Going to school

This week I have spent two days at the kid's school. My goal was to help Emma and Harry get use to the schedule and new environment. It was a great experience for me to see what it is like to go to school here. The teachers are trying very hard to communicate with the children. There are a couple of teachers who speak English very well. One of these teachers is assigned to help out all the children who do not speak Thai. She has been a great help to me and the children already. I can't wait to see how the children do today without me there.

A typical day for Emma starts off with a time to play from 8 am until 8:30. Hattie must be at school at 8, so I take Emma and Harry at that time. At 8:30, class begins. Emma's class begins with the national anthem and a few other ritualistic items. Emma is figuring out which ones who will participate in, and I tried to help her know when she should just stand there and be still. With the majority of the country being Buddhist, the school practices Buddhist prayers during this time. I have pointed these out to Emma so she will understand what is going on. Next the class participates in some morning singing and dancing. These songs are just children's songs for getting them moving. It reminded me of singing "I'm a little tea pot" and other songs like that. They have different ones here, and the children really love singing them. Both Harry and Emma are learning to sing them a little bit.

After the songs all of the children return to their class. Emma's class then starts with Math. Right now the children are learning numbers. Here they learn both numbers in Thai and English. Emma enjoyed that..... Next the class has Chinese class. Emma thinks....."Oh no, another language!!". It seems that this is a bit much for her right now.

After this class, the class goes down to the cafeteria for a "milk break". This milk is basically powdered milk with sugar and warm water. Most of the children love it, including Harry.

After break, the children return to the classroom for Thai and English class respectively. During Thai class Emma is learning how to write the Thai alphabet. They also play some fun games. Emma enjoyed playing a game with foam floor puzzles. The teacher took the puzzle pieces apart, and she had two teams compete to see who could find the letter that matched the puzzle piece she was holding. Emma was able to play to this with lots of laughs..... During English the children may play games or learn the English alphabet. Emma really likes knowing this already.

Next is lunch. All of the children have been learning to try new foods, and it seems that they have found a few new foods that they will eat. The school also has a snack bar where the students can buy inexpensive snacks. Emma's favorite snack is a popsicle made out of ice cream and jello. The flavor is strawberry. After lunch there is a playtime for all the children to play outside. Emma likes playing on the monkey bars. I am sure all of the children would stay outside all afternoon if they were allowed.

Nap time is next, so all the children brush their teeth and put on their PJs for naptime. Yep, they change into PJs here. Emma and Harry do a great job of changing clothes each day. Also, the children usually have milk before naptime, so I send a box of milk with them or they buy a box or milk at the snack bar. Emma usually likes to read during nap time, and Harry tries to nap....sometimes.

After naptime, everyone changes back into their uniform, and it is time for a snack. Emma's favorite snack is basically what we know as sweet cream corn. Yummy!! Here they make it with fresh corn and sweetened condensed milk. There are many desserts here that use sweetened milk.

The last hour of the day is used for an activity for experience. For instance, the children play with legos or they color. They may also play a game together to help with their English.

At the end of the day the children are usually all ready to go home. Emma does have homework everynight, and it usually takes about 10-15 minutes to do it.

Well, that's it for my experience at the kid's school. Any questions??

Thank you so much for all your prayers. The children are really doing great here. I can't wait to get a chance to write more about what is going on here in our life.