Today was the last day of week three at Amicitia. Did I just say week three??? Because it felt like week three hundred!!!!!!! They say a day in heaven is merely a moment. In Moroccan time, a day is a millennium!!! I have had so many ups and downs these past three weeks. Part of my stress & frustration stems from the fact that it's a million degrees here (Wow Rachel. What a great use of hyperbole!). I literally moved to the surface of the sun! :) (Although I'm pleased announce that there was a heaven-sent breeze blowing through my classroom windows this afternoon--first day I didn't sweat since school started!! Lately I've been stewing in my own filth. . .haha!) But enough complaining. . . . let me give you a glimpse into my crazy busy life since the beginning of September.
The school is set up on block scheduling. That means that each class I teach is 1.5 hours long, but I don't teach every class each day. I have Freshmen & Seniors on M, W; Foundations and Honors on T, R; and then all the classes for only 45 minutes on Fridays. I also monitor a study hall in my room 3 days a week (and my study hall students have been teaching me some Arabic the last 20 minutes of class. I learned the colors this week.). So back to the time slots, it's nice to be able to get a lot done in one setting, but that also means I don't see all of my students each and every day making it a bit difficult to keep up with all their English needs. So far, my classes have been pretty mild. I tried to start out really strict--gotta get the image of the "mean teacher." (I did hear positive results through the grapevine.) We've been moving fairly slowly, as in haven't-made-it-to-the-textbook slow. I had to really reign in my expectations. Some of my students don't have books yet as they're stuck in customs in Casablanca. Some of my students are needing a bit more practice in basic English, grammar, and sentence structure skills. There's definitely a large discrepancy between what they say they know and what they can produce. The Lord is trying to teach me patience in so many departments. However, it's still just week three, and we have many more meetings. I hope that some of my enthusiasm for reading can rub off onto some of the kids. We're supposed to be getting Kindles for all the high school students with lots of novels loaded onto them already. I'm looking forward to jumping into some great books with these kids and hopefully helping them find something they enjoy.
Fridays, even though they're jam-packed with all the shortened classes, are my favorite. I'm a little bit more lax with the kids. We take vocab quizzes in all the grades and then work on other stuff (or play Would You Rather with the remaining time--I really need to work on that "not being off task" stuff. . . ), and then we all sing Rebecca Black's Friday song. I'm pretty sure my kids think I'm weird, but somebody's gotta be, right? I've started to become more comfortable and I'm skating the line between strict and "fun." I've starting singing and bustin' out some dance moves. So fun! They're uber big and devoted negotiators though, and they haven't learned that I don't negotiated well. haha They turn in their homework late and try to get full credit. Not happening!
I really enjoy the rest of the faculty at the school as well! The new teachers are AMAZING! I think we've all bonded really well the past three weeks. Actually, we bonded before school started and I hardly see them now that we're all busy teaching and planning. :) The returning teachers are also fantastic! They're so willing to help and provide insight into aspects of life in the city and at the school. I live with two of them and they have been so sweet, offering wisdom about everything & really setting my mind at ease.
One thing that I've gotten to do (other than be a full-time teacher) is drive a car. That's right folks, Rachel Rufenacht has officially driven through Fes and Morocco!!! (more than once, too!) The school has a car that they loan out to the teachers if they need it to drive to the store or just around the countryside. Two weekends ago, two of the other teachers and I took the car up into the mountains to a little town called Ifrane. The town is only two hours away and inspired by Swiss construction--all the houses have pointy roofs and look like they could be in the Alps. It was so much cooler up there, and we spent the day enjoying the sunshine, the breeze, and lounging in a cafe drinking coffee & tea--Ahhhh the life!
The school is set up on block scheduling. That means that each class I teach is 1.5 hours long, but I don't teach every class each day. I have Freshmen & Seniors on M, W; Foundations and Honors on T, R; and then all the classes for only 45 minutes on Fridays. I also monitor a study hall in my room 3 days a week (and my study hall students have been teaching me some Arabic the last 20 minutes of class. I learned the colors this week.). So back to the time slots, it's nice to be able to get a lot done in one setting, but that also means I don't see all of my students each and every day making it a bit difficult to keep up with all their English needs. So far, my classes have been pretty mild. I tried to start out really strict--gotta get the image of the "mean teacher." (I did hear positive results through the grapevine.) We've been moving fairly slowly, as in haven't-made-it-to-the-textbook slow. I had to really reign in my expectations. Some of my students don't have books yet as they're stuck in customs in Casablanca. Some of my students are needing a bit more practice in basic English, grammar, and sentence structure skills. There's definitely a large discrepancy between what they say they know and what they can produce. The Lord is trying to teach me patience in so many departments. However, it's still just week three, and we have many more meetings. I hope that some of my enthusiasm for reading can rub off onto some of the kids. We're supposed to be getting Kindles for all the high school students with lots of novels loaded onto them already. I'm looking forward to jumping into some great books with these kids and hopefully helping them find something they enjoy.
