The next decade....what's in store?

Twice in one week

Last Monday I went off property in the afternoon. I drove back into the car park, and met a fella who was going to be having a 4pm interview with me.

We walked into my office building and I went to take him to the office where he would fill out his forms (same room we had Summer School in), while I quickly ate my lunch. As I approached the door, which was closed, I heard chatter. I couldn't imagine that NPH, whose office is next door, had so many people in with her.

Lo and behold, I opened the door only to find Mr D, Mr T and Mr PM in there playing cards! They saw the look of shock on my face, but they just said hi and continued playing cards.

They said it was Mr D's idea, who said "let's go and look for Miss"....besides, she promised us ice cream. But ice cream place doh open pon Monday boss. I told them that while it was lovely to see them, they can't just turn up so because I might not be here, or I might be in a meeting. I also asked them if they got homework and they all answered me as if they thought I was crazy. 'It's the first day of school Miss!"

I took them to lunch in the Canteen, where I also wolfed down my late lunch. Oh to have a REAL Lunch Hour!

So I took the fella into my office where he filled out his form (well he can't read properly, so that didn't take long). Then I went into the Q & A. Soon after, there was a knock on the door. Mr PM. I can't remember what he wanted but it wasn't anything urgent.

A few minutes later, there was another knock. And when there was a third knock, again by Mr PM, this was how that conversation went.

Me: Mr PM, suppose you were this gentleman in an interview with me and you kept being disturbed, what would you think?
Mr PM: All you have to do is ask for excuse.

You seeit???

We then went to The Fifth Kid's house to drop off his certificates and goody bag. On the way, Mr T, who had bagged the front of course, told me to stop by the Sweet Sop tree (Sugar Apple). He picked one for me because he remembered me saying a few weeks ago that I love them.

When I took Mr T home, his mother was outside waiting, because by now, it was 6pm and school done from 2:30! I had however called Mr T's older brother to tell him where he was. When I walked in, Mr T brought a hand of the Chiney Bananas for me (remember I had asked them about the green ones a few weeks ago). He has a heart.

Then Friday, I went to a meeting off property. Later on long after I returned, my boss and I were chatting and he said he evicted three boys today (jokingly). He said three of them came just as he was leaving to catch the bank. He told them I wasn't here. They asked if they couldn't stay. No. Cause there was nobody else in the building, and believe you me, they would create havoc!

My boss also said that one of the boys is not from the Gang of Five. He described him and I think I know who it is. Another one of those I taught last school year.

So this must be Yamfoot's Homework Club starting or suppen!

On a related note, I told my dentist about Mr PM, cause his teeth are really bad. So she says she will examine him at no cost and then we take it from there. So next week, it's off to the dentist for him. I don't think he has ever been.

And on a further related note, I put Mr KF's mother in for consideration for hiring, so she did her interview, and her two days try out. The Dept Head said it went ok, so she may just have a job in a few weeks! As I said to her, if her son is any indication of how she is, and I would think he is, then we would know that she would behave in a manner in keeping with our employees.

Also, NPH suggested that we could give her a small bed we are not using, so the bigger boss agreed and I told Mr KF's mother that we will arrange it.

Right. Let's see what surprises my Gang of Five throw up next week.

So what happens now?

I don't know. I go into a period at work where I am really busy. But I can't let at least two of these kids fall by the wayside (Mr T and Mr Prime Minister).

Met someone from the Social Services ministry to whom I was telling the story of Mr T, and he said call the mother, explain to her all what the counsellor has said, and ask her if she would be willing to take him (not "send" him) to counselling.

It has to be done. An employee told me that he sees Mr T on the beach regularly, being disrespectful, mouthing off to people and cussing all kinda obscenities. He definitely more interested in street education, than classroom teachings.

But I will not make him end up in prison. Must get him on a right path.

Summer School: Graduation Day

When I started teaching all of the 41 students last year October, I thought I would have been involved with them for just the semester. It turned out to be the whole school year, and for some, that would have been enough.

But when I would give them projects to write, and I saw the low level they were at, I decided that I had to do something about the ones which have great potential, and were somewhat intriguing.

First I chose Mr T, because he was always giving trouble. "I'm going to adopt you," I told him, from about the 3rd lesson. He wasn't interested Then Mr Prime Minister caught my attention because he would always tap me on my hand when I was trying to teach, to get in a point (which most times was not related to the lesson!). Next Mr D came to the forefront because he would just look right through you when you were speaking to him. Mr KF also came into the picture because he was always late, and day dreaming. The 5th Kid became one of my helpers at school. "Run and give the Principal this envelope. Put back up this video camera in the case for me." Always did what I asked him.

So it was this motley crew which saw the school term being stretched into Summer, taking up far more time than I had anticipated. But like a proud mama who nurtures her kids throughout their school life, at the end of it all, I was thrilled to have had this experience.

Here's how today went.....

1:00pm was the appointed time. I was in a meeting when they came. A call had come on the cell but I couldn't take it. When I went out at 12:57, there were Mr KF, Mr Prime Minister and Mr D waiting on me. Mr KF was early! Yay! They had cups with various drinks. "Where did you get those? You came with them?" No. My bigger boss (the owner) saw them and asked them what they wanted to drink. One got away with a Coke (they wouldn't have got that if they were with Miss Yamfoot).

I had to go back to the meeting, so I took the three down to the classroom, told them to amuse themselves while I was away and I left. I came back about 20 minutes later to find them amusing themselves. Mr T had arrived by now. His mother had told me he would have been late as he went to a class with his older sister. Mr PM asked for his name badge, then Mr KF and Mr D. Mr T was not entitled today as he did not satisfy the 3 conditions. He is accustomed to the rules, so he did not fuss and ask where his was.

But hold on....where is the The 5th Kid? I called his mother, only to find out he went to the country! Boo hoo. Hear Mr D nuh.... "you see, you shouldn't have let him join the Summer School." (In an earlier blog, I had mentioned that these four had wanted it to be just them.)

I had given them a written assessment last week. Mr T, Mr KF and The 5th Kid were in the classroom which has mirrors so I had been able to see them while I was in the meeting. Mr D and Mr PM were however in my office. When I marked their papers, both these two had almost identical answers. Something told me that they did not work on their own.

I had toyed with calling Mr PM before today, then I decided not to. Before we started, I asked him to come with me to my office. I showed him both his and Mr D's paper. Remember Mr D is the tops in Maths. All Mr PM's sums were right. There was also no workings out, so I couldn't see how he got the answers. I started out by telling Mr PM that I want them all to be good citizens and the matter of trust was very important. I explained that I found it very odd that they both got the same answers for everything (except maybe one thing). I asked him four times, in various ways, if Mr D had helped him, or had looked in his paper. No Miss. He was not maintaining eye contact with me. I asked him to look at me, which he did, and I again asked him if I called Mr D, would he say that no help was given. Yes Miss.

I left it there, but I did not believe. We walked back to the classroom, where I gave each of them their sheet back. I had used the red ink pen, like a real teacher. While we were going through the answers, Mr D said "and ah help Mr PM with the answers." I did not flinch or react. I just waited on Mr PM to respond. He told Mr D he was lying. Mr D, who is accustomed to saying it like it is, no matter what, started to point to which ones he helped Mr PM with. Again, I didn't show any reaction, because I didn't want to spoil his day.

The first question was about time. So I took the opportunity to ask them if they watched Kirani James win the 400m. Yes they had. I asked them if they knew how he grew up. No. I explained that he grew up in a wooden house with no inside toilet. They all then piped up that they too (except Mr D) didn't have an inside toilet. They had latrines and outside showers. Good. Because I emphasized even more, that where or how you grow up, does not have to determine what you turn out to be. I also stressed that Kirani passed 8 CXC subjects and that's how he could have got a full scholarship to an American university.

The conversation then turned to what they wanted to be. Mr D - Pilot (I told him Maths would come in handy). Mr PM - lawyer or policeman. Mr KF - a Banker and Mr T - a footballer and racing car driver (he doesn't know yet that I am going to make him into an engineer!). I ended that section by telling them that they must have dreams and goals.

Now it was time to eat. We were going off property for lunch. I told them when they go to work, they have 1 hour for lunch, so that's all the time we had. We walked out to the car park and my car was not there. No silly.....it was not stolen. A colleague was changing a part on it for me. So he gave me his to drive. It's a much newer vehicle, so the boys were thrilled to bits at its modern look and fast speed. Mr PM had "bags the front." He was therefore the one fiddling with the radio.

We got to the restaurant which is owned by some friends of mine. It's a quick service casual dining restaurant kind of open (Doc Weller, you went there). You order at the counter and then sit, then your food is brought to you. Their eyes were bigger than their stomachs but since I know all too well about eating more than you can hold, I quickly told them it was either the burger OR the BBQ chicken....not both! And when the cashier advised that we order only two orders of fries, not four, they protested. But she was firm, saying that the kids normally can't eat everything.

Mr T ordered BBQ chicken. Mr D ordered a chicken sub. Both Mr KF and Mr PM wanted burgers "with cheese and bacon." For drinks, three ordered LLB (Lemon Lime and Bitters) and Mr KF asked for a Fanta Club Soda. I told him I didn't think he should have that. He said he had had it already. I asked him again if he was sure, explaining that it was just water with bubbles. "Yes Miss." Well you know.....he didn't like it. But he's so polite that he didn't create an issue about it, when I told him that sometimes the kids need to listen to the adults and that I was not going to buy him another drink.

