Back to School - My Kids

My mom always wanted me to have kids, of my own. I've raised "OPK" (other people's) but that wasn't good enough for her, she wanted to bring me my own. I was adopted so, to her, it would be the same as my own. I never felt her urgency for me to have kids. Somehow I knew, one day, I'd have lots of them.

About a month ago, I started working (volunteering) at the school in my neighborhood. I have been very reluctant to do this because I didn't feel my Spanish was strong enough. Well, after visiting the school, I realized, IT DIDN'T MATTER. Funny how "fears" are. They are so understaffed and neglected. Anything I could give would be an improvement. I was relieved to know, the Gringa could help.

We have about 20 students ranging from 7 years to 15. There is ONE TEACHER for all of these children. He teaches them as a group and then they divide up into separate groups for work and study. I was totally amazed with his ability to juggle the various levels. All the children are so bright and disciplined.

I started by helping in the kitchen. There was only one lady cooking and she was feeding them in groups. Mainly because they didn't have enough plates and spoons (no forks). Some things are so easy to fix with just a little money. Now, they all eat together after having said the blessings in unison. Just precious.
They eat quietly, too. Beans and rice, everyday.

I showed the girls how to crochet (we'll be working on that all year) and make beads from oven-bake clay. I am on the hunt to find this is Costa Rica. "Sculpey" or "Fimo" clay, great stuff. We used glass beads with the handmade beads to make necklaces. The lesson was about design and patterns. Still working on that one too. For the boys, they have collected driftwood on the beach and will learn to do carving, sanding, and apply sealant. Just little projects we've started for when the rains set in and they can't play during their recesses. I'm a crafter and before this, there was no "art" class.

Christina, the girl that introduced me to the teacher, gave me a stack of books yesterday to help with teaching the kids English. Sally, my blog friend, will be passing through next week and she is bringing an English learning program for the computer. It appears, it's back to doing homework and learning how to teach English.

Adopt a School.