The Beauties of the Desert

This little desert island can be enchanting in moments. Moments where the fiery sun is dipping toward the horizon, painting orange a golden hues across the tan-blue sky. It’s glowing face peaking through the palm trees. The sound of birds at a kingly roundabout; this is a sound you don’t hear often. Typically only the coo of pigeons graces your ear in the mornings but this is like a choir of song. A choir I have not sing in months but what feels like years. It’s gorgeous out, a balmy seventy-three degrees on December third. I am truly living in paradise.

I love seeing the beauty that some people miss. The simple shape of the cookie-cutter villas all along the roads, the way a car curves around a round about, the little glisten on the trees created by un-lit lights to decorate for National Day. These little things any person could surpass, but they are what I live for. They are what make life worth the adventure and they are what truly make life beautiful among all the disrespect, prejudice and hatred that surround most of us on a daily basis (if we open our eyes to see). I simply love living here. It’s so beautiful, breathtaking really. The hustle and bustle of the traffic and the idiotic drivers are off set buy the palm trees swaying in the wind and that glowing sun reflecting off the skyscrapers as they light up for the evening show. The prejudice between Shiite and Sunni is off set by the beauty and devotion to their religion. The rudeness and necessity to talk from my students is off set buy their hugs and laughs, kisses on the cheek and pure honest emotion.

 I have never had students who have talked to me more about life, who have asked me to attend events, who have simply wanted to chat or just be around me, to hear my stories about my life, they are honestly interested. This experience will be like none I will ever have. Part of me is ready to go back; to go back to a normal life in the States, to be a teacher there. And the small part of me, is beginning to realize that I only have 7 more months with these kids, some, my first students. I’m beginning to realize what I am really going to miss about Bahrain but there will be no looking back. This has been more than I could have ever hoped for and I don’t regret a single bit of it. I have grown as an individual, a friend, a counselor and a teacher throughout this process and it will only become better.

Parent Teacher Conferences...round 2

Hello everyone!
Today, I am sitting in my classroom all day just waiting for parents to come in and see me to inquire about their child's grades. This semester did go a little better than last semester, I would like to say. I have learned a lot about being a teacher during the first half of my first year. It has been a wonderful experience that I wouldn't trade for the world. Being here in Bahrain has had its ups and downs along with challenges. Obviously, the change of being all on my own and starting off new was a challenge. Teaching for the first time and to students who have varying levels of English is a challenge. But, with all of these challenges I have learned a lot about myself and have had an amazing adventure.

Today, I am going to reflect on my time as a teacher here at MKS so far. MKS requires that at the beginning of the year we look at teaching indicators that the school provides and then we hose at least on indicator from each of the five groups to work on and improve during the year. Being over-zealous, I'm pretty sure I chose about 20 indicators to implement and improve upon and, as I looked through them, I have noticed how much I have improved over the course of this year. My biggest improvement would have to be differentiation of instruction. I have been trying to hard to fit in new activities and new lessons that are more student-centered than a lecture and practice. During the first couple chapters I taught, I did A LOT of lecturing. I would become agitated when the students would talk so much and slowly I started to realize that lecturing is NOT the best way for students to learn. Obviously, I knew this but I wasn't implementing that mentality. With the past two chapters, I have started to incorporate little writing or group work activities in each lesson, just to take a break form the notes. We do still have some notes almost every day but, I try to limit is to a half hour (1/3 or of the class time) and then I use the other portions of class for review and working on HW and doing activities. It makes my job less stressful and I think the students enjoy it a lot more. I was even told this week by one students that I am the most creative teacher she has :) it really made my day because it just showed me that all the hard work I have been putting in is paying off. I'm still not sure what helps them learn the best so I gave them an evaluation to complete to tell me... we will see if it helps! Below, I am going to describe three of my favorite and most successful "activities" that I have had my students complete. I really like them and I plan on using them again!

