My first day started off with me being awoken by the lovely sound of rain. I made breakfast and soon headed on my 4 minute walk to school, with my 2 other friends staying at the host families house with me. The day began with a staff meeting where I met my cooperating teacher. She is a sweet lady who has a lot of good ideas for her classroom! The kids all began by playing outside. We ran 2 laps around the field to get our bodies moving. Followed by snack. We next went into the other grade 1 & 2 classroom for a prayer in Māori, their native language. It was so interesting to see them pray, count, and say the days of the week in this language. We next headed back to our classroom for carpet time... followed by more outside time. Reading and writing were next. Then, sports time... which was outside. This was a set on relay races that the students rotated to, 15 minutes at each location. One little girl told me I was beautiful and that she loved me. Wow, these children are so sweet! We then had tea time where the children could have a snack and where the staff could enjoy tea or coffee and a snack. A nice break in the day! It was delicious. We headed back to class for some more reading and then lunch came next... outside of course. After this was math which was taught in songs and was so enjoyable. The afternoon was filled with singing and dancing. We sang and danced along to videos on the projector screen. The children next played on the iPads, while others colored. Some students were called up for a reading or writing group. The difference between American schools and this school is already outstanding. The children here are immersed in so much free play and are given the opportunity to learn for themselves. One boy today was stuck in a tree, he learned that he will never be climbing a tree again. The hands on activities are amazing to watch because these children are learning through their play. I am looking forward to tomorrow because on Fridays we focus on art:) The students are so sweet and adorable, I can not wait for many memories to come.
