Jaden's First Communion

    This morning I headed down to breakfast with Jaden and rather than the typical Wednesday with the flour porridge breakfast he tends to really dislike, there was oatmeal...so he was pretty excited, saying "only 1 day left, on Saturday".  Little does he know that Ellie later told me the tias that come in the morning are the ones who make that on Wednesdays and Saturdays and for the next 2 months, they will not be coming in as early, so he really won't have to eat it again on this trip.  I am going to leave that as a surprise for him though, so SHHHHH!!!

   When I got to the Chosa this morning, the small girls who didn't have class soon followed.  Their teacher was out today, and this is generally where they get sent.  So it was a "packed" Chosa.  Good thing my lesson plan got prepared yesterday and was ready to go.

   I headed back to our room to gather my things for school about 9:20am, and got to the 9th grade right around 10am (class starts at 10:10).  They are beginning the geometry unit today, which I am excited about.  What I wasn't excited about was how this book introduces geometry and the topic that they start with, which is the measurements of the angles of polygons (interior angles, exterior angles, angle sums, and central angles).  These are concepts that generally show up for us during 2nd semester geometry back in the States.  So we had a lot of vocabulary to catch up on, like the names of all of the polygons from 3 sides (triangle) to 10 sides (decagon), apothems, diagonals, and what it means to be equilateral, equiangular or "regular" when it comes to polygons.  I learned a new word in mathematics in Spanish...the word for protractor (the device used to measure angles) is "transportador" down here in Honduras, which is definitely NOT a cognate.  The 9th graders had never used a protractor before and I wanted students to see where the formulas came from that they were about to learn.  So we needed to start with a tutorial in protractor usage, which made class go extra long beyond our normal time, making math less enjoyable to those who already dislike it but more enjoyable for those who do like it.  

The nonagon (9-sided polygon) is the only one that isn't a cognate from the names of polygons we use in English.

Math book gives them the formula but doesn't explain why it is the way it is

   Jaden did some weed whacking today, moved wood from the medium boys house to the horse barn and then hung out with the medium boys when they were done with school.  There was an incident with bullying, although it didn't involve Jaden, but it was serious enough for Elvia to address at lunch with the microphone for all children at Emmanuel to hear.  She first told all of the children what bullying was, then gave a few examples, then said that if it continues to happen here, there will be consequences for those that do it.  I really enjoy having Elvia as the school principal (as I have mentioned before) because her experience growing up here and then studying in the university for her degree(s) make for a better environment for those coming through Emmanuel now.

   Church was after supper, and Kaylyn noted that there would be communion this evening.  We did not have this option last year, and I have been telling Jaden that his first communion would be down here.  David (founder of Emmanuel) referenced the Bible on the last supper and what it means to partake in communion, and I made sure that Jaden not only followed along with the verses in Spanish, but also read the English translation right next to it (I have a bilingual Bible).  When it was time to go forward to get the sacraments, I asked Jaden if he was ready and he said he was.  Zayden, Zoey and Ellie all joined us in walking up to the front.  

   After getting back to our room, at some point before heading to bed (after we locked up), I opened the bathroom door because I was going to use the bathroom before heading to bed.  And there, not much above the toilet, on a shelf was an enormous cockroach facing me.  Well, that kind of grossed me out.  I had seen another of about the same size crawl under the actual toilet (which has some shimmies under it to keep it balanced) almost a week ago, not sure if this was the same one.  Either way, I needed to get it out of the bathroom before I used it.  Kaylyn came over to check out the cockroach and got a little close, not sure why, but the cockroach lifted its wings and "flew" right at her!  At the time, we weren't sure if it actually flew or if it was "caer con estilo" (falling with style) as they say in the Toy Story movie that we have probably watched one too many times in the Chosa with the toddlers.  Personally, I didn't think cockroaches could fly, but Kaylyn googled it and said they there are some that can fly small distances, and if they fly directly at you, it may be because they are trying to protect their nest of eggs.  I certainly HOPE NOT!!!  And of course with that, it was bed time.  Makes you feel all comfy and cozy as you head to bed wondering if there is a nest right next to you in the bathroom...NOT!