A few minutes passed and then I said "Yamfoot, you are cruel, buy the kid another drink. Cho." So I bent and he got an LLB.

Some of the conversation during lunch.....

I had ordered fish. Mr T wanted to know if I wanted some of his chicken. No, I don't eat anything besides chicken. He said he chose chicken because he just loves chicken, but that sometimes you have to try something new. Then he said "so Miss, you should have had the chicken."

I was talking with food in my mouth. Mr T told me to stop doing that, else I could choke.

Oh. When the food came, there was only two sets of knife and fork, since normally, kids eat burgers and fries with their hands. Not my kids. It was like sacrilegious for them not to be given a knife and fork!

Before we began, Mr D said "let's pray." He said The Lord's Prayer.

Everyone enjoyed their food except the burger boys. And when we were paying the bill, Mr KF stated his opinion. I gave Mr PM the credit card to tender. I explained the process about my bank and the restaurant's bank. They also saw how much the meal cost. I don't want them to think money grows on trees.

More chatter as we drove the short distance back to work. They had been asking me about ice cream, as I promised them last week that we would go after lunch. Time was really moving swiftly, so there was not going to be any of that today. But RuH made more of those delicious cupcakes. She took their preferences into account, and did some without the "doosy-like" butter frosting on top. We aim to please!

First though, it was time for the certificates to be presented. We had arranged to get some designed, which we printed and laminated in house. Technology is awesome. NPH gave out the ones for Attendance, which each of them got. They are all very shy with people who they don't interact with so much, so when she said she wanted a kiss, they all turned their cheek away. They were however happy to give her a hug.

Next, it was the special certificates, which I gave out.

Mr D - Excellence in Maths
Mr T - Excellence in Reading
Mr KF - Excellent Behaviour
Mr PM - Excellence in Spelling.

When Mr PM got his, the first thing he said was "mah grandmudder going to be so happy." She would take him up with his spelling.

They all got hugs from me. Then Mr PM declared that he wanted a kiss from me. Nope, cause you turned down NPH.

Next, RuH's daughter presented them with some goody bags with school supplies. She's a little younger than them.

Cupcake time. All done in quick time. (Not good for my diet!) They had come at 1pm, and it was now about 4pm. My day was dedding without much work being accomplished. Well what's a few extra hours spent on kids? Nutten.

The drive home was pretty regular, except for the matter of the flowers.....

Last week when I got back to work, I discovered a bunch of bougainvillea stuck in the roof by one of the back doors. When I was dropping off Mr KF, I mentioned seeing it after they had left, and I didn't know who had left it. Mr KF. My first "son" Mr T, is not to be outdone (he's very competitive), so when we reached Mr KF's grandfather's house, he says to Mr KF, bring some flowers for me. Any one." So I have a bunch of ixorias on the other door. :)

We got to Mr PM's house and I had noticed that something is not right with one of his front side teeth. I asked him to come closer so I could see. Hmmmm.......it doesn't look good. My next project to tackle. Dental check ups for all. He said the tooth is hurting. Also, as Mr PM has to come back on his own for the tour of the property, so I will discuss the matter of honesty and trust then.

The drive to Mr T's house from my Mr PM's involves a drive down a steep steep hill, from which you have a majestic view of the ocean. I oohed and ahhhhhed. It was not the first time. Hear Mr T nuh....."everytime Miss come down here she saying that." I explained that back home, I don't get those amazing views.

Mr D was in the front, cause he bagged the front from work to home. Mr T was not happy because he was not being dropped off last. He complained when I got to his house. "I don't want to leave."I didn't take him on. He got out of the back seat, stood up outside the front door on Mr D's side and proceeded to dilly-dally. I asked him about the bananas. They weren't ready yet. He told me my windscreen was dirty so I should wipe it off. Ok. Next, he wanted to put the jeep in D. Done. Ok, I really really have to go.

Both he and Mr D started to talk about the ice cream and when we were going to have that. At first, I told them I would come to the school and get them. Then I told them that cyan work, cause all the other kids would want to come. So I will tell them which day they should meet me at Wall Street and we will go. Mr T finally allowed me to leave.

On the way to Mr D's we just chatted about regular stuff, including how mean the drivers were to not let me out of Mr T's road. He then said sometimes when he is at the pedestrian crossing by his 'gap', they don't stop to let him cross. Nobody canna cross it, when di bus don't stop!. I was telling him that when I saw his Mum last Thursday, she told me how much he loves the sea. He said sometimes he will go in the morning and not go back home until evening. What do you eat? Sea Grapes (which I didn't know existed before I moved here).

Oh....when Mr T was lingering, he asked me if I was going to be teaching them Tourism this school term. No, because you are going to Grade 5 and I will be teaching Grade 4. "Why Miss?" Insert sad face here. I didn't tell them that if I did Grade 5, they would just wreak havoc in the class since apparently that is what kids do when they get accustomed to you! Also, the handouts, quizzes etc are already done.....easier for me. But I told him I'd still come to their classroom and look for them. I also told Mr T and Mr D, that I would see if I could make all five of them come one at a time to me at work so we could go over school work, once per week.

I spoke with the Principal last Thursday, to express my surprise at the low level of basic education that they have. The class sizes are small enough for the teachers to spend more time with the foundation stuff. I will talk more about that. Maybe donate some funds to get a good Math teacher to assist them. We'll see. But something has to be done, or else they will certainly be struggling, and no kid should be left behind.

Summer School: Session 6

Every week, the kids would ask what number session it is. I had told them there would be 6 sessions, and that if they behaved well, we would go out to a restaurant.

At Tuesday's session, Mr Prime Minister sought to clarify how many more lessons there were. Today is the last lesson. "But Miss, ah thought you said the 30th was the last?" OK. Today is the last lesson. Next week, it's fun week.

Then Mr T said "leh wi have Chinese nuh Miss?" The conversation then turned to Chinese people eating dogs. I dismissed the talk of Chinese by saying we'll be having burgers or chicken and fries. "Yesssss!" So they are looking forward to that.

Now to the last lesson....

I was running late.....AGAIN! I was moving like a sloth because the night before, I had only had about 3 hours sleep, not by design. So I was feeling really awful and I thought, if I were a teacher and I got up feeling rotten, I wouldn't really have the option of calling in sick. So I knew it was going to be a challenging day, especially if they misbehaved.

As usual, in order to get name badges, the kids had to satisfy three conditions. 1) arrive before the start time of 9am, 2) do all their homework and 3) bring all their books. With the help of my colleague RuH, I learnt that Mr Prime Minister and The 5th Kid got there at 8:30. I got there at about 9:05 and passed Mr T and Mr D (the two who fought last week walking together as if they were best friends!). When I got inside, Mr KF was there. The early ones told me he came at 9:00 on the dot.

The prize for satisfying all the conditions was a name badge like what our employees wear. Mr Prime Minister was heading to my office (I have told them they can only go in there with my permission.) I asked him why he was going there. "To get my name badge Miss." I told him it was in the classroom. When we all reached there, the two got theirs. I had picked up my name badge from the office and while putting it on in the classroom, Mr Prime Minister with his cheeky self said "Miss, you shouldn't get a name badge cause you were late." You see what I have to put up with?

I think they saw the look on my face that I was tired, but just in case, I wrote this on the blackboard.

"Miss Yamfoot is very tired today, so I would like you to behave well, or else I will have to send for a policeman to get you."

I mentioned the policeman because I had invited a friend who is in the force to come and rap with them about how to avoid jail (not in those words!). Sadly, he got called to an emergency meeting and could not come.

We went over homework. Everyone had done theirs. Good stuff. Except that I couldn't see the calculations for the multiplications. They were itching for a spelling quiz so I picked up the newspaper and started. One of the words was "interview." My bigger boss was soon going to be doing a radio interview so I mentioned that to the kids and the boss was walking outside and heard so he came in and said hello to them and chatted for a bit.

Last week it was Mr Prime Minister. This week it was Mr D who topped the spelling. 9 out of 10! Mr PM got 8. Disappointingly again, Mr T got 4. I have to work on his spelling with him. A simple word like "newspaper" was spelt "newspapper" by three of the kids. Hmmmm......

The assignment for their Journal was to write about their Summer School experience on two pages. Only Mr D completed this to my expectations. His handwriting is also super neat and ledgible. (I sure dat spell wrong!) The 5th Kid did just half a page. But most importantly, everyone wrote something. I had told them they were going to read it, but Division was on my mind.

They are really clueless about this math concept. Remember, they are going into Grade 5! I didn't have time to look up how I could introduce this concept, so I told them it's kind of the opposite of multiplication. I started with multiplying 100 x 2, then went on to divide 200 by 2. Mr D is further forward with understanding math concepts. Mr KF is next.

