The Kids Are In School!

How are the children adjusting to being in school? Well, besides having to learn Spanish, the hardest part about school for them is getting up at 6 AM! School starts early here for everyone except pre-schoolers and kindergarteners--even the language institute offers classes at 7:30 AM. This way school ends in time for students to make it home for lunch. [Lunch is a little later, typically 1:00 or 1:30, and is a large meal followed by down time. Dinner is a snack or very late if it's going to be another real meal. Restuarants (not cafes, which stay open all day) open at 7 PM. Thus, the city gets pretty busy again in the evening.] Thomas gets picked up a little late and the others a little early so that we can collect everyone at once at 1:00.

All the schoolkids and the teachers have been very nice, warm, patient, and accomodating, but I have to say that this school is not a quaint, little, third-world school with tiny classes and few resources like I had imagined. The Colegio Cristiano Elliot, named for Jim Elliot by his brother Bert, has around 200 students, 3 years old through high school, and probably as many rules, regulations, procedures, and forms. Education in general is a very serious business in Peru, and this school is no exception. There are many, many private schools and institutes. Everything at the school starts on time, and lots of parental involvement is expected. As homeschooling parents used to a high degree of autonomy, Charlie and I have also had to adapt. I must say that, knowing this to be only a temporary arrangement, I have been able to really let go of the kids and their education for the morning and have been enjoying helping with homework and packing snacks. Also, the children don't have all the educational expectations they would encounter at a private school in the States; it's understood that they're focusing on picking up the language.

Interesting cultural note: the bathrooms have no toilet paper, soap, toilet seats, or towels. Charlie found this completely alarming and was arming each child with toilet paper every morning. Eventually, we realized that the students are supposed to ask the teacher for toilet paper before leaving for the bathroom and that towels and soap are personal supplies that each student owns. Still not sure about the toilet seats. A lot of public restrooms don't have them either.

The kids have been forthcoming with their thoughts on attending school in a foreign country. Some of their more amusing comments were in the first couple weeks. The boys both got in touch with their negative sides, though this was just before I realized they were both coming down with Madeleine's fever/cold. Paul--"I learned some Spanish today. I know how to say 'Stop bothering me!'" Charlie told him he wasn't allowed to use this phrase though. It seems some boys were just trying to get him to play with them. Thomas--"I don't like being with people who don't speak my language!" Imagine him, elbows on the table, disgruntled expression on the face cupped in his hands, pushing his glasses up. He fell asleep right on the table after eating his supper.

Madeleine remarked near the end of the second week, "I feel like the class pet. People like to pat me on the head, and one girl likes to stroke my cheek." Some of you may know that Madeleine does not enjoy being the focus of attention and does like to have some personal space. Elise chimed in that everyone likes to crowd around her desk after a quiz and check her score. If it's high, this creates a buzz of excitement among the other students. I guess that would make Elise the idiot savant. She can't speak the language, (though you can imagine how much she communicates by pantomime), and her handwriting is terrible, especially compared to her classmates who all learned cursive quite early. Actually, both girls seem to be able to help out during English class a lot, circulating around the room and answering questions about seatwork, almost like TA's. They both enjoy this--I'm sure it feels good to be capable at something!

As of this week, I can say that we're adapting to the early wake up. Nobody has asked to stay home from school yet and everyone is progressing in language acquisition, at least a little bit.

Coming next: quotes from the kids' letters, more photos, and a little bathroom humor.