Fun Times at PACE

Yes, that's right ... fun times at PACE!  Here's a bit of an idea of what I (Taryn) have been up to in the last month.

Creative Arts

After eating lunch on Monday, I took my art basket to class 1 and began setting up for the afternoon class.  Just before the bell rang, a few class 1 students entered the room and began screaming!  As you can imagine, this startled me into a state of fear – What was wrong?  But, to my surprise, their screaming soon turned into shouts of joy and dancing, and they quickly raced out of the classroom to tell their fellow classmates that it was time for art!  The crazy thing is that this happens quite often. Sure, I’m not too often startled into a state of fear, but I am often greeted with shouts of joy and dancing! And today, the shouts of joy and dancing came at the end of class. As I was cleaning up, one young class 3 girl came to thank me and another came to ask if I would like her to sing for me.  Of course I couldn’t refuse, but little did I know that within seconds the entire class of 22 would be singing and dancing around the room!  And, there was even one young boy making drumming noises - with his ruler - in the back of the classroom. Luckily for me, this joyous presentation lasted nearly 15 minutes (until the homeroom teacher returned).

Anyhow, when I arrived at PACE I was pleasantly surprised to see that many craft supplies sat unused in cupboards (and even in suitcases).  So, along with the supplies I brought I am well stocked and able to do a wide range of activities with the students.  As it turns out, this is very important because the activities must span the capabilities of classes 1 though 7 students - many of whom have never used scissors or seen a bottle of glue!  With this in mind, it’s no wonder they get so excited when they see my basket filled with pipe cleaners, glitter, pom-poms, and even coloured construction paper!  It’s very humbling.  

So, in the last month we have done the following activities: foam hand decorations, jewelry making, paper plate masks, paper plate flowers, tissue paper flowers, “Thanks God!” collages, and family trees. And who knows what this month will bring? (Well, actually I do … the planner in me created a term schedule before classes began.)

It also brings me great joy knowing how the students treasure their art creations and how they bring them all home to show off to their families.  I love hearing stories like the girl whose mother told her her flowers were beautiful; the boy who scared his father with his mask; the boy who displays all of his work in his bedroom.  It’s stories like these that warm my heart (and make me chuckle a little, too)! 

  

(class 7)

  

(class 7; class 6)

   

(class 5)

  

(class 4)

  

(class 3)

  

(class 2)

   
(class 1) 

P.E.

Each morning I put on my track pants (or sometimes shorts), a t-shirt and runners, and head to the field for PE. Now, I must stop here to tell you that I did my first couple PE lessons in a skirt, blouse and sandals – that was tough!  Fortunately, I have been given the go-ahead to dress for PE, and then return and change into “work clothes” for my classes.  Much better!  

So, my schedule alternates: one day with class 1-3 students (plus baby classes – they follow me around everywhere and fight over who gets to hold my hand!) and the next day with class 4-7 students.  Soon after arriving, I discovered that PE around here is merely another recess time … .just in a different location.  So, it has been my goal to use this time to get the kids active and to teach them some new games.  In January, I exposed them to ultimate Frisbee, kickball, dodgeball, freeze tag, and our way of playing volleyball (which doesn’t including using your foot to get the ball over the net!).  As you can imagine, I love seeing their exuberance and hearing their laughter.  And, it has also been quite exhausting as this 31-year-old body has been running around with them in this dry heat under the blazing sun!  Point in case - when the class 1-3 boys finally figured out the rules of freeze tag, I became their target and spent most of the class running!

  

  

After school and Weekend Activities

I will admit that we are usually exhausted by the end of the workday, and so we spend most evenings on the couch watching a movie on our laptop (thanks to Joanie’s wide selection). But when we aren’t tired and during the weekends when we have more free time, we try to get the boarders active and doing different things.  I remember the first time I pulled out some puzzles.  I showed them a completed one and then began taking it apart.  And then all I could hear was their gasps!  But, I quickly assured them it was ok, and that with some work the puzzle would again look like the picture on the box.  Before I knew it, a dozen of them had dived in and hours later I had to pry the puzzles away from them!  I had pretty much the same results when I pulled out a bag of games and legos .... even a couple teachers joined in for the fun!  Colouring sheets and crayons are other hot commodities around here, and I’ve also been distributing word searches and sudoku puzzles, which are liked by young and old.  The young ones have also been given marbles and instructions on how to play the game I used to play when I was in grade 3 (Oh boy, did I love marbles!).  I’ve also been letting the kids “sign out” storybooks that I brought along, and last weekend we had the joy of seeing a group of them lounging on the grass as they read together.  And now that we have the volleyball net up and a couple volleyballs, many nights and weekends are spent playing volleyball – I can hear their exuberance, even when I am indoors!  Last weekend I tried to organize a girls’ game, but many of the girls are shy and backed out.  But, the game continued – we just let some of the boys play along!              

  

  

 

Library

What God starts, He finishes. While the Harbour Team was here in January, they spent many hours and days trying to make some sense of the children’s library.  What they walked into was a room filled to the ceiling with boxes.  And when they left, no boxes remained and the books that didn’t belong were removed.  Since then, I have used my free time between classes (and some evenings) to bring even more order to the room.  And, I am happy to say that aside from a couple floor mats and maybe a couch, the room is now complete!  It brings me so much joy to see this room – knowing what it has to offer the students and staff here – that I find myself walking through a few times each day just to marvel at all that God has provided and imagining the delight of the children as they spend time reading here.