Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Almost 8 weeks in!
Wow, can you believe I have been here for nearly 8 weeks where has time gone!
And things have been going pretty well! Work has been pretty busy with continuing establishing positive relationships with both the university and of course the teachers and students I work with. I have also established an Individual Education Plan that will help support learning outcomes. I have spent two days observing the elementary classes and have begun to grasp an understanding on the education system of the Philippines. I enjoyed watching the 40 students in each class as they stood up to welcome 'teacher Zoe' into the class and as I was leaving stood up to say goodbye. I love the fact now that I can walk around the school and hear children jumping up and down calling out 'Teacher Zoe, Teacher Zoe' across the yard! I also found it quite amusing as each student during a break came up to me to ask if they could use the CR (comfort room) and when I said yes, half the class would laugh at me! I'm not sure whether the students really needed to use the comfort room or whether it was my strange accent that they wanted to hear!
After six weeks of emailing to get sponsorship, I recieved my first donation from an Resource for the Blind in America - they have donated some picture story books for the children written in braille!
I have also just recently finished interviewing the families at the centre and the stories they have told are amazing. With the two teachers, we have updated all the children's information and assessed the students level of independence.
This week has seen the first week of holidays - it is there semester break so the school is closed for three weeks, however I am busy working as I have lots of work to get done before I head away the weekend after next!
I have also been busy being a 'tourist' around the Philippines as I have started to travel out of Cebu City.
A couple of weekends ago I decided to test my new underwater camera at Apo Island just off the Island of Negros. I stayed with a friend in Dumaguete and went out to Apo Island on the Saturday. Although I was the only one snorkelling, the rest were diving I still had a ball watching the fish go by! The coral was amazing and even better I got to see my first turtle! It was a little disappointing that I only saw one but one is better than none! This trip has made me consider getting my diving license so will be doing my first discovery dive this Saturday and will decide then whether I can go ahead and get my certification.
Last weekend saw me head to Bacolod to visit some friends but also to see the big Masskara festival. Masskara means 'Multititude of Smiling faces" as the story goes the town back in the 80's experienced a crisis with a boat that collided with another boat killing about 700 people from Bacolod which cause a very depressed feel around the town so the local government decided to throw a festival. It was a big couple of nights with lots of street parades, street parties, lots of crazy food and mixing with fellow volunteers. It was really good to catch up with everyone. I also had the opportunity to visit some of the heritage houses and see the Ruins. It was a very short trip but well worth it!
Next weekend will be a quite one (apart from my dive) but then for the next couple of weekends/weeks I will be away seeing many islands in the Philippines! We also welcome the next lots of volunteers in the first week of November and our intake have the job of organising and running some of the sessions!
Apart from travelling and working, I have started to enjoy a regular lesson or dance out of Belly dancing as well as running and swimming!
With the typhoon up in Manila we have been getting alot of rain and many thunderstorms but apart from that all is going well!
Hope everyone is going well back home!
Lots of love Zoe
And things have been going pretty well! Work has been pretty busy with continuing establishing positive relationships with both the university and of course the teachers and students I work with. I have also established an Individual Education Plan that will help support learning outcomes. I have spent two days observing the elementary classes and have begun to grasp an understanding on the education system of the Philippines. I enjoyed watching the 40 students in each class as they stood up to welcome 'teacher Zoe' into the class and as I was leaving stood up to say goodbye. I love the fact now that I can walk around the school and hear children jumping up and down calling out 'Teacher Zoe, Teacher Zoe' across the yard! I also found it quite amusing as each student during a break came up to me to ask if they could use the CR (comfort room) and when I said yes, half the class would laugh at me! I'm not sure whether the students really needed to use the comfort room or whether it was my strange accent that they wanted to hear!
After six weeks of emailing to get sponsorship, I recieved my first donation from an Resource for the Blind in America - they have donated some picture story books for the children written in braille!
I have also just recently finished interviewing the families at the centre and the stories they have told are amazing. With the two teachers, we have updated all the children's information and assessed the students level of independence.
This week has seen the first week of holidays - it is there semester break so the school is closed for three weeks, however I am busy working as I have lots of work to get done before I head away the weekend after next!
I have also been busy being a 'tourist' around the Philippines as I have started to travel out of Cebu City.
A couple of weekends ago I decided to test my new underwater camera at Apo Island just off the Island of Negros. I stayed with a friend in Dumaguete and went out to Apo Island on the Saturday. Although I was the only one snorkelling, the rest were diving I still had a ball watching the fish go by! The coral was amazing and even better I got to see my first turtle! It was a little disappointing that I only saw one but one is better than none! This trip has made me consider getting my diving license so will be doing my first discovery dive this Saturday and will decide then whether I can go ahead and get my certification.
Last weekend saw me head to Bacolod to visit some friends but also to see the big Masskara festival. Masskara means 'Multititude of Smiling faces" as the story goes the town back in the 80's experienced a crisis with a boat that collided with another boat killing about 700 people from Bacolod which cause a very depressed feel around the town so the local government decided to throw a festival. It was a big couple of nights with lots of street parades, street parties, lots of crazy food and mixing with fellow volunteers. It was really good to catch up with everyone. I also had the opportunity to visit some of the heritage houses and see the Ruins. It was a very short trip but well worth it!