1. Application Day
On application days, I give the students one worksheet, front and back, to work on for the whole period. On the worksheet are questions, problems and creative activities they have to complete during class. The purpose of this day is to have the students USE the information they have learned and APPLY it by using critical thinking. I remind them that the answers for the questions are not going to be in their notes or in their books, they have to actually THINK about the answers. Some of the things I have included on the application day are: videos with questions, critical thinking questions, diagram drawing, graphic organizers, poems and short essays. I allow the students to work together and they have the whole class to complete the assignment and I meander around the room and answer questions and help students fill in the blanks. During a class day like this, I am also able to help students who need more one on one attention in order to really learn and grasp the material. Our classes at MKS are not divided AT ALL so I have students who have above 100% mixed in with those who struggle to earn a 50%. I really like being able to help these students but it is difficult to do on a daily basis. This lesson gives me that opportunity.
2. Group reading
I pulled this lesson out from one of my English College of Ed. classes and it worked out so much better than I expected. First and foremost, my students REALLY like to copy off of each other. It's a really big problem in the school but, during this lesson I allowed them to copy as long as they completed some of the work! For this lesson, students had to bring their Biology books and I provided them with a packet that had a page for each section in the book. On each page there were four boxes, one for each of the "roles" a student could have. The first box was for a summary of the section. All the other boxes aligned with a "role"the student chose. There were three roles. First, the artist- this person displayed some of the information from the section as a picture, graphic organizer, or a diagram. Second, the word master- this person focused on the vocabulary in the section. This person needed to define the word and find a fun way to help the other students remember what the word meant. The last role was the question master. This students would make up three T/F or multiple choice questions about the section. After I explained all the roles, I split students into groups of three. Each student was responsible for summarizing the chapter and for one of the three "roles". So it was fair, they had to rotate roles for each section. I was a little apprehensive about this activity because a lot of the students don't like to read but, they really enjoyed it! Almost all were on task for the whole period! It was a great lesson. I think it was successful because they had a specific role and it switched with every section. This kind of variety helped them stay engaged and interested in the material. I was incredibly happy with this lesson and I will be doing it again.
3. Easter Egg Hunt (this name came from one of my students ha ha)
In class, the students had made a flip-book about dominant and recessive genetic disorders. This activity made them use the information they wrote while having a little fun! Students prepared for the activity by reviewing all the disorders as a class. I randomly called on students to re-teach about the disorder (with the help of their flip-book) and then I added any extra information. Then, each student took a full sheet of paper and number 1-20. They also made a small box in the top, right-hand corner and wrote all seven diseases in the box (this was treated as a word bank). Then, I took the class outside to our courtyard. All around the courtyard I had taped and hidden twenty notecards; on each notecard, there was a description relating to one of the genetic diseases we just reviewed. The students had to find the cards and once they were found, they had to determine what disease the card described. The whole activity took about a half-hour and the students loved it so much! It was fun watching them be really involved in a lesson. The best part, our superintendent's office looks out on to the courtyard, my principal came out of his office while we were outside and said that everyone in his office was really interested in the activity I was doing for class! I was so excited! Overall, I think the students really loved the activity and since they were enjoying themselves, they were learning as well. We will see come test time!

Well, I think that about sums everything up. These are my top three lessons! I'm sure I will come up with many more (the creative juices really have to flow teaching these students). I am having a great time teaching here and it has really made me have to think outside the box more which, overall will make me a better teacher!
Thanks for reading this novel!
Until next time :)

So cold!!!

Hello all!

Things are going pretty well here in Bahrain... except for the fact that lately it has been freezing! I feel like such a whimp! It's about 50-60F (whereas at home it is probably in the 20s or lower) and I am freezing, along with everyone else in our building and at the school. My vice principal and I were discussing this and she said that this is the coldest it has been in Bahrain in SIX years!!! She said that normally it would be very windy with sand blowing everywhere, but never this cold. Speaking of the sand, it has been considerably windy lately; you don't really want to walk outside much because you can't see after a few minutes. But, two days ago, I was driving home and there was so much sand blowing across the roads it looked like a snow storm. It was drifting on the sides of the street... I felt at home for a minute! 

