Easter Open Day

As you can see, I've been very busy this past week.  Being an international preschool/kindergarten, our school celebrates both western and Chinese holidays both traditional and modern.  (Although, being in China, our actual days off are set by the Chinese government.)  We also usually have one open day each month, where parents or grandparents (usually only one per child) can join their children for a half-day of activities.  (Different classes will have their open day on different days during a single week, so the school isn't overwhelmed with parents.)

My toddlers and their parents had their open day on Tuesday the 19th.  After the kids' "morning tea" (a light, nutritious meal, usually with soy milk), I took them out for their structured outdoor exercise.  There are different sets of equipment for us to use, assigned in a weekly schedule.  It was my job to take the assigned equipment (shown above) and help the kids use it in a fun and active way.  With parents' help, I could let the kids try more challenging tasks.

After the outdoor play, we have our musical exercise (not shown), where we lead the kids in a few different dances, using music with lyrics in English, Chinese, and sometimes other languages (like Korean or Japanese).  Songs change every semester, and we just changed to the new songs (after teaching the dances to the kids).

After outdoor exercise time, it was back to the classroom for a required potty break.  (We do have toilet reminders at frequent intervals in my class.)  After toileting, washing hands, and drinking water, it's lesson time, about 10:00.  This class we had an Easter-themed craft where the parents could help.  (This made it more fun for the parents, allowed them to interact with their children, and allowed me to use more challenging techniques, like cutting with scissors, because I had a helper for almost every child.)

The lesson normally ends around 10:20 to 10:30, followed by outdoor free play in the toddler playground (or indoor free play if the weather is foul). (Again, I have them use the toilet, wash hands, and drink water before this free play.)  This day, however, we had an Easter-egg hunt on the school grounds.  The eggs used were small chocolate eggs, foil-covered, one egg per child.  (This was partly due to budgetary constraints.)  Some kids were quite good at finding eggs, and the one-per-child rule had to be enforced.  Others, especially the younger ones, needed help.  The chocolate did make a bit of a mess, whether the kids ate them immediately or were constrained to save them until after lunch.

Lunch was at 11:00.  My kids can pretty much feed themselves, but they're not all proficient or tidy.  Most of them (it should be all) wear bibs provided by the parents, and most of them are quite pokey eaters, many still learning to use spoons to eat the food that they are served.  When they don't like what the kitchen serves, some of them really have to be chided into eating.  Fortunately, I'm not primarily responsible for that.  I have an assistant (Penny, who took these pictures) and a nanny (called "A-yi" in Chinese) to help.  My assistant speaks some English, my A-yi speaks only Standard Chinese and the local Wuxi dialect, but we communicate well enough.  (My spoken Chinese is improving.)  My ayi takes the lead in getting the kids to eat, and spoon-feeding those who really lag behind.  (I'm not sure this is best for the kids, but it's part of the service that the school is paid to provide.)  Of course, with parents mostly helping their kids, I only had to pay attention to the one or two kids whose parents were too busy to attend.

After lunch, some parents took their kids home, but others left them, which provoked some tears from the more sensitive kids.  This was par for the course, and we took it in stride.  Taking them outside and letting them play after lunch (before their regular noon--2:30 nap) helped deal with the normal separation anxiety.  I also gave some extra attention where it was most needed.

So, that was Easter Open Day.  Photo credits to Penny, my Chinese teaching assistant this semester.  This also gives you an idea of what my normal morning is like, minus the parents, of course.  Next week I'll be with the older kids (about 6 y.o.) in the morning, assisting only, and teaching the toddlers in the afternoon.  It alternates on a weekly basis.  Mornings are better for lessons, so we try to make sure that each class gets an equal share of English lessons in mornings vs. afternoons.

Prayer Requests

First, praise God for a successful Open Day!  I haven't gotten all the feedback yet, but the one I did happen to see in English was quite positive, and overall the parents seemed pleased.  The kids had fun, too, as you can see.

Next, please pray for Sophie and my relationship with her.  She's spending most of her time in Xuzhou now, which is about 3 hours north by high-speed train.  She has some health issues, and her family thought it would be best if she quit her job in Wuxi, stayed with her parents in Xuzhou, and visited the hospital in Nanjing with her mother and sister.  It seems to be working out well for her, but it makes it hard to work on our relationship.  It seems that, when Sophie's health situation is under control, her parents want to get her a job in Xuzhou.  I, however, like my job here in Wuxi (as you can see), and I want to stay here.  I don't like the prospect of a long-distance relationship under these conditions.

In addition, the prospect of marriage with Sophie seems difficult for other reasons as well; financial, cultural, and geographic.  But she seems to still be set on continuing our relationship and working toward marriage.  I'm not sure what to do.  Please pray for wisdom for me as I seek God's will.

I hope everyone enjoyed the pictures.  Thanks for reading, and thanks for praying!