My husband's name is Quentin, (friends call him Q), an unusual name in Dominica and one which local people can find difficult to learn.
When parcels arrive, we are summoned to the Post Office, where we identify ourselves before being given an old bread knife on a piece of string. We then open the parcel, so that the import officer can charge us an appropriate import tax.
"I can never remember your name", the officer said to my husband smiling.
"Call me Q", said Quentin, "Just think of James Bond. He had a Q as his back-at-the- office man!"
"OK, Q!" was the chuckling reply.
On the next visit, the officer looked at Quentin and was obviously anxiously pondering. Now if, on the previous visit, Quentin had had a big Q on his T shirt, or on a badge..... but this was not the case! Q had taught the officer through his voice with an auditory explanation, so his teaching was not effective enough, because the officer thought and said, "Hello Mr Bond!"
Well, much as my husband is teased by our friends who now call him Mr Bond, I have to say that teachers do this, don't they? They tell a child, expecting that the child will learn through his ears, whereas a re-inforcing visual message would promote far more effective learning. My husband really should know better...he is married to me! But he doesn't complain. He is pleased to be Mr Bond. If only he had the car to go with it! Then I really would say "Wow!"
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
1 October 2007; Passion!
Earlier this year, out of tourist season, a class I was working with were given a huge treat, a free whale watching trip. It was especially good to see some of these well rehearsed, sea faring eleven-year-olds working conscientiously and seriously as the crew. They had been thoroughly trained and loved the job. They had a passion.
We had a great time on the whale watching catamaran, but the whales kept in hiding despite our efforts to find them. So the skipper, not wanting us to be too disappointed, put the sails up and now speeding, we sat out on the nets gripping the ropes tightly, laughing and enjoying the white ocean foaming just below us and occasionally absolutely drenching us with warm water.
As the catamaran was slowly steered back to its mooring and then tied up, the now quiet children climbed out to go back to school. I was last and thanked the skipper for his generosity and fun.
"Oh that's O.K. Chris!" he said. "I like to do it when I can. You have to give them a passion you see!"
"And that's what I want to do!" I said, " Give the teachers a passion for teaching and the pupils a passion for learning...give them a passion...you are so right!"
I started to follow the children, but then turned to wave to the skipper and, as I did, admired the catamaran framed by the blue ocean and the blue sea. And then I noticed its name.......................
We had a great time on the whale watching catamaran, but the whales kept in hiding despite our efforts to find them. So the skipper, not wanting us to be too disappointed, put the sails up and now speeding, we sat out on the nets gripping the ropes tightly, laughing and enjoying the white ocean foaming just below us and occasionally absolutely drenching us with warm water.
As the catamaran was slowly steered back to its mooring and then tied up, the now quiet children climbed out to go back to school. I was last and thanked the skipper for his generosity and fun.
"Oh that's O.K. Chris!" he said. "I like to do it when I can. You have to give them a passion you see!"
"And that's what I want to do!" I said, " Give the teachers a passion for teaching and the pupils a passion for learning...give them a passion...you are so right!"
I started to follow the children, but then turned to wave to the skipper and, as I did, admired the catamaran framed by the blue ocean and the blue sea. And then I noticed its name.......................
"PASSION"
30 September 2007: Water, please!
It's the rainy season here in Dominica and does it rain! Not the cold shivery grey rain of northern Europe, the "Raining cats and dogs!" as the older folk say, (or the "raining Datsun cogs" as the children joke), but the rain that warmly dashes down when you are snuggly in bed to make you feel good that the water tank is filling. Or the clowning about rain when you go out in it in a T shirt and shorts and scrub the veranda, laughing and coming in drenched ready for an inside shower and a drink. This warm rain cascades down the Dominican waterfalls, tumbles to fall in the 365 rivers, fills up deserted natural swimming pools all over the island and is wet, wet, wet!
But, despite all this clean water, the children are thirsty! They are not reminded to drink, so they are dehydrated and fidgetty in class. Brains need to be squidgy to work well, to concentrate and to learn. De-hydrated brains shut down. So do bodies!
However, I already know of two forward looking schools here, where children are allowed to drink from their bottle of water whenever they need to. But aren't the pupils frequently asking, "Please teacher, may I go to the bathroom?" Funny that! When people drink frequently, bladders are more accommodating and it is amazing how their capacities increase when the bladder owner is interested and engrossed in what is happening around him. It is usually only bored pupils who frequently want to "be excused!"
So rain or shine teachers, please make it easy for your pupils to have a drink of water.
Oops.... I must dash and water my indoor plants!
