عامي الاول - My First Year

Now that my first year teaching abroad is complete I can write about it.

It's been quite a year.  Filled with many ups and downs.  It's been challenging, frustrating, stressful, exciting, emotional, and memorable.  I learned many things about myself as a teacher and many things about the students that I taught, and will teach in the future. 

My first year teaching began Sept. 15, 2010.  I walked into Ammoryiah Primary School knowing only 3 people (Amy, Alice, and Andrea).  I walked in not knowing what grade I was going to teach, where I was going to teach, who the principal was, or how to communicate with the staff and the girls that I was going to teach.  It was scary.  I made it through that day and the many many scary days that would follow.  I survived not knowing how to manage my class, EMSA, being told that I'm not teaching, parent meetings, staff meetings in Arabic, being told that I'm not allowed to impose any consequences on my students' misbehavior, National Day and countless other assemblies that lasted forever, feeling isolated and left out among the Arabic staff, super high expectations placed on me as an LT and the students, endless PDs, moving classrooms 3 times before being told that I was going to have to have 2 classrooms and I would move instead of the students, not being able to use the bathroom at school due to not having water, wearing long skirts and long sleeve sweaters in 120 degree heat, air conditioning not working correctly, Esis and changing grades, and countless other obstacles.

But in amongst all those challenging and frustrating obstacles there were many many positives.  Having girls that wouldn't say anything to me in English, at the beginning of the year, tell me about their weekend!  Seeing the girls' writing improve from simple sentences such as "I like the cat." to compound sentences and 3-4 sentences on topic!  Helping girls learn to read in English!  Learning how to manage my classroom of students that didn't know what I was saying to them!  Meeting new Arabic friends!  Having good observations and a final evaluation, putting together a portfolio on the spot that was actually quite good, helping the students and parents know that learning is not always a worksheet or a page from the book, smiles, laughter, kisses, nose bumps, hugs, and notes from the students. 

All in all it was a good year!  And dare I say it?  Maybe just maybe I am excited about coming back next year?!

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