Where to begin???....WOW. I'm actually writing this at the end of my second teaching day at Druk White Lotus. The first day, August 4th, began at 6am and ended around 8pm. The days here in India are unquestionably long. The people in India work long, hard hours and I will not be the exception. Do not mistake this as a complaint. Yes, I am exhausted at the end of the day, so exhausted, in fact, that I'm too tired to eat dinner. But that may also be due to the fact that I come home from work at the school completely satiated, filled to the brim. I know I have given 110% at the end of the day and have left nothing in reserves, and still I am fulfilled; rejuvenated in a way that I cannot say I remember feeling since my days at the hospital in Cambodia. And, here, at this school, in this place in India, I feel even more useful. Not only am I preparing projects for certain classrooms during the day (social studies, science, english, math, history, art) to fit into the already established curriculum of the syllabi, but I am also creating photo literacy projects for the hostel students (those children who live at the school during the school year because their families live too far away for them to be bussed in and out each day), in addition to being an active member on the English team bored (along with another volunteer Josh, and five Ladakhi teachers at the school), and have signed on to assist at a wilderness camp for the older children this coming week. (I know this last sentence was quite the run-on - forgive me, I am tired and don't know how else to get all that information into the same thought any other way). It is clear to me that speaking to many people who speak broken english has definitely affected the way in which I am speaking English. It's much easier for many of them to understand if I also break up my English in the same manner...so bear with me.
I have, since the first day of school (yesterday), written up a structure for the upcoming "English Month" beginning August 10th, where we will provide competitions in debate, quiz form, spelling bees, and translation-a-thons to the students (all in English). If the children speak their native tongue in class, they have to cough up 5 rupees (roughly 10 cents). The students are pretty proficient in English already, but it's very important that they practice their reading comprehension, writing, and conversational skills. Luckily, all of us Western volunteers are here to provide topics of conversation. :)
I have also been shadowing a wonderful teacher by the name of Pali. She teaches five different grade levels and four different subjects. I have been helping co-teach with her (especially in the English class), and while we have been running lessons with the students, I have been taking notes on all the things they are learning. I am doing this so that at the end of the main lesson (i.e., the fourth graders are learning about the four metropolitan cities in India - one city every one or two days of class), I will facilitate a photo literacy lesson that fits in and supplements the work they are already doing. As many children learn visually rather than strictly by textbook and reciting information, it is my hope that Follow Your Art can provide another venue through which for these students to grasp the concepts of their studies.
In the time between the end of school (3pm) and the beginning of my time with the hostel students (5pm), I work through and plan a photo literacy project for the hostel students. Here, with these students, and at this time of day, I have complete free reign on topics and project ideas. The first project planned is entitled, "If only I could, I would....". The students will begin with a sheet of paper and pen. On this paper they will write, "If only I could, I would..." and they will finish that sentence, whether it be "...fly," "....travel," "....teach," "...change the world," etc. They will be encouraged to be creative and listen to their deepest desires. This will give them freedom of expression and also a break from the "right/wrong", "correct/incorrect" dictation of their regular school day. Then we will brainstorm ideas of how to photograph each individual's sentence as a group. I will hand out the digital cameras, give a brief overview of how to use the cameras and how angles and composition can affect and change the meaning or viewing of the photograph, and then, I will set them free. I cannot begin my photo projects with the hostel students until next week as this is the first week of school and there are many things to organize and assess. When the projects begin, you all will be the first to know. I will be uploading some of the children's work on the blog as well as on Follow Your Art's facebook page: http://apps.facebook.com/causes/243168/5119438?m=6d54c0aa
Thank you for following the blog! Now I'm off to help some kids follow their art! (Too cheesy?)