Mr T came up to the board, saying he wanted to do one. I am thinking he wanted to work it out on the board. But no....he writes the multiplication, then pretends to play teacher, asking the kids to tell him the answer. No no.....you have to work it out. He had done 89 x 9. A hard one, since he was not going to be working it out. Joke's on him now. He was playing around but eventually I got him to get the correct answer. The other concept they don't fully understand is numbers being made up of units, tens, hundreds etc. I bought a book with some examples and questions on that so I think I will photocopy for them, or maybe just buy one for each of them.

We did a few more calculations and multiplications, then Mr D asked what time it was. "Are you hungry?" He said yes, and I said "me too." They asked to go wash their hands (a habit I introduced at the start), we started to leave then I realized it was not yet 12 noon. So I had to turn them back. What would we do to fill the time? Play cards!

Mr T took over. You can see that this is a common practice of his. I don't know what it is called, but in each round, someone throws out a card, the next person matches the suit and whosesoever's card is the highest, wins. The objective is to finish all the 7 cards you were dealt, plut those you might have had to pick up because you didn't have a matching suit. I didn't know how to play, so Mr T invited me to play with him. He began to teach me and taught me well. A future teacher? That would be great thing I think. But no, let's get to the engineer in him first.

I'll give you another example. While he was at the board, he took up one marker, and used it to colour on the cover of another marker. Then he used the marker cover as a stamp. So he just figured out how to create a stamp. So there's something engineery in that brain of his. (Princess P spotted that.....tks!).

Mr D kept asking what time it was. 11:53. 11:55. Then soon, as we were so engrossed in the card game, it was 12:01. Off to lunch we went. They were happy we were not eating in the Canteen. According to Mr T, "all dem staff and ting only watching us so." Instead of taking them through the back way, I told them we would walk through the lobby. But first, Mr T and Mr D had to put their shirt in their pants. Only the other 3 consistently adhered to the dress code. So right there, in the middle of the port cochere, the two renegades dressed themselves properly.

At the table, they asked about juice. No juice today. They protested. Alright alright. Juice today, but none for The 5th Kid (he has diabetes). He sulked but I told him sometimes he has to trust the adults, and I know why he couldn't have juice (a surprise was coming).

Lunch for them was chicken, rice and peas and mixed salad. Earlier, Mr KF and Mr PM had said they wanted raw carrots, but time was against me so I couldn't arrange that. Mr KF ate all his veg. Mr PM was brakesing.

RuH had joined us at the table and took a photo of everyone. She then asked them if they appreciated what I had done for them. First, I asked them to spell "appreciate." It was one of the words they got to study for homework. Mr T got it right. RuH asked them how they could show their appreciation for the time taken each week to help them improve. One of them said "by doing well in school." I said that one of the most important things for me was for them to demonstrate good behaviour.

It was time for the sweet treat. Ruh had made chocolate muffins, from scratch, not from a box. When it was served, it had a chocolate butter cream topping. None of them knew what it was. Mr PM said "lawks, it look like mess!" Once they tasted it, they loved it. But Mr PM gave away some of his "mess." It was really yummy.

Back in the office, thankfully no one wanted to do a doosy, so they washed hands and it was off we went.

Mr T had said "I bags the front" first. I expected that. Mr D then said "I bags the end." Oh, I forgot to mention that at the start of the class, while we were doing multiplication, Mr PM asked "Miss, who we dropping home first?" I asked him how he got so far already and we had only just started!

Mr KF was first. I almost drove off when Mr T my co-pilot reminded me I had not given him his snack. Each week, Mr D is the first to ask "Miss what fruit you giving us today." On Tuesday, I didn't have any fruits to give them, but I had bought some St Mary's Cassava Chips for them (was so excited to see it in the supermarket here!). So that's what they got.

The 5th Kid was next, then Mr D, then Mr PM. When I gave him and Mr T theirs, they opened it at Mr PM's house. Mr PM takes a few chips then declares "dem too bitter" and then gives it back to me! I told him that politeness would have seen him say thank you and carry the rest home and give it someone else in his family. And then, if I offered it to him the next time, he would just politely decline. Mr T was enjoying his. He got two. Well, he demanded two as compensation for me forgetting his birthday! I felt bad.

So now it's just me and Mr T in the car. I took the opportunity to ask why he likes being dropped off last. Now Mr T is a macho type who I suppose has not been exposed to expressing his feelings. So he paused and said "I just like being dropped last." I pressed. Why? Eventually he said it's because he likes the long ride. When we reached his house, he instructed me to blow the horn. He wanted his big brother to see him in the front of a vehicle. I told Mr T to call him, as I had spoken to Big Brother (16 years old) on the phone. We said hello and I suggested to Mr T that he could give Big Brother a cassava chip. Yes, he agreed.

On the opposite side of the road was a rock fig with figs on it (chiney banana). I mentioned it and he immediately said "Miss you want some?" They were not quite ready yet so I told him to watch them and if next week they were ready, he could bring. Oh, earlier at the start of the class he said "Miss, ah bring golden apples for you." (June plums). Four nice ones. Also, he had written with a purple pen, which I told him was a nice colour when we were in the classroom. Later, at lunch, he takes the pen out of his pocket. "Miss, you want it?" He was in a very good mood today (except when he hissed his teeth when I announced the spelling test, and later, the end of term assessment test.).

On the drive to their homes, I had a lively CD playing, with some Sean Kingston songs. They knew all the words, and when I started also singing along, Mr T asked "Miss you know these songs too?????" As if! I even started to jig around, losing my Teacher Yamfoot disposition.

It was fun on Tuesday, and next week when we go out, it will be even funner!

The drive home after Summer School 5

I know.....Friday gone long time. But ah busy busy busy. Lots of pots on the fire. Anyway, I saw the one who drove me to tears on the way home this evening, so it reminded me that I had not updated this.

When the swinging like a merry go round started, I told them it was time to go. But then I kept dilly-dallying until about 30 minutes passed. Mr D, in his typical "I don't care if it offends you" manner, said "it's time to go." I told him we would soon leave. He hissed his teeth and walked through the door and said he was leaving. I called him to come back but he ignored me. What's new?

The others walked to the jallopy. Mr KF got in the front. Mr T got in the back, quite peeved that he was being dropped off first. He protested, but I ignored him. As we started driving, I asked the kids if when they go home, they tell their parents about Summer School. Yes. What will you tell them today? (I really should recall these conversations because mi nuh memba what dem did seh!")

Mr T started to turn down the window while the AC was on, without asking if he could have fresh air. I asked him once again not to do that. We drove a short distance, and then he did it again. I heard my voice going up into a crescendo. I JUST NEED YOU TO LISTEN TO ME WHEN I ASK YOU NOT TO DO SOMETHING. I CANNOT DO THIS! I CANNOT DO THIS!

The whole car went quiet. So did I, with remorse. I quickly went back into Teacher Yamfoot mode and continued the conversation. When we reached to Mr T's house, he was 'blue vex', complaining again that he did not want to go home. He walked out of the jeep without his school bag. I turned off the car, took the bag out and walked up to the steps to his house. He was really sulking and I felt really bad so I apologized to him for shouting at him since I had told him last time that I would never shout at him. No one was home, but I really had to get back to work so I left him, by himself. I am trying not to let him get his way, even if he misbehaves, which he did that day (with Mr D's watch).

Next was Mr Prime Minister, then Mr D, then The 5th Kid.

I then began my little chat with Mr KF, reminding him again that it was important to do his home work. We also spoke about Canada, that he had to expect that it might take a long time to go through.

Then I asked an innocent question.

Me: What are the sleeping arrangements at home?
Mr KF: I sleep on the floor Miss.
Me: Oh, on a mattress with some of your sisters and brothers?
Mr KF: No Miss, I sleep on the floor Miss.
Me: Do you put something on the floor?
Mr KF: Yes Miss, my mother puts a sheet Miss.

It's a good thing we were soon at his Grandpa's house (when his mother is not home, which he could see from the road, he goes by his Gramps' house because he is not allowed to be at home by himself.)

I said to him that he is a good example about his conditions not determining his behaviour because he is very well behaved, so he just has to work on his punctuality and do his home work, and he will be ok. "Yes Miss."

He cheerily says goodbye and runs up to his Grandpa's house. I drove off and the thoughts started to swirl.

"It's not fair," I thought. "Why should some people have so much and others so little? Why is the world not level? Why aren't the opportunities the same for everyone?"

That opened up the flood gate of tears and I sobbed. Uncontrollably.

The drive back to work was enough for me to compose myself, but then I went straight to the restaurant where my colleagues were, ordered brownies and ice creams, told them what happened and began to sob some more.

We are going to see if we can donate a mattress we are not using.

As I was driving home this evening, I saw some kids by the stand pipe. I recognized his uncombed hair so I stopped and asked if he had done his homework. Yes Miss. A schoolmate of his, who I know, said he wasnt telling the truth. So I asked again and he said all he had to do was look in the dictionary for the meaning of the words. He said he didn't have one but the schoolmate said his cousin did, so he would borrow it.

It's night now, and I will go to sleep on a comfortable mattress while Mr KF will spread his sheet, lay his head down and probably dream about better days in Canada, where he will have the luxury of sleeping on a mattress, even if it is used. I will try and make his dreams come true before that.