Next weekend will be a quite one (apart from my dive) but then for the next couple of weekends/weeks I will be away seeing many islands in the Philippines! We also welcome the next lots of volunteers in the first week of November and our intake have the job of organising and running some of the sessions!
Apart from travelling and working, I have started to enjoy a regular lesson or dance out of Belly dancing as well as running and swimming!
With the typhoon up in Manila we have been getting alot of rain and many thunderstorms but apart from that all is going well!
Hope everyone is going well back home!
Lots of love Zoe
Partying it up with the locals at Masskara
Just one of the many floats
One of the heritage houses
The many 'smile' masks
The 'ruins'
Riding a trik to the ruins
On arriving home from Bacolod my landlord had put up a christmas decoration up on my door
- think its early? Its not, they were playing christmas music back in September!
(sorry for the side photo but the computer is doing tricks on me!)
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Moving in a new direction!
What a week it has been - I continue working at the braille school and feel like I am moving forward slowly but surely!
I experienced my first field trip as they call it here (I kept calling it an excursion and they just looked at me blankly!) We headed to a little crocodile park with a many different Asian animals including the tarsiers, the philippino eagle and a few other little random animals inwhich I had never seen before from asia (one looked very similar to what I think a sloth looks like!) I must admit it was a very different 'excursion' to what I am use to back home - no parent permission slips went out - at first I was concerned about this, wasn't sure if it was just the philippino way or whether the school just lacked an understanding on safety issues. I soon found out that it is a requirment but the teacher has never had to write one - so of course that got me thinking and asking a lot of questions regarding policies and procedures within the centre. I'm very consious of being a 'westerniser' and the fact that the Philippines do things differently but I have had some concern about the welfare of the students. (This has been an issue for the teachers as well, as they are so far under resources and don't have the knowledge!)
So I am now also possible writing some policies and procedures for the centre (of course I can only get started on this) as I don't want to end up focusing on just this.
The field trip, was good fun and the parents/caregivers attended the day so in the end it wasn't a big issue that parents hadn't given permission because it become more of a 'fun' day. We all rode a jeepney to the park and I soon learnt that this was OK as long as no children were riding on the roof!
This weekend has certainly been extremly busy - I got to enjoy watching the Pies win the grandfinal with a few aussies (not many) but drinking $2 beers was pretty awesome!
And today I enjoyed running in ther 'Pink' cancer fun run as an unregistered runner! It was a good run considering I haven't gone for a ran since early last year but I managed alright apart from the fact that they don't close the roads so jeepneys, taxis and motorboke were still on the roads and yes we had to give way to them - thats of course you were a hard core runner which meant you could get a motorbike escort!
This has really made me what to get back into my running!
And of course I also enjoyed doing the skywalk and the edge roller coaster ride, a ride that tilts you at 50degrees. Good fun! Check out my photos on facebook!
I have never done something like this and I think now I'm craving more adventurers sports!
Next weekend I am off to Dumaguete to snorkel with the turtles at Apo Island!
Looks like I am in for some busy weekends ahead as I start to explore the wonderful islands!
Hope things are going well for everyone!
Love Zoe
I experienced my first field trip as they call it here (I kept calling it an excursion and they just looked at me blankly!) We headed to a little crocodile park with a many different Asian animals including the tarsiers, the philippino eagle and a few other little random animals inwhich I had never seen before from asia (one looked very similar to what I think a sloth looks like!) I must admit it was a very different 'excursion' to what I am use to back home - no parent permission slips went out - at first I was concerned about this, wasn't sure if it was just the philippino way or whether the school just lacked an understanding on safety issues. I soon found out that it is a requirment but the teacher has never had to write one - so of course that got me thinking and asking a lot of questions regarding policies and procedures within the centre. I'm very consious of being a 'westerniser' and the fact that the Philippines do things differently but I have had some concern about the welfare of the students. (This has been an issue for the teachers as well, as they are so far under resources and don't have the knowledge!)
So I am now also possible writing some policies and procedures for the centre (of course I can only get started on this) as I don't want to end up focusing on just this.
The field trip, was good fun and the parents/caregivers attended the day so in the end it wasn't a big issue that parents hadn't given permission because it become more of a 'fun' day. We all rode a jeepney to the park and I soon learnt that this was OK as long as no children were riding on the roof!
This weekend has certainly been extremly busy - I got to enjoy watching the Pies win the grandfinal with a few aussies (not many) but drinking $2 beers was pretty awesome!
And today I enjoyed running in ther 'Pink' cancer fun run as an unregistered runner! It was a good run considering I haven't gone for a ran since early last year but I managed alright apart from the fact that they don't close the roads so jeepneys, taxis and motorboke were still on the roads and yes we had to give way to them - thats of course you were a hard core runner which meant you could get a motorbike escort!
This has really made me what to get back into my running!
And of course I also enjoyed doing the skywalk and the edge roller coaster ride, a ride that tilts you at 50degrees. Good fun! Check out my photos on facebook!
I have never done something like this and I think now I'm craving more adventurers sports!
Next weekend I am off to Dumaguete to snorkel with the turtles at Apo Island!
Looks like I am in for some busy weekends ahead as I start to explore the wonderful islands!
Hope things are going well for everyone!
Love Zoe
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