But, despite all this clean water, the children are thirsty! They are not reminded to drink, so they are dehydrated and fidgetty in class. Brains need to be squidgy to work well, to concentrate and to learn. De-hydrated brains shut down. So do bodies!
However, I already know of two forward looking schools here, where children are allowed to drink from their bottle of water whenever they need to. But aren't the pupils frequently asking, "Please teacher, may I go to the bathroom?" Funny that! When people drink frequently, bladders are more accommodating and it is amazing how their capacities increase when the bladder owner is interested and engrossed in what is happening around him. It is usually only bored pupils who frequently want to "be excused!"
So rain or shine teachers, please make it easy for your pupils to have a drink of water.
Oops.... I must dash and water my indoor plants!
29 September 2007: Her Majesty, the Bookworm
My husband and I, (sounds very royal doesn't it?) really enjoyed listening to a download from the B.B.C. radio last week. It was Alan Bennet reading his book, "An Uncommon Read".
It was a story of Her Majesty, The Queen, walking round the kitchen area of the Palace grounds and coming across the mobile library! The Queen, always anxious to put everyone at their ease, chats with Norman, the kitchen lad and then, turning her attention to the librarian, borrows a book. It seems Her Majesty, so busy in her day to day duties, had had little chance to relax and read. She had met many famous living authors, but had never been able to discuss their books. She could only ask them the prescribed questions like "Have you come far?", "Did you have a good journey?" But the mobile library gets her hooked on reading and she becomes, (if you'll excuse the expression ma'am), a book worm!
Dominican teachers often talk about when they became book worms, reading as they went down the road to shop or to school. One described how someone saw her and told her parents. She was beaten, "for showing off and thinking you are better than everyone else! She was perceived as moving "above her station in life", Her Majesty in the mobile library, dropping below! I just hope that all children will one day find the moment when they too become book worms, whatever their station!
28 September 2007: the bad cook
I often quietly confess to groups of slow readers that my secret is that I find cooking difficult. I hate cooking because I am so bad at it. I use lots of excuses not to cook. I am better at making excuses than at cooking!
Friends, who are good cooks, do more cooking because they like it and so, through practice, get even better.
I ask the children if it is the same for them with their reading. They look relieved as they say it is just the same!
But now I have found something else I am not good at...building this web site! I struggle and fret and know all my friends are better at it than me. You see, I have this dream, that this show-me-wow web site will one day go all round the world, helping teachers in poorly resourced schools. I am determined to achieve this dream, especially when I, like the pupil below, see a globe, On this particular little globe, Dominica is a tiny spot. But it is certainly there. So from little spots, mighty web sites grow. So I'll go on web siting as I shout over my shoulder, "Darling, what's for supper?"
12 September; Thank you, visitors!
Through my own contacts, as well as through my friend's blog, livingdominica, I have had many kind visitors to the island bring school supplies in their travel bags.These gifts are always gratefully received and are soon in use within classrooms.
Particularly so was the basket of pencils, crayons, paper and books I was able to deliver to a very sad teacher and her class, who had recently had to abandon their room and set up in a spare one with no resources. Their classroom wall had been demolished during hurricane Dean, when a huge boulder crashed down and, with a torrent of rain, had broken through the wall, damaging their book corner and destroying all their school room supplies.
Particularly so was the basket of pencils, crayons, paper and books I was able to deliver to a very sad teacher and her class, who had recently had to abandon their room and set up in a spare one with no resources. Their classroom wall had been demolished during hurricane Dean, when a huge boulder crashed down and, with a torrent of rain, had broken through the wall, damaging their book corner and destroying all their school room supplies.
I felt sad too and was so glad to have a basket of supplies to hand over to the class.
I unpacked a colouring book from my basket.
"Who would like to colour a page from this book?" I asked..... and the hands shot up with
enthusiasm.
"Who would like to colour a page from this book?" I asked..... and the hands shot up with
enthusiasm.
I spread the gifts round the table tops and showed them a new story book. They wanted to listen to the story.
I'd covered some empty cartons with construction paper sent by some kind visitors. Such boxes are used to store work cards and their colours brighten up the room.
"Can you guess what was in this box?" I asked. "It starts with a kicking K" and I made the shape with my body.
They smiled and someone shouted, "A kettle!""Well done!" I said.
As I left ,the teachers and a group of the children who had said they were, "A bit sad" A bit unhappy" and "A bit angry" at their hurricane damaged classroom, smiled when they received the gifts and shouted,"Faaaantaaaastic!" and "Thank you".
Thank you to all those kind people who have sent things for the children of Dominica. You can see that your generosity turns tears to smiles and to jumps for joy!
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