Summer School: Session 5.....Driven to tears

Long day at work.....and another emotional day with the kids. So pardon me if there are typos, cause mi not going to re-read this before posting:)

Those of us who have had good parental upbringing and family structure, adequate finances to give us at least the basic things we need to be comfortable, and a good education, really have a LOT to be thankful for. Thanks parents!

Yet sometimes, we complain about things which less fortunate people would consider a molehill.....more on that later.

This is how the day turned out.

Last Tuesday, I did not have time to do the homework card. So on Friday, Yamfoot's Homework Delivery Jallopy drove around the neighbourhood and delivered the homework card. Like last week, there were words to be written out and memorized, words to look up the meaning for, calculations (multiplication), and instrucctions to write in the Journal. Because they had been very active last week, I also wrote out a list of promises.

For example....
- I promise to stop talking and listen to others when they are talking.
- I promise to make my parents proud of me.
- I promise to eat more vegetables.

They had to study them.

I called all the parents yesterday, to remind them of the time for today (9am), and asked about the progress of the homework. Everyone was finished, except Mr T, who was just doing his. Why? "Ah don't know Miss." Then I asked to speak with his mother. She said she told him to go and do it before Monday and that now, his older brother would help him. I told her I didn't really want that, because he would just be given the answers and like last week, couldn't give me the explanation of how he worked out the sums. She said she would ask him to call out the words. Mr T had earlier told me he didn't have a dictionary to look up the words, which were Discipline, Opportunity and Appreciate. I told him some child in his community must have a dictionary, so he should find one.

This morning, The 5th Kid and Mr T were the only punctual ones. I picked up Mr D on my way in. Yes.....I was late too. Bad example!

I had enlisted my GM to be the guest this morning at 9am. At 9:20, we decided that he would do it after our morning meeting, because Mr KF had still not arrived. So much for last week's progress with his punctuality.

Mr KF did not touch his homework. I asked why. No good enough reason except he was busy and had to help his mother. I told him that was not a good enough reason. His classmates also asked him what happened to Saturday, when he said he was at church from 10am to 4pm. (What church is that/)

I gave them a spelling test. I read out the words, and they had to write it in their books. Mr T quarrelled. But before he quarrelled, he got into a fight.

Uh huh. AGAIN. Here's what happened. (It happened before the spelling test).

Mr D took a watch out of his bag and rested it on the desk in front of him. Mr T reached over past The 5th Kid and grabbed it up. Mr D said "'ey bwoy, gi mi back mi watch." Mr T ignored him and continued to look at it. Now Mr D was mad. He stood up, advanced towards Mr T (with the 5th Kid in the middle of both of them) and grabbed the watch. It fell on the floor behind Mr T. Next came the right hook. But it missed Mr T and landed in The 5th Kid's face. Good thing it wasn't too hard. Mr D was seething and by now, Mr T had stood up as if to say "hit me again if yuh bad." My mind went into fast forward and I saw Mr D and Mr T crashing into the glass mirrors which line the wall. Back to the present, I grabbed Mr D's hand, led him out of that office and took him into the GM's office.

Help! I need help! So boss went through the scenario with him and asked what he might have done differently, in order not to get that reaction. I left him there and went for Mr T and marched him into the boss's office too. There, he got quiet. Then he started to peer at the images on the security camera screen. I had to ask him to stop looking at the camera and focus on what the GM was saying. Mr T was as usual denying any wrong doing. But the boss got him to apologize, which was really a half hearted one.

Ok, so we get to normal and do the spelling test. Mr Prime Minister gets 8 out of 10! He was quite confident in his ability. He got INSTRUCTIONS and CALCULATE wrong. But he got WRONG right, and also APPRECIATE, OPPORTUNITY and DISCIPLINE. He was very thrilled with his results. So was The 5th Kid, who got 7. The others got 5, except Mr T who got 4. Of course, he rubbished the spelling test, cause he didn't come first.

Next, it was time to recite the Times Tables. As soon as I said it, Mr T said "I don't want to do my times tables. I can't do it." There is that word CAN'T again. He was at one end of the chairs, so I started at the other end. Mr KF was asked to do 4 times. He said he couldn't, so I skipped him to

Mr PM. 6 times tables. All right.
Mr D. 7 times tables. All right with a little help.
The 5th Kid. 8 times tables. All right with a little help.

So Mr T knows he is going to get 9 times....the hardest. But then I asked him to do 6 times. I somehow thought I had given Mr PM a different one, but they all upped and reminded me he had done 6 times. So, 9 times for you Mr T. He started to get miserable and said his brain was old. I said to him "all I want you to do is try." He joked around with the answers to 9 x 1. I was patient, but asked him to please be serious. After he left 9 x 2, he was sticking. So I introduced the "beat the chest" method.

Beat your chest and say "18", then count 9 fingers added to that. Isn't that how everyone learnt how to add? So we went through that all the way up to 10. So I said "very good", to which he replied 'I want to go up to 12." Eh eh!

Lunch time in the Canteen. Like last week, Mr T quarrelled. He didn't want to go into the Canteen. Mr D said "let's take a vote and see who wants to eat in the Canteen or restaurant." But see here doh! I reminded him that I was the adult (a nice card to pull sometimes!) and today, they didn't have an option.

Curry chicken was the dish they all chose. But Mr PM and The 5th Kid did not ask for any vegetables! What! Remember the promise, I said. They could choose from Okra, Beans, White Cabbage and Red Cabbage. Mr PM said he would only eat raw carrots. There is none son. Ok well ah don't want any then. That's not an option. So he told me he would have the beans and asked me to go for it. Sure. I sat between him and Mr KF. Mr KF was busy eating his Okras and sucking his bones. They all asked for knives by the way.

They wanted juice at the start of their meal. Nope. When you are finished, you can have juice. Mr PM pretended like he was choking. And what did he start to do? Best his chest. Mimicking what we did in the math lesson. I didn't take him on. He had one piece of green banana, which he said he took because he thought it counted as vegetables. Nope. So he asked for ketchup, saying he couldn't eat "fig" without ketchup. Nope, we don't have, and besides, it's not good for you. So he looked over in my plate and asked me for a piece of my fish, which he then put with each slice of fig which I had cut up for him, and got it down. When he was brakesing from eating the beans, I divided the portion in half and said he had to eat half. He was the last to leave the table.

Now usually after we eat, it's straight home to avoid the Doosey Line for the toilet. But I hadn't done the homework cards yet, and I sure don't have time to drive around. So they said they would come to my office and help me to do it. Oh Oh. That was not going to work. So I remembered Mr T had not got a chance to finish all the separation of the used paper, so they were supplied with staple removers and a recycling bin. There was cooperation, and because Mr T has done that with me alone already, he declared "I'm in charge of this."

There wasn't space for all of them so I put Mr KF beside me. He was going to help me set the homework (and I did that purposely to ensure that he would be motivated to do it....which he normally does). He chose some of the word for the spelling. I had given him the dictionary and told him to pick out some which were not a 'thing'. Next, he told me what the multiplication questions should be. Apart from the journal entry, I did some Verb Conjugations. Mr KF saw the word and asked "Miss, what is that word?" So I had to change the wording.

On the back of the homework card, I had three tables with the conjugation of three verbs (To Be, Go and Play). I wrote out all the subjects (and I was there thinking I hope 'subject' is the write thing!) and the conjugation for each. While typing it I was asking them what they were. "We goes". They gotta study. While I was typing, Mr KF was fascinated that I could type without looking at the keyboard. Thank Mr Fitz-Henley for that.

The phone rang ever so often, and I had to ask them to be quiet. They complied. Then the 4 finished their paper separation and started to act up, which prompted Mr KF to ask "why Mr T must get on so all the time." There was a swivel chair which they thought was a car, or a merry go round. You get the picture? Thank goodness no one else was in my office block! Then it got ugly. Mr PM and The 5th Kid was sitting in the chair together. Then The 5th Kid went to the toilet and Mr T jumped in the chair, and wanted it all for himself. I had to remind him that the other two boys were quite fine in the chair.

Next, it was on to play "Lock the door....Knock on the Door." Mr D was mimicking the Admin Assistant when trying to gain access to the office. I have two doors to my office. One leads to the rest of the office block and the other one leads to outside. Mr T and Mr D were in and out. Finally I had to say to them, that I am sure my boss is going to tell me don't bring them back here!

Ok, this is reading like a novel. So I will stop here and by Friday or so, I will tell you about the tears part. I'm dog tired and I just "can't make," as they say here. (I know I promised you more last week two, but time intervened.)

Summer School: Session 4 - The Kids Disappoint Me

I will really need that day off I have tomorrow...after the day I had today with the kids. They really tested my patience, and I had to have a one-on-one with Mr T. *sigh* One day one day, he will get better. He has to, or else he will end up in jail, there's no question about it.....

10:00am was roll call time today. I got a call at 9:30am to say Mr Kf was there! Success! He's the one who is always late. By the time I got down, Mr Prime Minister was also there. Then came The 5th Kid, and with two minutes to spare before 10:00am, Mr D came in.

I had promised them name badges if they met the conditions I had set (be on time, do homework and bring all the books). I was able to give out name badges to everyone. Everyone except Mr T. He is never late, but this morning he waltzed in at around 10:15. I don't remember if I asked him why he was late.

