Hump Day!

Tuesdays are always a bit rough. I teach in the afternoon when the girls are buzzing and wild.

This Tuesday was off to a good start when a student brought me a few roses.

It didn’t last long. Take a look at our behavior chart today! Tuesday our school has “special schedule.” This means that we skip our morning assembly (except we still have it?), add a special activity class, and tag on 20 minutes to the day. Lucky me, the girls arrive in my room directly after their special activity… it’s nutso!

I usually teach 3 40 minute periods a day. For whatever reason, an extra class was added onto my schedule this day… and oh my goodness we needed it. Some days we get nothing done because the concept of “If I’m talking… you’re NOT talking!” is too difficult to grasp. I lost track of time and you can see that the girls exited my room in a hectic fashion as the end of the day bell clanged on. (The bell rings at least 7 times on Tuesdays…)

My naughtiest (and favorite) student and I wore our hair in the same style. I love it when that happens. We point at each other’s hair and say “Same same!” with big smiles. It’s pretty adorable.

Here I am posing with the Tree of Shapes. This arrived one day in the middle of class. It’s hard to know how to react when a wooden tree is delivered to your doorstep. I think I said something along the lines of… “Wow… look at that!”

After school Sarah came over to sort out a problem with her sewing machine. After a lot of tinkering, it was a pretty simple fix. We stopped at a restaurant across the street for some hummus and enjoyed some complimentary falafel while we waited.

Tuesday nights my friends and I celebrate Hump Day by hosting dinner for each other. Every fifth week it’s my turn. This week was at Hannah’s house. She always cooks up something tasty. This time it was Korean food.

The evening usually includes some gaming… if they can sucker me in. I’m not so much one for board games (“bored” games… I love that Mol!).

That’s Tuesday!

xo, jill

With Milad!

Monday morning starts much like Sunday morning but maybe a smidge less harsh. Check out that outfit… long skirt and a cardigan! However, there’s a special feature this day. One of my lovely Emirati co-workers gifted me this scarf. I needed something to wear with it so I pulled this black skirt out of retirement. Can you believe that I stopped wearing it because it’s too short?!? I don’t feel comfortable at school if my ankles are exposed… sounds silly, I know! (In the photo it’s pulled down as far as possible. In real life it’s about 2 inches shorter.)

Welcome to Grade 2!

On Mondays I teach in the morning when the students are much better behaved. Look at our discipline chart for the day… not bad.

We were learning vocabulary from the community like school, cinema, supermarket… etc. The girls picked it up really fast. They always impress me with their ability to memorize new words.

I finally felt comfortable giving my girls more responsibility in the classroom. I probably should have done it long ago… but their behavior in the beginning was so atrocious I was scared to relax a bit. Now five girls a week have jobs… so far, so good.

And here’s the pretty tree outside my door. The maid responsible for my room sweeps up the tiny green leaves from the ground every morning.

After school I baked a practice round or two of cookies for a dinner later in the week. It’s a good thing I did. Take a look at the first attempt:

I think I made a decent recovery on the next batch (new recipe).

Monday nights I sit on this beautiful salmon colored couch…

… and enjoy the ultimate in comedy experiences, Extras…

…with my friend Milad!

Monday usually closes with conversation about the peculiarities of science and life, and then a quick dash home.

xo, jill

In the studio.

I thought that (some of) you might like to see a bit more of what daily life is like here in Abu Dhabi. I tried to document a typical week… except, you know, there is no such thing as a typical week in Abu Dhabi!

Here we go…

Sunday starts off the week bright and early with my alarm snapping at me at 5:20am. I typically think something along these lines… “What should I wear? … 5 more minutes … Oh I know, how about an ankle length skirt and cardigan!”

Usually I’m out the door by 6:30am and ready to make my 45 minute drive to work, but not on this Sunday. This Sunday my co-workers and I were scheduled to observe a model school in the city. We were lucky enough to watch one of our friends teach a kindergarten lesson, then we toured the school. After the tour we were gifted a rose… Emirati hospitality.

As an extra special treat Sarah and I were not made to drive all the way out to school after the observation. We spent our extra spare time having lunch at the nearby mall and shopping for gifts for our local co-workers.

During the evenings on Sundays I’m in the pottery studio learning how to manipulate clay into prettiness. My pottery instructor is very talented and entertaining to be around. She clearly loves her craft and her students. The class is small with about 3 or 4 other students attending each week. Everyone moves at their own pace and I am certainly the novice in the bunch. This night I made a coil mug… my least favorite project. My first pot was actually quite impressive… the second not bad… but this… meh.

The week improves…

xo, jill

Yep, that’s my mama.

Thursday she came to school with me and it was so fun to introduce her to my students. They were so excited! “Ms. Jill mama?! Mama [point to my mom] baby [point to me]!” The teachers enjoyed saying hello as well… and commenting on how young she looks. (I think that was my mom’s favorite part of the day).After school we headed to Dubai and these pictures are from a quick camping trip last night in Hameem. Just us and the stars.

