Teacher Training

Wednesday, October 25, 2006

Sister Macasero came to the mission office at noon to guide me back to her high school where I had been invited to do a two-hour seminar for the teachers on “Child Friendly Attitudes – Christ-centered attributes.”The teacher training seemed to go well . . it was a very small group as it turned out which made it very nice for discussion and case studies etc. They had told me it was all the teachers at a government high school with just over 1000 students, but had not mentioned (probably figured it was such an 'obvious' thing that everyone would know it) that each teacher has about 80 students per class...yikes! I talked about love, forgiveness, and about being firm, fair and friendly, and concluded with talk about Jesus Christ - fine in schools here - and about his example as a master teacher. It was a good experience and I was so impressed with their cheerful attitudes, the unity among the teachers, and their determination to help the kids.

English Class

Not only do Dad and I enjoy our English classes, but the students do too. This was one of our smallest groups – we had 16 students and divided into three groups of 5, 5, 6. All of these students except the man in the red shirt have come every week of this session and we have been thrilled with their progress. They will each receive a certificate with a large gold seal next week for completing the 10 week session with perfect attendance! All are hoping to get jobs. Weena, the woman facing the camera, doesn’t really have to work – she has money and a car, but she is wanting to find something to do. The two men and the woman with the curly pony tail, Becky, are members of the Church; the other two women are not. Weena had one discussion with the missionaries, but thought it wasn’t a ‘good time right now.’

We sometimes play games like ’20 Questions’ or have them role play. Those activities are very popular. And, I give homework that they must do if they want a certificate. Last week they were supposed to come prepared to discuss the recent typhoons in Luzon and what preparation measures they should take. They discussed it in the small groups and my group seemed to find a lot to laugh about during the discussion. Becky is quite the comedian and has a clever remark for almost every situation…..in English no less.

Kids and pipes

Saturday, October 14, 2006

This morning I went shopping with Elders Latimer and Domingo. We were looking for souvenirs to take home. First we went over to Mactan Island which is a center for making custom guitars and ukuleles. On the way we saw a delightful scene, children playing in a stack of large pipes. Some were in the pipes, some climbing around on top and some watching. By the time we got our cameras out and snapped a picture, it was not quite as cute as we as seen seconds before, but we were still pleased to capture the scene.