Anyway, we had started to test their spelling. That was one of the things on their homework sheets. Mr Prime Minister scored on the board. He likes to keep score. They didn't do too badly in spelling.

Next on the home work sheet was sums with pounds and ounces....inches and feet. This island was supposed to have gone metric, but no one uses grams and centimetres. One sum was "if 1 pound = 16 ounces, how many ounces is 1/2 pound". They got most of that right. I fear though, that they may have got help.

Mr PM said that if his grandmother wasn't there, he wouldn't have got all his words right. She helped him with the spelling. Mr KF said his father helped him with the sums. Good. The parents are getting involved. Incidentally, I had called each of them a few days ago to say what time to come today. I asked Mr D's mum if he talked about what we did here and she said "who? Mr D? No sah". Hmmm....so there is little of that kind of communication at home. Makes me appreciate those meal time conversations with the parents even more!

I was leading up to multiplication, so when we got to the sum which asked "If 12 inches = 1 feet, and 1/2 foot = 6 inches, how many inches is 2 1/2 feet", I was able to lead into that. Again they were guessing. So I explained to them that Math is a very logical subject. If you know values, then you can work out anything. So we went through multiplication, explanation of what it is, and they had to write it in their book.

Next, I had to leave them to attend our daily briefing, which is held just outside the office where class is held. So I gave each of them a sheet with several multiplication questions. At least 20 for each. The first thing Mr T said was "I can't do all of that." I immediately heard my Mother speaking when I said to him "why do you say 'I can't' first before you try? All I want you to do is to try."

I left them, closed the door, and attended the meeting. But during the briefing, I had to open the door and poke my head in several times, to get them to focus on their work and stop talking.

When I went back in after the meeting, I corrected each of their sheets. You could see that some concepts of multiplication escaped them. I had answers such as 7 x 7 = 14. Mr PM was very diligently adding the numbers, which was ok until he learns his times tables. He showed the working out for all the sums. Very diligent. Someone said the others may have looked on the times table at the back of the exercise book. In other words, cheated.

It was time to write in the double line book. "I can be trusted." But Mr T had other lines to write because he was behaving badly. So he had to write "Sorry miss for behaving bad in class." His form of apology. I know it should have been "badly"

It was now lunch time. Today, we would not have our private lunch as usual. I need to teach them how to integrate with other people, so we went to the Canteen. Mr T stopped at the door, hissed his teeth and said he didn't want to eat there. He wanted to go up in the Restaurant. I told him he can have two options 1) Eat in the canteen 2) Don't eat any lunch. He came in, still not pleased.

I had to leave them to go check on a few things. I checked upon them by telephone. An employee said they had been given juice. I don't give them in the beginning because I want them to get accustomed to not eating and drinking.

At 1pm, after they had been there about 30 minutes, I went to tell them that I had some people checking in and I wouldn't be able to leave and drop them, so they had two options 1) find their own way home or 2) stay in the "classroom" while I went to the Front Office. They all chose the latter. I asked them what they would do while I was away. Play games on the phone. Sure. "Miss you have cards?" Sure. So I took Mr D and The 5th Kid to get the cards, and they made their way back to the office.

Next I get a call from NPH saying she was going to have to put them in a Time Out because they were creating havoc. She also said she went over twice to ask them to be quiet, and one of them was mocking everything she said. I didnt have to ask who it was. Mr D. The Insolent One. While on my way back to the "classroom" the bellman asked me where the kids were. He said he saw Sales come up on the phone when his phone rang. That's the office we are using as the classroom.

I burst into the room, disappointed look on my face and asked why I had to get a call saying they were doing these things. Then they ratted Mr T out.

"Miss, see Mr T go to the Kids Club and asked the lady to come in and she tell him no and he only begging." I was not pleased. So I started to question him. He denied it. So in all of their presence, I called the Kids Club and the attendant confirmed everything. How could he be so bold face?

So it was time for him to take the stand. But that didnt work, because he just said nothing. He stared at me and said nothing. Nothing. Not one thing. I realized I wasn't going to get anything out of him, so I took him into my office.

Why did you do that Mr T, especially after you did the same thing on Saturday and I told you not to go there? Do you know why I spend time each week with you boys? No answer. Nothing coming. Then after more questioning, something. A nod. Recognition in his eyes that he knew I was not pleased.

I then asked him about his dreams for when he gets older, about what he wants to be, about getting married, having kids maybe. He said he didn't think about the future. That made me sad.

I asked him about the sleeping arrangements at home. He sleeps in the same bedroom with his 13 year old sister and 16 year old brother. He has his own bed. I told him he needs to see that he is fortunate because in that same situation, other children would have to share a bed with each other.

Then I told him about someone who grew up with 10 other children, who didn't have running water, who had to fetch water from a few miles away. That same person, is a manager now, earning a good salary. The point I was making to Mr T was that he didn't have to make his conditions now determine what his future would be. I told him that I see how good he is with his hands, and that as Ms P said, there is no reason why he can't be an engineer. Or he could work on a cruise ship, learn to mix drinks and travel all over the world. I explained to him that the only way that will happen is if he gets a good education, and for that, he has to listen to his teachers, of which I am one.

There was a litter glimmer in his eyes which told me that he realizes that he has the potential to do something good with his life.

The drive home was another matter....so I will blog about that later.

They sapped my energy today, but when I saw Mr Prime Minister write on the board "I love Summer School," I know I have to press on.

Mr T has to do penance

Remember he didn't secure his books, and his sister threw them away? Well I called his mother yesterday and told her I was getting him some replacements, and that he would have to come to my office for them, where he would do some work for about an hour. Payback.

Before I got to work, I got a message that "2 pickney waiting under the tree for you." Two? Yes, a boy and a girl. Hmmmmm.....who could the girl be?

When I got here (yes, I am being bad and blogging from work.....eeeegad!), they were not in sight. I walked around, didn't see them. Then I remembered. Aha! In the Kids Club. I glared....gave them "The Look". Both of them were looking very sheepish when they came into my office.

"What were you doing in there?" Mr T shrugged his shoulders and continued to bite his fingernails (his nails are bitten quite far down). "Didn't I tell you not to go in there?" He started to say no, but I reminded him when I had told him (two previous occasions).

Next. Who are you? "That's my sister." Oh. Two is a crowd. So I spoke with her for a little bit. She passed Common Entrance on her third attempt. We spoke about high school and I told her to go and introduce herself to the Guidance Counsellor, who I know. Then, I sent her home (nicely). Afterall, Mr T had to work to earn those replacement books!

So it was on to his favourite exericse. Shredding. We went and collected some more paper which another colleague wanted to be shredded. But some of them had one usable side. I asked Mr T to separate the ones which had one side free and put the others in the box for shredding later. I asked him to repeat what he had to do. No problem with comprehension.

I asked him to recall what warnings I had given to him the first time, about the shredder. He again looked on the symbols and said "no hair, no tie, no fingers." This was a new shredder we were using today, which was different from the last time. So I showed him the lid of the old one, and he continued "no paper clips."

I got on witih some work while he shredded, giving commentary ever so often. I reminded him that he shouldnt run it continuously for more than a minute. He spotted my timer and asked to set it for a minute.

Then he spotted the name badges I had made for the 5th Kid and Mr D. I told him that if he 1) does his homework, 2) brings his book and 3) comes on time next week, he will get a badge. Immediately, he was fiddling with them to see which one he wanted. He took up one from the back and said he wanted it, then turned it over to see the 5th Kid's name already on it. He kissed his teeth.

Me: "that's the boy you can't stand.".
Mr T: "ah can't stand him you see."
Me: "why?"
Mr T: "Because he's too fat."
Me: "I'm fat too, so you can't stand me too?"
Mr T: "No, you're not fat"
Me: "Yes I am. The doctor told me I have to lose 40 pounds."
Mr T: "What?????????? 40 pounds?????????? How much you weigh? Go for the scale"
Me: "well let's go to the classroom where the scale is."

So we go. I weigh. He laughs in amazement. Right, so don't say you can't stand somebody because he's fat.

Back to shredding. He remembered more safety things from last time. One time when I was going to check the shredder, I had only turned off the power. But then he quickly said "you have to plug it out too." Then, one time I smelt as if it was hot, so I told him not to shred any more paper because it's better to be safe than sorry. He had never heard that expression before, so he asked me to repeat it. Then he said "type it on a paper and print it out for me....please." He was remembering his "please" and "thank you's" throughout our session today.

I asked him if he wanted to type it. Eyes lit up with glee. So he sat in my chair, while I directed him. He has used a computer before at his mother's workplace, but he hadn't done all of what I showed him to do. Type, enlargen the font, change the colour of the font, outline the text, print and save. Who says you can't teach someone something new in 15 minutes? He took to it like a duck to water.

When we were doing up the name badge, you could see how interested he was in how things work. Same thing while using the shredder. He said me if the shredder can see the paper. I was confused, then through more questions I realized he wanted to know how the shredder knew paper was in the slot to be shredded. I explained that there is a sensor which makes the machine feel when a paper has been inserted. Then he tore small strips of paper, put it at different entry points along the point of insertion, to try and figure out where the sensor was.