So glad to have her here.xo, jill

Blame it on the mortar and pestle.

Finally, nearly two months after my move across town, I’m able to post a few photos. My last apartment was a nice enough place. I liked it pretty well. But then I saw where my friends were placed, Asfar. Not only were their apartments a bit larger than mine, they came with a mortar and pestle. How neat! I immediately sent an email out to see if I could trade. Lucky for me, a teacher in Asfar was interested in moving to my building. His school was almost visible from my balcony.

Really, all that the swap required was a quick phone call to each building. But… considering who I work for it wasn’t that easy. After 3+ in person visits, several pleading emails, and a few phone calls… we decided to take charge and just move. That worked pretty well until I had completely moved out of my apartment and tried to move into the other teacher’s. I’m standing there with my life shoved into the back of my Yaris as the front desk clerk tells me I’m not authorized to live there. A few more emails, a few more phone calls, and me using my “I’m really irritated but I’m going to try to be nice to you voice” … and I had the keys.

This is the new place. Less natural light. Bigger kitchen. Bigger bed. A bit cozier.

I wasn’t too fond of the furniture but luckily I found a good deal on some replacements. Totally me, right?

xo, jill

That pesky day job, again.

5. They care about each other.

Even though my students are constantly tattling on each other, hitting each other, and spitting out nasty sounding Arabic phrases… they really care about each other. Our school is small and the girls have all been in the same class together since kindergarten. The minute one of them starts crying for whatever reason… a swarm of girls is around her to give her comfort. If one girl forgets her lunch, the others all give her food. If a student can’t communicate her needs to me, the girls who speak better English step in to help. Students ask if they can bring homework to their friends when they are sick. One girl missed several weeks of school to receive an operation in America. The girls were so protective of her place in the class that they would point out her empty desk to me… just in case I forgot? When she returned to school the students brought her huge wrapped gifts. When you don’t understand the verbal communication, you have the opportunity to observe all the other ways people demonstrate their love for each other.

4. They care about their siblings.

Families in the UAE are large. I mean, large. My students tell me, “Ms. Jill…3 brothers and 4 sisters.” “…2 brothers and 5 sisters!” … If you’re counting that’s 8 kids… and it’s not unusual. Naturally this means most of my students have siblings at our school. My girls will walk around hand in hand with their younger brothers and sisters. They even proudly bring their siblings into my classroom each morning to shake my hand. It’s pretty cute. Sometimes at home you see the younger sibling cling to the older sibling, but this is different. It’s definitely not like the time in first grade when Ryan H. said he would pull my hair until my sister and her friends turned off their music on the playground and my sister said that she wasn’t going to let a first grader tell her (a third grader) what to do. Not like that at all, Jana!

3. They are exceptionally smart and love to learn.

Last week I introduced the segment “Help Ms. Jill Count in Arabic” to my students. We had a little time to kill. Um, it’s kind hard. I’ve mastered 1, 2, and 5… but 3 and 4 always escape me! Then sitting and listening to my girls help each other with subtraction problems in both English and Arabic caused me to stop for a moment. Really, I’m astonished. These girls come to me for two hours a day, listen to me speak entirely in English (with just a few Arabic sprinkles), and they are learning. They are really actually learning and improving. Our progress is slow… but it’s real.

2. They really love their country.

I’m in no danger of forgetting where I live. My students would never let that happen. Anytime the colors red, green, white, and black appear my students say, “Teacher! UAE!” I have a banner of the Skeiks in my room, “Teacher! UAE!” We have a small flag above the light switch, “Teacher! UAE!” … You can give my students any shape, any shape at all, and they will transform it into the UAE flag. (Almost a party trick.) It’s a nice change of pace to be surrounded by people who are so proud of where they come from. In fact, my favorite part of the day is watching my girls sing the national anthem. They sing it every morning in very tight militaristic lines. A few of them sing so hard I’m surprised they don’t fall over, face first. Pretty adorable.

1. They really really really love me!

Children tend to like me. We get along pretty well. But my girls this year… love me. I mean, really really love me. It’s not uncommon for a girl to get out of her chair in the middle of a lesson, hug me around the waist, and say, “Ms. Jill… I… love…you!” Last week I had to lift a girl down from a chair where she was standing and singing the Ms. Jill song into a marker. (It goes like this, “Ms. Jill, Ms. Jill, Ms. Jill… Ms. Jill…”) Today a girl stopped my lesson to point out to me that she had a hair pin in her hair, just like me! And when I put a girl’s ponytail into a topknot like mine, she didn’t stop smiling for the rest of the morning. It’s incredibly flattering that these very bright and beautiful girls think I’m someone special. I kinda think they’re pretty great too.

xo, jill