Well, school has proved to be very...... interesting. I'll make a short (well, short for the way I write and talk) list about school.
1) Teachers-- There are 3 "sections" you could say to the teaching department. 1. Teachers-- well, duh, they teach. One thing that is very interesting and different is that the teachers come to you. You don't go to a different classroom. The teacher comes to yours. Therefore everyone has the same schedule making it easier I guess. 2. AQC's aka Academic Quality Control. All mine does to my class is yell at us. And 3. Supervisor. The supervisor LOVES me because I'm the only one in my whole class who doesn't have any "infractions", meaning I have never gotten in trouble or forgotten something necessary. So, I get out of all detentions my class has, and I'm the only one who does. The way I describe the teachers to my parents, they sound like screaming fanatics. They aren't. We do get some learning done. Enough to get us through the tests. Which would bring us to the next item on the list.
2) Tests-- The older 4 kids (Me- Emma) have test 4 times a week although it varies what tests we have during the week. We all have Periodics which are 2 MAJOR tests once a week. It takes up 2 periods (one for each test). Calvin and Conrad have AMS (I'm not sure what that stands for...) Arabic. I have AMS Science instead. The ones we all have ( not together) are AMS Science or Arabic, Periodic, AMS English, ITL (the math one is the only one we take on the computer, the rest are bubble sheet, hence the different name for the math test) Math. Most of these tests are just to make sure you pay attention in class. Our FINALS are at the end of November I think....
1) Teachers-- There are 3 "sections" you could say to the teaching department. 1. Teachers-- well, duh, they teach. One thing that is very interesting and different is that the teachers come to you. You don't go to a different classroom. The teacher comes to yours. Therefore everyone has the same schedule making it easier I guess. 2. AQC's aka Academic Quality Control. All mine does to my class is yell at us. And 3. Supervisor. The supervisor LOVES me because I'm the only one in my whole class who doesn't have any "infractions", meaning I have never gotten in trouble or forgotten something necessary. So, I get out of all detentions my class has, and I'm the only one who does. The way I describe the teachers to my parents, they sound like screaming fanatics. They aren't. We do get some learning done. Enough to get us through the tests. Which would bring us to the next item on the list.
2) Tests-- The older 4 kids (Me- Emma) have test 4 times a week although it varies what tests we have during the week. We all have Periodics which are 2 MAJOR tests once a week. It takes up 2 periods (one for each test). Calvin and Conrad have AMS (I'm not sure what that stands for...) Arabic. I have AMS Science instead. The ones we all have ( not together) are AMS Science or Arabic, Periodic, AMS English, ITL (the math one is the only one we take on the computer, the rest are bubble sheet, hence the different name for the math test) Math. Most of these tests are just to make sure you pay attention in class. Our FINALS are at the end of November I think....
3) Books, books, and more books!-- You would not believe how many books we have. At least like 6 for English, 6 for Math, 1 for Arabic, 1 for Religion etc. Luckily we have schedules so we know what books to bring and what to not. We've all "coped" with this situation differently. Me-- instead of using a backpack, I use a suitcase. (NO JOKE). Calvin got a locker and Emma and Conrad are still clueless on what their gonna do. Its so much better than having to carry all these books around.
4) Time Table-- During the Holy Month of Ramadan, school starts 30 min. later and ends about 40 min. earlier. We all start at 8:20 during Ramadan, but Emma and Eli get done with school while me, Calvin and Conrad are having our last period of the day. It will be really hard to get back in the habit of having an hour longer school day, 1hr 30 min. lunch break (I KNOW?!?! HOW MUCH TIME DO THEY THINK WE NEED TO EAT?!?!?!) etc .
5) Bus-- First of all, we only ride the bus home. We don't ride it to school. Now, Emma and Eli ride the same bus. The end. They've been riding the same bus since they started school. Now Calvin, Conrad and I are a different story. We all ride the same bus. Let me explain. Before Ramadan, we rode bus 33. Then, the first day of Ramadan, the bus didn't come. So we were sitting there waiting for like 15 min. for the bus to come. Evidently, during Ramadan, the bus driver doesn't come along with some other buses. So , for about 2 weeks after that, we rode a different bus almost EVERY DAY. Now, we ride bus 1, but not for long because Ramadan ends this week....
6) Classes-- Classes here are very challenging. With always having to pay good attention in class or you get low scores on the tests. One of the hardest classes is Arabic. And its not just hard just because its still a new language to us, but because the level 2 books are like level 5 equivalent of what we would have learned in Kuwait. Well, hopefully we'll come back a lot better Arabic speakers.
7) Uniform-- The uniform is basic. Although you have a few options. Gray pants, shorts, K-3rd grade- pinafores, polo, or a light shirt, you have to wear a SABIS jacket from what I understand. Now, you're SUPPOSED to do a lot of things, but many don't. IE, girls aren't supposed to have their fingernails painted;girls are supposed to wear their hair "tied";boys are supposed to have a "classical" haircut (over ears); black shoes are supposed to be worn; etc.
Well, there is a lot more I could say about Jordan, but that's another post yet to come....
clara
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