First Day

Today we met Mr. January, the principal at Emafini and the teachers with whom we will be working. The school has about 1300 kids in grades Kindergarten through seven. The students have been paired with a teacher who has a grade level that matches the grade in which they student taught in the U.S. It's just before exam time and the end of the school year here. They are writing exams next week. Today we had an unexpected event occur. Mr. January had a meeting with all of the teachers during the school day, so all of our UNCW students stepped in and immediately started teaching. I did some teaching and helped keep students in classrooms and on task. The children are beautiful with a curiosity that makes me smile. They are learning in Xhosa and English, so we are having to navigate that process. In the photos above, Chelsea Maser is meeting her class for the first time and I am reading to 4th grade learners (as they call them in South Africa).