Fridays, even though they're jam-packed with all the shortened classes, are my favorite. I'm a little bit more lax with the kids. We take vocab quizzes in all the grades and then work on other stuff (or play Would You Rather with the remaining time--I really need to work on that "not being off task" stuff. . . ), and then we all sing Rebecca Black's Friday song. I'm pretty sure my kids think I'm weird, but somebody's gotta be, right? I've started to become more comfortable and I'm skating the line between strict and "fun." I've starting singing and bustin' out some dance moves. So fun! They're uber big and devoted negotiators though, and they haven't learned that I don't negotiated well. haha They turn in their homework late and try to get full credit. Not happening!
I really enjoy the rest of the faculty at the school as well! The new teachers are AMAZING! I think we've all bonded really well the past three weeks. Actually, we bonded before school started and I hardly see them now that we're all busy teaching and planning. :) The returning teachers are also fantastic! They're so willing to help and provide insight into aspects of life in the city and at the school. I live with two of them and they have been so sweet, offering wisdom about everything & really setting my mind at ease.
One thing that I've gotten to do (other than be a full-time teacher) is drive a car. That's right folks, Rachel Rufenacht has officially driven through Fes and Morocco!!! (more than once, too!) The school has a car that they loan out to the teachers if they need it to drive to the store or just around the countryside. Two weekends ago, two of the other teachers and I took the car up into the mountains to a little town called Ifrane. The town is only two hours away and inspired by Swiss construction--all the houses have pointy roofs and look like they could be in the Alps. It was so much cooler up there, and we spent the day enjoying the sunshine, the breeze, and lounging in a cafe drinking coffee & tea--Ahhhh the life!
Lauren, Katie, Me, and Marcy before setting off
Yea. We had to stop for the sheep and the cows. Typical.
All the buildings looked like this. Love it!
We're hoping to go back and ski in the winter!
Last weekend I borrowed the car again and did some more shopping for my classroom as well as grocery shopping. Let's discuss: grocery shopping is frustrating!!! The produce is really fresh, but that's about where the wonders end. The carts remind me of cart racing. They don't turn on a dime and I'm always an inch away from running into someone. The food labels are all in French and Arabic--I have to make my purchases based solely on the pictures. And the checkout lines take twice as long as anything I ever waited for in Defiance or Memphis. You bag your own groceries, and any price checks can take up to a half hour. Seriously!
I also spent Saturday morning with Amy W. We drove around Fes for a bit, ate lunch at a nice coffee shop, and found some cheap clothes. :) That night I took the boys and her to a restaurant and spent the night so we could all drive to church together. They're so fun!!!
Let's see. . . . I feel there is so much more I should catch you up on. My roommates and I have a maid. I know. Lap of luxury, right?! She comes on Fridays--she's like a magic fairy. I leave in the morning, the house is super dirty. I come home at night, everything is clean and stacked in neat little piles. I think she'll even cook for us if we leave her ingredients!
Last week was super fun. I received books in the mail that a wonderful friend from Memphis sent to me, a letter from a dear and extremely missed friend from college, and a package from Mom and fantastic peeps from FCOG! You all are so wonderful and faithful! Thank you for your continuing thoughts and prayers. I know that most of my blogs are maybe the stressful and difficult times here in Morocco (yes, there are lots of them), but it's nice to know that I can vent and know someone is listening and praying. Morocco has lots of wonderful and beautiful parts too. The people can be very hospitable, it's a blessing to have a job, and I'm learning so much about myself and others here. Memphis was a growing time in that I learned I could be on my own and survive. I'm having to relearn that a bit here since survival requires so many different things than America did. I can't just reheat my leftovers in the microwave, or drive myself to the store, or walk alone at night. It's just such a different feeling living in a foreign country. My wonderful friend Natalie from Memphis gave me a devotional before I left, and it's been so pertinent every night. It always has encouraging words for me, and has been on the theme of TRUST lately--something that I have been working on growing in. God is faithful and I'm learning to put my trust in him every morning. He never lets me down and always exceeds my expectations.
That's all for now. I'm trying to get a handle on this teaching thing and will hopefully be writing more than once every three weeks! Hugs and kisses from the other side of the world! xoxo
