So, I suppose that you all are wondering how the teaching is going.  Well, I must say, it is going extremely well.  I have had the pleasure of joining a hustling bustling room full of 27 wonderfully active, tremendously bright young students (the vast majority of which are boys).   The teacher and I are developing a great rapport, and she and the children are excited by the new ideas that I have to offer.  I have had the honor of performing some science experiments with the children (our poor tooth (egg) will be released from its soda-watery prison tomorrow for observation), and have helped institute a very popular reward system to help everyone remember the classroom rules.  I am having a great time and am very glad to have this opportunity, if only for 2 weeks.

The bus ride there is rather interesting, to be sure.  Each bus is equipped with a driver and an assistant who keeps track of the children on a clipboard and makes sure everyone is sitting down and behaving.  The assistant is a tall, skinny man, very soft spoken and sweet.  In the morning, the bus is mostly PreK and Kindergarteners, with only a few 1st, 2nd and 3rd graders.  From watching what transpires each morning, it has become obvious why the assistant is so thin.  Each little one that gets on is ushered to a seat and buckled in.  But, in the true spirit of a 5 year old, each one of them, at some point, wiggles out of the seat belt, turns around an whacks their neighbor, drops items from their bags, etc.  The assistant is up and out of his chair constantly attending to their needs, admonishing them in his quiet Indian accent.  “No, no, no, you must seet, seet down, seet on bottom, come on, seet down, no, no, no, seet, seet! Oh, no, you can’t do that, no, not safe, not safe, seet, seet down, oh please, seet down”.  And on and on it goes, all the way to school.  Up and down from his seat, back and forth from the front of the bus to the back, he is wonderful with the children, but they just don’t give him a break.  Ender, too, gives him cause to panic at least once or twice each trip with his constant motion and inability to sit still.  I wish I could record the man for you all to hear.  He is so sweet and caring, and my heart goes out to him.  He has the patience of a saint.

I must say, it is wonderful to be able to get a glimpse into the school and find out how the day runs for Addie and Ender.  I am getting to know the teachers and staff and the inner workings of the school.  I am very pleased with what I see and am honored to be a part of it all.