Al Burooj School K-12 Girls

I have a few pictures of the school where I am currently teaching.  As I mentioned it is a 50 minute drive from Al Ain into the desert.  I pass several camel farms and lots of sand dunes on the way.  I must admit that the dunes look fake.  They are the most beautiful shades of orange and brown and every time I pass I have this urge to exhale just to see if they will move.  They look more like ski slopes minus the snow.

The school is a large two story school with a small student population.  There are two kindergarten classes, KG1 and KG 2.  The kids start school at age 3 and 4.  KG1 has the little ones and even though we are a month into the school year, there is always someone crying each morning.  Usually it is the same little boy who asks if anyone has seen his mother, because he thinks she is late. It is obvious he doesn't get the concept of time because he asks when there is about another 2 hours before dismissal.  These two classes are the only coed classes the students will ever be in.  When they start first grade and until they finish high school they will attend separate schools.  If they go on to University, the classes may be coed depending on the area of study, but the entrances to the campus are separate. I live close to the University of Abu Dhabi campus and when I first saw the sign that read "Male Entrance" I was confused until it was explained to me.

The school is located about 2 miles off the highway on a dead end street (21st Street, which is my address in Florida) and looks out into the desert. The boys school is identical to the girls and is one long block away.  All the students ride the bus even though they live within the neighborhood. Inside the gate there are a few covered parking spaces for staff and the security guards room.  It actually is a small house that he lives in.  All schools have on site security guards who live on the campus 24/7.

This mural is one of four that was recently painted and the door to the left of it is my classroom door.  We were told that our rooms were going to be painted over the weekend and that we needed to take down anything on the walls in preparation.  So, I gently took down what I had just put up and you can imagine my surprise when the painters' faces appeared in the windows of my room the following day (while I was teaching) to begin painting the walls OUTSIDE the classroom.  Another example of lost in translation!  The minute the first face appeared and we began to smell the fumes the day was lost.  The mural took three days to complete and I'm still hoping the interior painting will take place soon.  Notice the windows have been painted over and are part of the mural.  Some days I feel like I am in outer space.

 

This is the only bulletin board in the room, so I cram all three subjects onto it.  There is no such thing as fadeless board paper over here. I have, as well as others, searched high and low for it with no luck.  The ugly green is the felt background of the board.  It has more dust on it then an attic!  Truly gross, but work with what you have.  My room has no computers or internet.  The Epson projector (I think that is what it is) is mounted to the ceiling and covered in a green garbage bag.  Last week I had a teacher chair for my table (no desk), this week I don't.

Teaching place value with an activity from Pinterest.  I don't have many resources so I find myself (just like in the states) shopping for supplies for activities.  It's a challenge to try to get a feel for the girls' prior knowledge because the culture and experiences are so different.  These are my fifth graders. The pink and gray are their school uniforms.    



This is the mountain I pass to and from work. At the top sits the Presidential Palace and a beautiful hotel.  I will have more pictures of that after this week.  I am attending a function there on Wednesday evening.  I joined a group called, InterNations.  It is a social group of expats who gather once a month to plan events and network with one another.  Looking forward to the gathering and the view from the top.  Stay tune!