Now, back to the cold. One thing that contributes to this frigid environment is that there are no heating systems in any of the buildings; we only have sir conditioning. I have resorted to waking up early and blowing my hair dryer on me, replacing a dream for a space heater. I am constantly wrapped up in blankets, the air is turned up to 23C and yet it still blows. The thermostat read that my room was 21.5C and the air was still blowing! Ah! So cold. I have even seen some people in winter coats... and sometimes I'm wishing I had one! Oh, how our bodies adapt to our surroundings. I'm not saying I'm ready for the scorching 120F heat of the summer, but a little warmer would be great Bahrain. 

Until next time

-Ashley

Back to work!

First, I would like to wish you all a very happy new year! I have not written in quite some time so there is much to update all of you on but, for today, I am simply going to write about my classes. It is our first week back at school. I was worried that the students would not remember any of the material. I barely picked up my Biology book over the break, why would they? On the first day back, I simply asked them to record anything they remembered from the chapter. The activity was okay, not my best work. The classes were very loud and rowdy as we read out the facts; I was terrible at classroom management that day. For yesterday and today, the students had to complete a reading activity. They worked in groups of three. Each member read the chapter and summarized the information in their own words. Then, they completed one other task for the group; they could be the artist, the word master or the question master. These three roles were rotated for each section, therefore, each student summarized each section and had one other role for each section. They could not have the same role, it had to change. This gave each student a chance to do all of the parts. I had no clue how this was going to go over with the students. The Biology book is difficult to comprehend, they don't really like to read and then I was  let them choose their groups, hoping that they would not just socialize the whole time. Much to my relief, the activity has been one of the best! I am so incredibly happy with the results. The students have actually been working together. All of them have been able to complete the required amount of work with some of them finishing the assignment completely. Some have mentioned that the activity is similar to a study guide. When I asked if they liked the activity I had many students raise their hands.
It's days like today that I am reassured that I am a good teacher even with the series of F's and D's in my grade book. It reminds me why I am in this profession. It reminds me how much I love seeing others learn and helping them along that path. I have tried so many new techniques and have given so many chances this year it is so exhausting sometimes. I frequently worry about my students understanding the material. I am constantly trying to come up with new ways to teach that may help them learn Biology a little more or help them understand it a little better...it's a constant stress but, days like today show me that my work is paying off. I guess we will see the real results when they test next week. With each test, I think they understand it and I think they will do well and then, I go to mark the papers and my heart drops even lower. I so badly want them to succeed but, there comes a point where I have to realize they need to do some of the work as well. Either way, I will keep trying and these students will be successful. Days like today remind me that they can accomplish so much and it gives me hope that things will become easier.
Until next time!

Parent Teacher Conferences, School, Thanksgiving and Birthday

So today, Thanksgiving day in the States and my little brother's birthday (shout out to Josh! You're growing up so fast!!!), I am sitting at school having parent teacher conferences. In Bahrain, the parent teacher conferences are simply a school day without students. You come and sit in your classroom for the whole day and as parents come and go you talk to them about their students. I'm actually not nervous because of the great experience I had last year at Westside. I had some great direction from Patrick and Kim! I did the same thing as last year and made a list of tips for EARNING an "A" in my classes. I hope that the students actually take it to heart and start trying.

Of course just like the states, it's the students with the best grades in class whose parents show up. Then I have had a couple of the other extreme (failing students) whose parents have showed up. I explain everything I have done to try and help their students and I gave them my tips but I'm really curious to see if things are actually going to change. I'm just happy that none of the parents have tried to pin their student's grades on to me as their teacher. I can defend every grade I submitted, so I'm not worried; I was just told that this situation could happen. We will see how the rest of the day goes!