When I looked at the time, it was way past the hour I had told his Mum. Time to go son. "No, I don't want to leave yet. We not having lunch? You not hungry?" I told him his mother would have cooked today, and that I was having lunch a little later. Reluctantly, he followed me to the car. While driving him home, he waved to several older men. When he called out to one, I asked him who was that, and he said "one of my partners." I said "partners? that fella is much older than you!"

So you see the dilmena. He is hanging around with older guys. God only knows what they are teaching him, unconciously of course. When I called his mother yesterday, she said she had just reached home. I asked to speak with Mr T and she said she didn't know where he was! He told me today that he was by some friends who had come from abroad for holidays.

I made like I was going to drop him at the bottom of the hill. He asked me to drop him up. I waited. The 'please' came. I passed his house about to turn around, when he asked me to go further up to the shop...please. He had 25 cents and wanted to buy something. I told him he would have to walk back down the hill to his house, jokingly. He protested, and ran quickly in to the shop. I didnt see anything in his hand when he returned. Then he produces two mints. He gives me one. Then I introduced some Maths. If two mints cost 25 cents, how much for one. "11 cents". How did you get that? Then he says "12 cents." Guessing. I asked him how much is 12 + 12. He says 14. "How can it be 14, when 14 is only two more than 12?" I asked. *sigh*. The concept of division is definitely not understood. I know too that they don't know their times tables. So I will have to get them to study that. I bought one Math book yesterday and will photocopy and adapt as necessary.

We got to his house and I saw two men outside. One was his step father. I told Mr T to call him. Looking petrified, he asked me why. I told him I wanted to introduce myself to his step father. He again asked why....puzzled. I told him "so that he would know who you are coming to when you leave here every week." He probably didn't tell him the correct thing because the step father continued cutting the bush after smiling hello. Eventually he came, I introduced myself and told him that they come to me once a week. He asked if the mother knows. So clearly, he's not so involved in Mr T's life if he doesn't know that his step son has been to Summer School, and before that, on a separate occasion.

I wanted to say to him "please don't shout at him." But instead I just told him that Mr T is very bright, so I just was trying to help to keep him on the straight and narrow path. "That's very good," was his response.

Summer School: Session 3

I'm at work, and really should be working.....but I'd rather blog about my kids.

This morning, we had to start early because I invited a Nutrition person to rap with the boys. I had told all of them 10:30, then I saw two of them Friday and told them 8:15am and warned them not to be late. I called the parents of the other 3 over the weekend. Four arrived on time. Mr Prime Minister was the first ...before me...so NPH entertained him until I got there. He told her that he ran to get here on time. I think that one of the things which made him run too, is that on Friday I told him and Mr KF that we wouldn't be having lunch.

"Miss, what you going to give us?" Snacks. "What type of snacks?" Some sandwiches. "Make sure there is cheese." Then the other added "and bacon, and egg and ham, and lettuce....remember we have a deal Miss, I will eat the lettuce."

So my guest started chatting with the four early ones and I left them to do their thing. Guess which one was late? Yup.....the one who has been late every session, and who is often late for school. That is the parent's fault. I will have to again impress upon her, the need to instill good habits from early.

After he was finished and he told me what they had spoken about, I went in and asked them to spell carbohydrates, protein etc. Then I told them what we were going to have and Mr D could tell me what food group the eggs belong to. They had definitely learnt. My guest found out that the 5th Kid has Diabetes. So I will do a little counselling with him separately, to let him know that if he eats properly, he can control it.

Next, we did fractions. They don't fully understand the concept of fractions. They are going into Grade 5! Crickey!First I drew 5 squares, then asked each of them to come up to the board and divide one into two halves a different way. Good. Then we discused whole, halves, and for quarters, I divided up each half into two. Then we did eights. Then we did some additions of fractions. Then some of them wanted to play teacher so they came up and wrote a sum on the board and we solved it. Have to do some more of that.

I found out in that space of 30 minutes that Mr D is quite good in Math. He bagged the front (but he said it so softly, that Mr T had to tell me he had said it), so I dropped him off last and talked about his good ability in Math, and he said his teacher told him that he is good at it.

We spent more time than I had anticipated doing the lesson. So it was now a mad rush. We reached the canteen and it was locked. Could I trust them to stay there and don't move? "Yes Miss." So while I dashed up to the kitchen to get the food, they were happily engaged in a conversation wtih one of the ladies in the Laundry. When I came back down I commented that they had met her. Then she says to me "Mr T says he is your son." I said "yes....I tell people that you don't actually have to have children to have children."

In the canteen, I told them to put five chairs around a table. Mr T pipes up "no, 6.....you not eating too?" Oh yes...I AM hungry. They made sandwiches with the eggs, bacon, cheese and lettuce. (I see Pops shaking his head...."don't make sandwiches at the table" he always said). There were several gems while we were interacting. I should have written them down because now I don't remember. But they repeated things which I have been teaching them. Made me smile.

Afterwards, as usual, Mr T was the last to leave. He carried the plates on which the food had been, to the wash up area. I told him he's going to work in a Restaurant one day. As I put my arm around his shoulders, he asked why I said that. I told him it's because he's always fixing the napkins, and always the last one to leave the table. He merrily continued eating his ice.

Ok, kids, I am late for my morning meeting at 10:45, so I'm not dropping you all the way. They were not pleased. We had to rearrange the seating in the back seat so that who was getting off first, was at the end.

Mr D wanted to turn up the radio. He did it only once. I turn around to see Mr T with the window down, even while the AC was on. I asked him why he had turned down the window. He prefers fresh air. So I told him that if he wants something, all he has to do is ask. "Miss, can i have fresh air please?" That's better.

I wrote up their homework sheet, on neon green paper. They have to learn 10 words for spelling (including the carbs, protein etc), they have to explain protein, carbs and fats, they have to do calculations with pounds and ounces, and inches and feet (they did not know that 12 inches = 1 foot), and they have to write in their Journal at least three times before next session.

Which will be a problem for Mr T. He came this morning without books and said his mother wanted me to call her. The story is that is older sister was cleaning out her school books. She's starting high school in September. She must have thrown out Mr T's three NEW books I bought. Now when you were a kid, didn't your parents supervise such activities? *sigh* Anyway, I told him I would get him replacements.

I think I will give them another written test next week. Then we'll do some reading too. They continue to be such a delight to interact with.

Mr T Runs Full Circle/ Mr KF's Bumpy Head

After I dropped the first three boys yesterday, Mr T was next, before Mr Prime Minister. By the time I dropped off Mr PM and reached down the bottom of his hill, there was Mr T waiting for me, changed out of his long pants and into knee length shorts, and no shoes!

I asked him why he ran back to meet me. He said he was going to the beach to meet his "brothers and dem" and wanted a ride. They were on the beach cooking "Lambie Waters." That's Conch broth. "Where's your shoes?" I asked him. None!

Then this morning, in the pouring rain, I spot Mr KF standing on the side of the road....no shoes! At first I didn't make him out, but he was standing on a corner so I had to slow down. I peered at this person who was wearing a bumpy head hairstyle. He smiled at me and waved.....in the rain.....barefooted.

Wondrous oblivion. My kids.

Summer School: Session 2.....The 5th Kid Joins

I don't know why I was making an issue out of Mr D being upset if the 5th Kid came. After Mr D got over the shock of seeing him, they were best of friends today as they sat beside each other.

Here's how Session 2 of Summer School went. But first, this is how the 5th Kid came into the picture....

Last week when I went for Mr T at school to take him back to Summer School, the 5th kid came up to the car to say "miss, ah don't find the number". I told him it was in the telephone directory so he should look it up and call me. I wanted to put the onus on him, to see if he really really really wanted to come.

Well, about two days later I am at work and get a phone call. "Hello, this is the 5th Kid's mother. He asked me every night if I call you yet" Ok, so I guess he really wanted to come. My boss suggested that I bring him in on his own before today. So I told the mother to let him come at 11:30am Monday. Well, at about 10:40am I get a call to say he is there. Talk about Eager Beaver!

I made him do the same written assessment I had given the other four last week, as well as draw his interpretation of his family. He entitled it "My Happy Family". Then we had lunch together, picked up almonds on the beach and then I dropped him home.

Today, it was a 10:30 start. The 5th Kid was again early....the first to arrive. I fetched him from the lobby and on the way to the "classroom", Mr D walked in. Mouth wide open, he immediately asked "what you doing here?" He wasn't upset at all though. The rest of boys came before 10:30, except Mr KF who arrived 20 minutes late! I had called his mother at 9:13am to remind her what time he should be there, and pleaded with her for him not to be late. Later in the afternoon, I caller her again to suggest he leave home at a different time.

From the assessment, I saw that none of them knew about pounds and ounces. I brought a scale for them to weigh themselves, and also two kitchen scales and some fruits and vegetables. So we did that for a bit until today's visitor came. She's a Counsellor who works with abused kids.

When I went out to get her and came back, my colleagues who were having a short daily meeting just outside the "classroom" told me the kids were heard barking like dogs and mewing like cats! Anyway, I left them with the Counsellor for about 45 minutes on their own. They were as quiet as a mouse. When I walked in about 10 minutes before the end, I noticed that anytime any of them spoke, they were almost whispering! She's good! At the end, they all thanked her for various things which she had shared with them, including having them say "I am good even if other people tell me I am bad." I had bought them double lined exercise books to practise their handwriting, so I made them write that several times on one page.

