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"The way I see it if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain" Dolly Parton

 In a couple of weeks, I will participate in our mid-service training for the Peace Corps. As is the custom, we have a load of homework to complete ahead of time. I find most of it problematic for one reason or another, but I will say that it has gotten me into a particularly reflective place.  "Mid-service" is a bit misleading because really I have about 9 months left in my service, but things are being framed in the "year one vs year two" context for this training.  In the last couple months I've been thinking a lot about what I want my 2nd year to look like and what I need to do in order to make that happen.  Which brings me to some updates on what is happening at school...

The biggest change is that I moved myself out of a classroom and into the library.  Three weeks in, I can tell you that this has been a game changer in terms of my mental health.  I no longer spend my days witnessing beatings while immersed in the frenetic energy of an environment where children have no boundaries.  I am conducting small pull-out groups for grades 2 and 3 focused on literacy.  Most of my students are significantly behind grade level--more than half of them cannot read even a preschool level passage.  I love working with them and having them in my own space means that I am able to set boundaries with them.  I spent time this summer reading about classroom management for elementary schools and took away some strategies that have been working thus far!  Also, my counterpart teacher is trying some of the same things in her class (grade 2) and so the students who see both of us are seeing consistency, which is something they aren't used to seeing.  All of this is definitely the rainbow.  The rain is that the library really is a nasty place--its filthy, reeks of mold and mildew (to be fair about 1/3 of it is full of moldy/mildewy trash that needs to be removed), and the bugs are savage.  But with all of that, I am still far happier.  

The other main focus for my work this year will be on executing a grant I was awarded from the Peace Corps.  It's aim is to make the library a more child-friendly space and also to  create a collection of teaching equipment and materials for the school.  I look forward to sharing updates as the year progresses!  

If I'm being honest, at this point I think my first year was definitely "the rain" and I look forward to this year being "the rainbow".   I continue to be thankful for having this experience at this point in my life--my professional and life experience have been invaluable in navigating my school environment, in particular.  Coupled with acceptance, I feel like I've been able to chart a course for this last year where I can achieve my goals and maybe also feel like I'm thriving, rather than surviving.  As always, a shout of gratitude to all of you--your love and support means the world to me. 💓💓💓 

I haven't really been taking many photos lately, so this is all I have!  This guy was hanging out at school this past week.  A small group of students gathered and we had a little biology lesson before school started.  It was lovely.  Then 10 minutes later another kid smashed it to death with a rock--but that's a story for another time...

  

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