When I am not talking to a parent I am grading my tests from the past week. I almost want to cry. I have only had five students pass and I have almost corrected 50 tests. It is simply disheartening. I have no clue what else to do. I lectured, had them watch videos that retaught the concepts, gave them a study guide, posted the notes on the website, gave them in class time to study... I simply feel like I am running out of options to try and help them. A teacher can only do so much to aid students in their studies. If I could inject the information into their brain I would but it takes time and it's a hard subject to learn. Most of them don't understand that they have to do work outside of class to really know everything really well. I don't feel like there is enough time in class to teach them AND help them apply the knowledge. We have so much stress to "finish the book" and stay with the yearly lesson plan that I have to rush through each chapter. I thought this time I had timed it right though; I thought I gave them a diverse set of materials to be successful, I posted items on the website early... and now, this is their worst test yet. I feel like I'm running out of options and I just don't know how to help them. Students can't stay after school because of the bus, during lunch they only have 20 minutes to eat, before school they aren't allowed in the building... I just have no clue how to help them. I have no clue what other methods I can try. I'm feel like a terrible teacher in the moment yet, many my students say I'm doing a great job and that when I explain things to them they actually understand it.

Well, that was my venting session for the day. Hopefully I can evaluate my teaching currently and look for tips from other teachers in the building. I simply want my students to feel like they can learn the material and at the same time, I don't want to take out ALL the details and only teach the big picture. We will see what happens!

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! I am missing you all today and wish me luck for the rest of conferences!

Happy birthday bro :)

Rain in Bahrain!

So an amazing event happened two days ago! On November 20, 2012 it rained in Bahrain! By rain, I do not mean some small feat either, it was actually POURING! The rain started to fall the previous night, I was upstairs in the gym running and suddenly my roommate Tricia and two other teachers come barging into the gym exclaiming that it was raining! I jumped off the treadmill and stepped outside to fell small droplets begin to fall. It was a small sprinkle at the time but, those few little drops felt more refreshing than rain ever has. Other teachers came to join us as well... we even took pictures! I was told that last year it only rained ONCE the ENTIRE year, this was a moment in Bahrain history for me.
The next morning, as I looked out the window, the rain clouds were still heavy in the sky. As I walked outside I realized that is was STILL RAINING :) Super happy! We packed into the car to drive to school and as we were pulling out, it started to pour! I mean, a really good rain. One that if you are out in it for thee minutes, maybe even one, you are soaked from head to toe. This torrential down pour continued for about 10 minutes and then it was over; but in the process, the streets were literally flooded. There was at least three inches of water running down all the streets around the school. The dirt lost where we normally part had a miniature lake in it. A guy ran through it and the water came up past his ankles. I guess the saying holds true in Bahrain... when it rains it pours.
As I stepped out of the car, it was still pouring and since I was already wet, I decided to make the best of it. I stepped into the school courtyard and started dancing :) I splashed in the puddles and twirled around... some of my students even said they saw me dancing in the rain. I don't think I will ever grow up... and I'm perfectly fine with that!

The Beach and the Passport

So, I am writing today after my week has calmed down some. We have a three day weekend this week so I'm sure tomorrow will be crazy with the students BUT overall, things are going well... very well... in comparison to two days ago; and so my story begins.

On Friday night, Jodi, Tricia, Cathy and I decided to go night swimming at the beach I mentioned previously, Al Jazayir. We went out around 10 pm after we went out for Mexican. I personally do not like night swimming, it makes me nervous because that's when all the big fish come out. As I am walking into the water, my legs start tingling. It's a slight burning feeling and I wasn't quite sure why. Suddenly, we realized that when we moved in the water, it glowed. In Bahrain, there is bioluminescence in the water! Although this is a really cool thing, all I could think about was how the dinoflagelletes causing this phenomenon, are toxic. These are the same creatures that cause red tide. This is the only thing I can attribute to the burning sensation on my skin ha ha. I actually got out of the water for a little bit and then, after being coaxed by my friends, I decided to walk back into the light show. Although my friends were only 500 feet ahead, I could not see them at all. The cover over the water was so thick! I literally had to follow their voices until I could see them. As I walked into the water a second time, I have to admit, it was very neat to watch the water around my feet and legs glow green briefly. I stood there and just swished my hands around some. It was as if glowing green and blue confetti was flying off my arms and into the water as I moved. It also amazed me how quickly the organisms would stop glowing green. You could pick up a handful of water with some green and then 3 seconds later it would just look normal. It really was a cool experience and one that I did not think I would ever see. I have added a link to a youtube video showing an EXTREME case of bioluminescence if you have no clue what I am talking about :)   (click on this ^)
Here is another link that explains red tide and why it is caused a little more!

