Thailand Trip (Day 11)

Day 11:
Today (Tuesday) was another great day spent teaching. We started off early and Steve, Mike, and I headed to the preschool. As the kids were so young we did not plan lessons, but instead songs and a game of duck duck goose. We were quite lucky that we all came to the class since Steve counted that there were at least 64 students in the class. The kids really loved the games and the teachers encouraged the students to dance while we sang. The principal even showed up to take some pictures.

After preschool we headed to first grade where we found a quite rowdy class. The first grade English teacher is actually the nurse so the class is held outside the infirmary in the open air auditorium. Many of the children were running about auditorium, but some were sitting. There seemed to be no teacher in sight, but suddenly a motorbike roared across the concrete auditorium floor, its driver a women wearing a helmet and reflective visor. It was the teacher! She parked the bike, got settled and let us know that we would be covering letters. The class did a good job writing B's and drawing a boat after we motivated them with stickers. The second half of class was disastrous as there was one wild child. He ran about the classroom attempting to punch Mike and I in the groin and whack us with rulers. The other children soon decided to chase him down. It was quite the class. Having take the ruler from the child we finished class tired and ready for the mid-day break. In the afternoon we taught a excited and much better behaved third grade class where the teacher brought us delicious fruit smoothie drinks. Afterwards we headed to the post office and dinner on base.

In the evening Mike and I walked to the junction of Ao Luk to buy three mango sticky rices, but after a 30 minute walk found only one. We brought it back and several of us shared it as we shared life stories.