill my suitcase when I return to America; yet, many of the students have also been asking for more of Little Prince - apparently, our class time is not long enough for these avid learners! We studied Prepositions, Emotions, and Food Groups these past three weeks. The kids went on a Scavenger Hunt to find clues to practice prepositions (under the table, between the chairs, etc.). Two of my students came to me after the study of prepositions and said the day after we learned it in English Class, they studied it in school. Their teacher was so impressed with their quick understanding, and no doubt, these bubbly students did not mind showing off their newly-learned skill to the teacher and classmates. However, they agreed that they prefer learning prepositions in a scavenger hunt! The theme of Emotions was practiced with Psyciatrist Pantomime and Jack-o-Lantern BINGO (a Halloween special activity). Food Groups left all of us leaving the class hungry as the students sorted pictures, glued magazine cutouts onto paperplates, and "climbed" a food pyramid!
I tried pausing the videos of the kids doing the Scavenger Hunt, and only the girls' groups sat long enough for me to be able to stop the video without it being very blurry. The boys were scattered throughout the classroom looking for clues! I will need to put together a video to share so you can see how the class REALLY looks!
Jack-o-Lantern Bingo
Food Group Paper Plates
Food Pyramid "Climbing"
If Webster's Dictionary ever wanted to make a volume of only pictures as the definitions of the words, these images of my Littles playing with bubbles would definitley be placed under "JOY." In an Underwater themed day, we acted like different animals in the ocean, decorated a water backdrop, made fish puppets, and finally, had some time for bubble exploration! Not only are these toddlers learning English, but they are learning to play with their peers as they explore their world.
In last week's lesson, the Littles and I studied the stars. We practiced the words "star," "dark," and "night" through a song and then shined mini-flashlights around the room with the lights off and blinds down. The Littles delighted in seeing the glowing patterns of the flashlights parade over the floor onto the ceiling! We also took some star cut-outs I had made and launched them into the air on the parachute. Occasionally, the stars would fall over the edge of the parachute onto the child like a "meteor shower". Perhaps if I had ended the "night" themed lesson with snuggly blankets and the rhythmic story of Goodnight Moon, I would have had a handful of sleepy toddlers. However, the final activity for the day was a take-home project that proved to be their favorite part of the day. The children took black pieces of construction paper and white crayons to make a stary night image. Then, they put the paper onto the carpet and with pencils, poked holes all over the paper. I rolled the papers into a cone and taped it. The Littles would then place their heads inside the cone and see all the "stars" - the light shining through the holes in the paper!
Czech students had two days off of school for Fall Break, so we took the opportunity to have an ulitmate sleepover club with kids from both of our club locations in Boskovice and Letovice. It was a Secret Agent theme, so the kids were grouped together in teams with the half-leaders as they followed clues around the city to find the "secret agents" (the leaders) who would help them reach their final destination. While watching the kids work together as teams was encouraging, the greater accomplishment was that the two clubs had successfully merged together! Before the night was over, the kids from both clubs had become great friends. It was encouraging to see how sharing God's love with two clubs gives them the ability to care for each other. In this group picture, the kids from Boskovice and Letovice are so mixed that only those who know us would know that the kids are actually from two different cities! Maybe if Mr. Dickens had met us, he would have had a different idea for his best-seller, A Tale of Two Cities.
Agent Sleepover Group Picture
One team of agents making their way through the city for their clues!
Watch a short video from the Agent Sleepover here!
Letovice Club is always growing, and those who have only come to club a couple times already feel comfortable with all the kids and leaders as they join in activities and chat with the leaders like they have known them for longer than a week. Their smiling faces burst through the doors with high-fives or hugs to follow! Space at club is maxing out with sometimes close to 50 kids coming! Groups of friends can be found in all areas of the club rooms. This week, I found a couple boys laying underneath the jackets and sweaters on the coat hangers in the entry hall as they played a game on their phones together! Yet, once a game of dodgeball was started, the boy emerged from their hide-away to join in the group activity. Sometimes it seems as I have traveled not to Czech, but to Neverland and have discovered the clubhouse of the "Lost Boys." Perhaps Wendy and I would make good friends.
Little Friends - old and new!
Tossing Ping-Pongs into Cups to win American Candies!
We built a fort at club last week! The kids used practically all the sofas, blankets, cusions, and tables to construct this mega-fort to fit many of the club kids!
Club in Boskovice has become patterned and predictable as the kids are insistent upon playing Nerf Wars and jumping on the Bouncy Castle each week; yet, the consistency of the events is the only pattern as each week their games on the Bouncy Castle become more elaborate and their barricades in Nerf War have higher defense blockades. As many of these new kids are becoming more comfortable at the club, I am finding that deeper relationships are being built and the kids are opening up about their lives outside of club more.
During the past couple of weeks, I have taught multiple lessons in three different schools! A couple Elementary schools I am connected with wanted to teach their students about the culture of Halloween in America. They thought it would be great for me as an American to come and share my experiences with the students - for a holiday that I am not entirely enthusiastic about, I know it was God who gave me the ideas for the games and activities to encourage the students in thier English. At the end of one lesson, a student stood in the doorway after the class was dismissed. The class teacher noticed her and asked if she had a question. Without saying a word, the young girl entered back into the classroom, gave me a quick hug, and then exited the room again. God reminded me again at that moment of why He called me to be a teacher.
Besides the two Elementary Schools, I also went to a High School last week to teach a Thanksgiving history lesson. I enjoyed researching the different passengers of the Mayflower and putting together "Passenger Tickets" to create a role-play of the first Thanksgiving for the lesson. As I was walking to this school to teach the lesson, I passed a beautiful, wood-carved door. In the center of the door was a lion's head in the wood carving. I stopped and stared at the exquisite door for a moment conviced that the door would undoubtedly lead to Narnia. As my feet pulled me away from the door (I had a time limit to reach the school), I thought about the story of Narnia - a new land, and all the same familiar. Entering the new school was simply that; new land, but a familiar atmosphere for any teacher. Even though I hadn't entered this door to Narnia, I happened to stumble into a Narnia of my own.
Last weekend, a friend who is studying a semester in Vienna came to spend a weekend with me in Letovice. Her visit was a "breath of fresh air" as we stayed up late into the night chatting. The presence of another native English speaker is always a treasure. I loved showing her around this city I have grown so attached too and introducing her to all my best friends.
This weekend, the entire Elim team and some friends traveled two hours to join other leaders in the Czech Republic at the Global Leadership Summit. I soaked in the event and gleefully listened to the recorded speakers as everyone around me read subtitles. There were so many great topics, and I learned some very applicable leadership skills that I know God is working to develop in me.
These weeks have been a library of stories, and I thank you all who lasted this long to read through all the events! From the Little Prince to Narnia and all the novels in between, there is one thing they all have in common - they end. The beauty of these stories I have just shared with you about my life in Czech is that the Author is still writing...