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!