After she was finished and I was walking her out, she confirmed what I had seen. Mr T has some serious anger issues indicative that the problem goes deeper than the surface and she is recommending counselling sessions for the whole family. She said that it is evident that all of them live in disfunctional families. The government has counsellors employed to the Ministry of Education. But the teachers had told me that whatever they were doing didn't seem to be helping. I told her I didn't want to be politically incorrect and interfere, so I will include that in the report the Principal asked me to give her at the end of Summer School.

Next it was lunch. Curry chicken, macaroni, lettuce and tomato for them....a salad with boiled egg for me. The kids got served first. Mr T started eating before my salad came. Mr KF piped up "Miss said you're not to start eating until everybody is served." I had forgotten I had told them that last week! They all wanted a piece of my boiled egg, all except the 5th Kid, who said when he eats boiled eggs, he throws up. I had to send for another egg. Later in the meal, the 5th Kid asked to taste it. I reminded him what he said about throwing up, so, no.

I told them that if they master eating with a knife and fork, I MIGHT take them out to a restaurant. Well, every kid took up their knife and fork and began eating. It wasn't perfect, but they tried.

They have this fascination with the salt shaker and pepper mill. Mr T put a whole heapa salt on his macaroni, then said "lawd" when he tasted it. I told him I was not going to ask them to change it, so he'd have to eat what he had done. He ate all. Then drank lots of water. Instead of juice, I made them have water. Apparently that is a foreign concept to kids. Must have sweet drink with meals.

The conversation was interesting as usual. I can't remember everything, but Mr Prime Minister had me in stitches.

When I saw that they were not eating their veggies, I told them that if they don't, then we wouldn't be going to the restaurant. Mr Prime Minister asked me if we could make a deal. Could he only eat the lettuce? Sure. He was satisfied with that. Everyone except Mr D doesn't like tomatoes. Mr KF said the only way he would eat it is if it was in a sauce with macaroni.

Like he did last week, Mr T went around and folded everyone's napkins properly after they had left the table. I don't know what the fascination with the cloth napkins is.

Now remember the "bags I the front?" Well, Mr T was quick on the draw today, so he got the front seat. No child lock on front door, but he didn't need it because he was occupied with the radio. I had a CD playing...a compilation by Elan Parle (out of Trinidad) called Kindred Spirits. He kept turning up the music loud loud, and I kept turning it back down. He said he liked the music.

I made them decide who would get dropped home first. Mr KF, then the 5th Kid, then Mr D, then Mr T, then Mr Prime Minister. Democracy at work here. Because I didn't drop the first three at their gates, when I did that for Mr T, Mr Prime Minister told him to make sure and not tell the others that I dropped them up the hill. But I can't drop the other three at their gate because the car cannot drive close to where they live.

Next week, I will continue with the pounds and ounces lesson (which today made me find out they didn't understand the concept of units, tens and hundreds so I have to spend a little time on that). Then, I have another visitor lined up who will rap with them about whatever he feels like. He is into nutrition and wellness. I bought a food chart showing carbs, proteins, fats/oils, minerals and vitamins. At lunch, I told them that if they ate their vegetables, they wouldn't get sick, to which Mr D piped up and said "that's why I hardly get sick." He is the only one who willingly eats all of his vegetables.

So another week of Summer School is done. Instead of the two hours I had planned to spend with them, including dropping home time, we spent 3.5 hours together. As always though, it was very uplifting for me.

Summer School: Session 2.....The 5th Kid Joins

I don't know why I was making an issue out of Mr D being upset if the 5th Kid came. After Mr D got over the shock of seeing him, they were best of friends today as they sat beside each other.

Here's how Session 2 of Summer School went. But first, this is how the 5th Kid came into the picture....

Last week when I went for Mr T at school to take him back to Summer School, the 5th kid came up to the car to say "miss, ah don't find the number". I told him it was in the telephone directory so he should look it up and call me. I wanted to put the onus on him, to see if he really really really wanted to come.

Well, about two days later I am at work and get a phone call. "Hello, this is the 5th Kid's mother. He asked me every night if I call you yet" Ok, so I guess he really wanted to come. My boss suggested that I bring him in on his own before today. So I told the mother to let him come at 11:30am Monday. Well, at about 10:40am I get a call to say he is there. Talk about Eager Beaver!

I made him do the same written assessment I had given the other four last week, as well as draw his interpretation of his family. He entitled it "My Happy Family". Then we had lunch together, picked up almonds on the beach and then I dropped him home.

Today, it was a 10:30 start. The 5th Kid was again early....the first to arrive. I fetched him from the lobby and on the way to the "classroom", Mr D walked in. Mouth wide open, he immediately asked "what you doing here?" He wasn't upset at all though. The rest of boys came before 10:30, except Mr KF who arrived 20 minutes late! I had called his mother at 9:13am to remind her what time he should be there, and pleaded with her for him not to be late. Later in the afternoon, I caller her again to suggest he leave home at a different time.

From the assessment, I saw that none of them knew about pounds and ounces. I brought a scale for them to weigh themselves, and also two kitchen scales and some fruits and vegetables. So we did that for a bit until today's visitor came. She's a Counsellor who works with abused kids.

When I went out to get her and came back, my colleagues who were having a short daily meeting just outside the "classroom" told me the kids were heard barking like dogs and mewing like cats! Anyway, I left them with the Counsellor for about 45 minutes on their own. They were as quiet as a mouse. When I walked in about 10 minutes before the end, I noticed that anytime any of them spoke, they were almost whispering! She's good! At the end, they all thanked her for various things which she had shared with them, including having them say "I am good even if other people tell me I am bad." I had bought them double lined exercise books to practise their handwriting, so I made them write that several times on one page.

After she was finished and I was walking her out, she confirmed what I had seen. Mr T has some serious anger issues indicative that the problem goes deeper than the surface and she is recommending counselling sessions for the whole family. She said that it is evident that all of them live in disfunctional families. The government has counsellors employed to the Ministry of Education. But the teachers had told me that whatever they were doing didn't seem to be helping. I told her I didn't want to be politically incorrect and interfere, so I will include that in the report the Principal asked me to give her at the end of Summer School.

Next it was lunch. Curry chicken, macaroni, lettuce and tomato for them....a salad with boiled egg for me. The kids got served first. Mr T started eating before my salad came. Mr KF piped up "Miss said you're not to start eating until everybody is served." I had forgotten I had told them that last week! They all wanted a piece of my boiled egg, all except the 5th Kid, who said when he eats boiled eggs, he throws up. I had to send for another egg. Later in the meal, the 5th Kid asked to taste it. I reminded him what he said about throwing up, so, no.

I told them that if they master eating with a knife and fork, I MIGHT take them out to a restaurant. Well, every kid took up their knife and fork and began eating. It wasn't perfect, but they tried.

They have this fascination with the salt shaker and pepper mill. Mr T put a whole heapa salt on his macaroni, then said "lawd" when he tasted it. I told him I was not going to ask them to change it, so he'd have to eat what he had done. He ate all. Then drank lots of water. Instead of juice, I made them have water. Apparently that is a foreign concept to kids. Must have sweet drink with meals.

The conversation was interesting as usual. I can't remember everything, but Mr Prime Minister had me in stitches.

When I saw that they were not eating their veggies, I told them that if they don't, then we wouldn't be going to the restaurant. Mr Prime Minister asked me if we could make a deal. Could he only eat the lettuce? Sure. He was satisfied with that. Everyone except Mr D doesn't like tomatoes. Mr KF said the only way he would eat it is if it was in a sauce with macaroni.

Like he did last week, Mr T went around and folded everyone's napkins properly after they had left the table. I don't know what the fascination with the cloth napkins is.

Now remember the "bags I the front?" Well, Mr T was quick on the draw today, so he got the front seat. No child lock on front door, but he didn't need it because he was occupied with the radio. I had a CD playing...a compilation by Elan Parle (out of Trinidad) called Kindred Spirits. He kept turning up the music loud loud, and I kept turning it back down. He said he liked the music.

I made them decide who would get dropped home first. Mr KF, then the 5th Kid, then Mr D, then Mr T, then Mr Prime Minister. Democracy at work here. Because I didn't drop the first three at their gates, when I did that for Mr T, Mr Prime Minister told him to make sure and not tell the others that I dropped them up the hill. But I can't drop the other three at their gate because the car cannot drive close to where they live.

Next week, I will continue with the pounds and ounces lesson (which today made me find out they didn't understand the concept of units, tens and hundreds so I have to spend a little time on that). Then, I have another visitor lined up who will rap with them about whatever he feels like. He is into nutrition and wellness. I bought a food chart showing carbs, proteins, fats/oils, minerals and vitamins. At lunch, I told them that if they ate their vegetables, they wouldn't get sick, to which Mr D piped up and said "that's why I hardly get sick." He is the only one who willingly eats all of his vegetables.

So another week of Summer School is done. Instead of the two hours I had planned to spend with them, including dropping home time, we spent 3.5 hours together. As always though, it was very uplifting for me.

