Over One Month Of Island Living

My students at recess. They formed their own game, rules and played all on their OWN! I didn't have to say a word and they all lined up and listened to one another while playing. Now, if I could just get them to do this in the classroom!

Today, I gave my first phonics test to my 2nd grade students. I admit I was a little nervous, anticipating their scores. It was a fairly easy test, I reviewed with them practically giving them the answers the entire week. The writing section of the test went great, the oral language section of the test didn't go so great! Most students knew their short vowels, long vowels, silent vowels, blends and spelling of words I called out. They however did not know how to correctly pronounce sight words which I had them read to me individually. The average overall test score was a 76%. I expected higher and was a little disappointed. All of my students speak English as a second language which is very evident in their oral language skills. Bringing these students to a proficient level in their oral language skills will be my biggest challenge, I definitely have my work cut out for me.
*My difficult student had a hard week again. The principal had to carry him out of my room one day after he refused to leave the room during lunchtime. He shuts down randomly and just sits there, not doing or saying a thing. He likes math and anything hands on but refuses to do ANY writing. Today the principal told us to give him time and to just ignore him. His behavior is beyond the language barrier and seems to be more social or psychological. We will see how it goes.

Tomrorow is Friday, thank goodness! This week at school went a lot better as far as students getting into a routine. I'm still having students off task but it's getting better as time goes on. The hardest thing is still having students just give you blank stares and not doing their work. It's hard to know if they don't' understand or are just not paying attention.

Last Saturday I spent a few hours at school cleaning my classroom and the school building. They didn't have any cleaning supplies for us when we got there so we had to use wet wipes the students brought to wipe the windows, we shared a mop and since the males were cleaning the air vents we worked without the AC on. The ladies in the office kept me laughing as we were working. They said I look like barbie and are going to start calling me that. haha.
Later that afternoon, my roommate Jessica and I headed to the beer fest! It was something I had been day dreaming about all week so I was a little overly excited to be there. The fair grounds, where it was located is only about 5 miles from our apartment but after 30 minutes of trying to find parking and not being able to communicate with any parking attendants we drove back home, got a taxi and finally arrived! We had to wait in a small line where they checked our ID's (or in our case passports), the legal drinking age here is 20. There were food booths with tons of food choices, beer booths with two choices of beer and a stage with a band playing Japanese rock music. The beer was cold and delicious, especially considering it was extra hot and humid out.

It was PACKED but that made it more fun!

Enjoying beer and good conversation
Leave it to the Americans! American military guys....need I say more?

Japanese love their rock music!

Our taxi dropping us back at our apartment (no, we didn't take a taxi because we drank too much, we took a taxi because there was no parking!=)
It was nice getting to relax and hang out in a different environment. It was just the medicine I needed! After the beer fest we went to dinner at a cajun restaurant named "Sauce." The staff spoke English and the food was great! My meal included: bbq ribs, fried shrimp, cole slaw, bread and potato wedges. After dinner our taxi dropped us at home and we called it a night. I had so much fun. I wish the beer fest was every weekend! My aunt just emailed me a list of beer gardens in Japan so maybe it will be a weekly thing =)

I had dinner twice by myself this week while Jessica was out. I made two delicious dinners that actually tasted like home cooked meals! I'm starting to get the hang of this cooking thing.
Beef, salad, asparagus and a glass of Gatorade.

Chicken, rice, corn and a movie =)

I'm getting more and more used to living in Japan, however, no matter how used to it I get, there is always new, surprising events that take me by surprise. I just started missing American food. Yes, I eat American food here but it's not the same.
Some random things I'm missing (besides people):

-Oatmeal
-Protein bars
-Tortillas
-Magazines
-Big cups
-Cheese
-Pans with handles (the pans in our apartment have no handles...makes cooking interesting!)
-Fresh fruit
-Talking on a regular phone without it cutting out & sounding far away
-My soft bed at home (my bed here is really hard, even with my mattress pad on it. I know it's good for me though because it's forcing me to sleep on my back instead of my stomach, a habit I've been trying to break for quite some time).
-SHOPPING, I've yet to find a huge mall (another habit to break)
-Working out (I keep saying I'm going to do it but I haven't worked up the courage to go running yet...the humidity is insane, I do have my students stretch with me every morning =)
-Driving fast
-Last but not least and probably the thing I'm having the hardest time with: Not being around people who move at a fast pace. I know this is so Southern California of me but it's been a hard adjustment to be on an island full of people that are slow paced. I feel like I'm always a few steps ahead, ready for the next thing. It's definitely making me more patient!

One last thing to add. Our car broke down on the way to school yesterday! A few days ago when we were driving, the battery light came on and the AC stopped working. We told the principals wife but nothing was done. School is about 30 minutes (10 miles) from my apartment so not too far. Yesterday on the way to school, the radio went out and then when I pushed the gas the car didn't have any power. I got into the slow lane and was able to pull into the first driveway I saw, right as the car died. Since we don't have cell phones, I walked to the gas station/convenience store, which was a short walk away and called the school. The principals wife picked us up and we made it to school 30 minutes late. Later, the principal told me the mechanic said a belt had broken and they were fixing it. In the meantime we have a loaner which is newer and nicer than our car so I don't mind driving it at all. I'm glad our car is finally getting fixed....or maybe it won't and we'll get a new car =)
Tomorrow night, Jessica and I are going to a jazz concert with the Japanese teacher from school. Sunday before church, I'm going to a craft fair on base with the kindergarten teacher. I'm looking forward to relaxing at the beach all day Saturday. My first official month here is completed, I made it so far =)

XOXO

Kristen