Another amazing thing about going to the beach at night is that you can actually see the stars. In Juffair, you can see ten stars on a good night. Then, you drive 25 minutes to the beach and you can see so many! I could see more stars than I can on any given night in Omaha. It was so beautiful. Here I am, during the second week of November, in a swim suit, in the ocean, in bioluminescent water, staring into the night sky with hundreds of stars that I have not gazed upon in quite some time. It was a splendid night. As we left the beach, none of us could stop raving about all the events of the evening. Life was good.

The next day, I was working on finishing my lessons for school this week. I took my flash to the print shop to have tests printed and as I went to pay, I realized that I did not have my wallet/passport holder. Remembering that I had placed it in the bag I took to the beach the previous night, I walked home to find the missing item. As I looked through my room and searched in my apartment and through the car and in other people's rooms, I came to the realization that this VERY IMPORTANT factor of my life was missing. Not only did it have my money, the holder also contained my passport (which I need to go to Dubai), my bank and, my driver's license (the whole reason I took it with), my CPR card and my health insurance card... so it was a little imperative that I find it immediately. I drove back to the beach and searched where we were, not there. Checked at the cold store at the beach, not there. The security officer there gave me the number to the trash company and to the police. My friend Jodi (who is way more patient with accents than I am) called the police and the trash company so the search could begin. The trash company said they would look through their trash and the police said they would meet us at the beach. When they arrived, they looked around where I had already looked and then asked if I could follow them to their station so I could fill out a report. We followed them to the police station; I received a crazed look because I had waited so long to fill out the report (less than 24 hours). Once the report was final I had to cancel my bank card, just in case someone used it and then the next day I would have to go to ANOTHER police station to have a card made that pretty much said I had lost everything and please replace it for me. Later that night, after returning home, Jodi called me and told me to jump on my computer and write to the US Embassy because there was a waiting list of FOUR WEEKS to even meet with Embassy to talk about replacing my passport... not very helpful for my trip in 10 days. So, I sent the email and made the game plan for the next day.

Next day, second period of my day... my phone is ringing so I answer and all I can comprehend is that the person on the other side of the line is saying passport, found and cold store... WHAT! I handed the phone off to my Vice Principal to see if she could speak to him in Arabic, she handed the phone off to our supply guy because I guess he was speaking Indian (I can't tell the difference).  Through a couple minutes of translation, what I thought I heard was revealed to be true! The trash company had sorted through all the trash and had found my passport cover with EVERYTHING still inside, including my money! (This is one thing that would NEVER EVER EVER happen in America, thank yo Bahrain). The trash company then brought my passport back to the cold store at the beach. The security officer there found the receipt for our car rental, called the rental company, asked for my number and then he called to tell me the good news.  I was so happy I ran around to all the girls' rooms that went swimming and told them it was found. I even interrupted their classes, which I normally hate doing. I was beaming with happiness, I was jumping and dancing and I almost hugged our supply guy when he told me the news.

After school, I drove back out to the beach and picked up my passport and holder :) Along the way, the day simply become better. There were clouds in the sky (this doesn't happen here) and the sun was setting as I drove. It was so beautiful seeing the big, bright orange sun peek through the skyline and reflect off the millions of windows on the buildings. Then, with the palm trees along the road... I just couldn't grasp that this is my life now. This where I live. It was so incredibly beautiful. Once at the beach, I stood gazing out to the ocean, with the sky embracing the orange and pink, the date trees slightly moving with the breeze and the water gently flowing; I felt like I was looking into a picture and then I felt like I become a part of that picture. It that very moment, all the pieces of my life seemed to fit in just to right spot, the world seemed a little brighter and I was in a blissful moment of happiness. After soaking it all in for what seemed like enough time,I walked back to the car and drove away, blaring the music, rolling with the windows down, the breeze through my hair and stuck in a moment of pure enjoyment. It was a wonderful day.