Summer School: Session 1

I have my coffee beside me, cause I need some caffeine to spike my brain. Because after yesterday's first day of Summer School, I was zonked! I slept straight for almost 9 hours Tuesday night.

We were to have started at 11:45am. I had asked the mothers to please ensure the kids were there at least 10 minutes before that. So at 11:35am, I went outside to look up the road and see if any of them was coming. Mr D was walking slowly up the road. When he reached to the gate, I saw that he was biting his fingernails and looking very fearful and anxious. Hmmmmm.

This is a boy who is sometimes very insolent and rude. Sometimes in class when I or the teachers speak to him, it is as if you are speaking to a brick! Anyway, I congratulated him on being ontime and took him into the offfice which I had converted into a classroom.

Went back out to look for Mr Prime Minister and Mr KF. No sight of either. So I called both parents. One was just getting on the bus with his mother, and the other was on his way walking. Mr T was at school because he was attending an art and craft workshop. So I jumped in the car and drove up the road.

Spotted Mr KF about to go into the wrong hotel! He had forgot where our hotel was. Next we drove up to the round about. I had asked him to look out for Mr Prime Minister and he spotted him. I met the mother, who had a young baby in her hand (she has several other children and only works sometimes.....*sigh*)

I dropped them back at the hotel, gave them their written assessment to do, and went for Mr T, who was playing marbles in the school yard.

To develop the written assessment, I had borrowed the learning outcomes guide for Grade 5 from the Principal. So I had questions about time, weight, shapes, pie chart, percentages, opposite words, words which sound the same but are spelt differently, and calculations (add, subtract, multiply divide). Mr T is very quick, so he finished before some of the others.

I see that I will have to do pounds and ounces, inches and feet, fractions, division (none could do the divisions I gave them) and some spelling with them. But the Summer School is less about lessons, and more about life lessons.

After the assessment, I asked all of them how they were feeling. "Excited!" "Happy!". Great. I asked them how many kids were in the two Grade 4's. 41. I asked them how many of them were at the hotel. 4. I asked them what did that mean? "That we're special!" Right. Then Mr KF added "we're VERY special!"

Next was lunch. Sometimes we will eat in the canteen with other employees, but for week 1 and 2, I am letting them eat in the restaurant (where no one else is at that time), so we can develop the knife and fork skills. Before we were served food (from the canteen....pelau, veg and mashed potato), I asked them to tell me what each setting was. They didnt know the butter knife and side plate. For the side plate, I explained that if we were having rolls, it would go there, but if not, it can be used to put the chicken bones in.

Well, the side plates became receptacles for the vegetables for two of them. Mr D was the only one who ate his veggies. And besides my pleadings for them to use the knives and forks, Mr T just dived in with his fingers and took out all his veggies and discarded them. I guess they don't eat veggies at home. Must speak with the parents.

Lunch was great. There was conversation throughout, but with Mr D reminding everyone "don't talk with food in your mouth!" One of the things I told them was that we would be speaking proper English. So when one of them said they wanted water in their dialect, I asked him to correct it. "Excuse me waiter, may I have some water please?" adding some twang in there. He lives near the Golf Course, and sometimes does caddy duties to earn money. He calls the tourists who come there "white people". I asked them to please use "tourists" or "caucasians". I told him not to change his accent, just because he is speaking proper English.

Like he did on the field trip, Mr KF ate a huge amount of food. And he's tiny, so I was expecting him to keel over at any moment or start to throw up. He took Mr D's extra rice, and Mr Prime Minister's mash potato. Hmmmmm. Is that because there is not so much food at home?

One of them had not had any breakfast, so his stomach started to hurt him. And next, I learnt the kid word for a # 2....cause three of them needed to go right after lunch.

These kids are very smart. Case in point. While we were at lunch, the owner's wife came over to say hello. After she left, I told them that the owner was away. After lunch, while Mr Prime Minister was waiting in the corridor of the office building to go and "poom" (there was only one toilet), he was talking loudly right outside the owner's office, I told him to speak softer, because he would be disturbing the owner. Hear him nuh...."is a good thing him not here!" LOL.

After the toilet break, they had to draw the people in their family. Everyone except Mr D did it completely. Mr T drew stick drawings of his mother, father, sisters and brother, and then he said "oh, and Miss Yamfoot....how you spell your name?" Aw gee. He considers me part of his family. How can you not love them, or how can you beat them and inflict pain?

Next week, the Counsellor is coming to spend a whole hour with them. It will just be a talking session. Maybe I will give them some easy Suduko puzzles and a spelling test before she comes.

When I was about to drop them home, Mr Prime Minister said "I want to sit in the front." Mr D said he too wanted to sit in the front. I told them that Mr Prime Minister asked first so he gets the front. I then told them that when we were kids, Sis, Bro and I would also fight over the front. So we devised a system where whoever said "bags I the front" first, would get the front. Mr Prime Minister repeated that and sought clarification. But as he got the front this time, he couldn't get it next week.

Something said to me "put on the child lock on the back door." Good thing, cause Mr D, who was protesting that he wasn't ready to go home yet, was threatening to open the door by the mall. Mr T, who is extremely observant, had seen me change the setting on the door, so was looking to change it when I dropped him off.

When I told them the next session was next week Tuesday, Mr T said "I want to come every day!" I wish...but I have lots of work to do. He was boasting to the others that he had come to my office already.

So it was a very rewarding and uplifting day.....tiring, but fun.

Mr T and Friends will attend Summer School

I thought that with two months holiday, some of the special boys needed some focus, so I decided to do a Summer School project which got the blessing of my boss. There was no way I was going to allow them to languish in their communities, being idle and getting up to mischief.

So along with Mr T, I selected Mr K (the one who could be Prime Minister cause he love to talk), Mr D (the insolent one) and Mr KF (the one to whom I gave my apple the second class). I suppose there are other boys I could have selected, but I don't think I can manage more than four of them.

A few classes before the last class of term, I went to each of them quietly and asked for their parent's number. Now somehow, word got around and Mr J, who is one of my little helpers, asked me if he could come too. Mr D overheard him asking and asked me if it wasn't just four coming. I said yes, but maybe Mr J could come too? Nooooooooooooooo. Mr D was insistent that it was just to be the four of them. Mr J didnt know his parent's number, so I told him to look up my work number and call me. He hasn't called yet, but he had said earlier he was going to Trinidad.

We start next Tuesday, and the emphasis is not going to be on the sums and grammar that we will do. It will be to teach them good habits, such as going somewhere on time, doing homework, and also writing their thoughts and feelings in a journal. We will also do some dining etiquette too, so that they become more comfortable using a knife and fork. We will also do reading, do puzzles like simple Suduko and that sort of thing.

I will do it once per week (have too much other work to do) for six weeks. I have asked three persons to come and do rap sessions with them. One will be my boss talking about the world of work, the other will be a police officer on how to become good law abiding citizens (Mr T is heading to jail for sure without an intervention) and a counsellor talking about how to cope with life in general.

Now when the counsellor comes, I will need her to work more deeply with the students and their families, to help bring them back on track.

I'll try and update the blog every week. But I not promising, ok?

Mr T gets into a fight

On the second to last day of term, the groups had to do a 3-minute presentation on the career they had chosen. Some presenters were more confident than others. I video taped them all and gave the Principal. NPH judged the presentations and decided on a winner.

So on the last day of term, I went to announce the winner and carry treats for them. That's when Mr T and Mr L got into a fight.....

I have no idea what Mr T did to Mr L. My "son" was sitting behind Mr L. I was in the back of the classroom when all I saw was Mr L get up, turn towards Mr T and start to blow hard....with a screw face. Now these are 9 and 10 year olds, so I thought he was acting. The next thing was blows start to rain from Mr L, and of course, Mr T "gave him his busines" as they say here. The teachers quickly sent them to opposite sides of the classroom.

Crickey! There was no injury to either boy, and later, for the group picture, everyone was all smiles.

Gee gosh....that's why some of them are coming to Summer School at the hotel. Read the next entry above.

Mr T Writes Me A Note

You may have read in previous entries, that Mr T is very cool and doesn't do the hug thing, nor does he show any emotion of caring or anything like that. So I was quite surprised when I got a note from him a few weeks ago.

Before I left to go on Sick Leave for 8 weeks, I gave them a project. They were to divide themselves in Group, a Leader would be assigned and each group would choose one career in Tourism, do a poster for that career and make a three minute presentation about the career.

When I got back, they hadn't done anything except decided on the groups. So I gave them some more time. One week, I stopped by when they were working on the posters. I went over to Mr T's group (naturally he was the leader) and he asked me if I had a red marker. I did not. I moved along to the next groups.

The following day, I dropped off the red marker in an envelope with his name on it.

On the day of the class presentations, I saw him and asked for the red marker. He said he had it in his bag which was in the other classroom. He left to go get it. He caught up with me as I was going to my jeep (I had to go back to work for the video camera). He walked up beside me. I said "where's the marker?" He said "look, it's in my book".

He opened the exercise book and in the middle, there was the marker. I started to take it out and he said "the note is for you". I took it, read it and said to myself "aw gee."

These are the things which make what I do worthwhile. I took a picture of the note.
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