Mummiak

Halloween went so well on Tuesday, that the kids wanted to continue it on Wednesday and Thursday. Many of them brought in costumes and changed for the English classes.

We did some Halloween inspired activities and now, for the most part, both the 1a and 2a classes can list quite a few creatures in English. We had a pirate, a vampire queen a witch girl a black cat and some other common Halloween costumes. We pretended to be them and also made quite a few crafts, including a pumpkin, a spider and a ghost. It went pretty well, at least I think so.

Today, we made mummies. The kids really enjoyed themselves. I think the best part was when Márk told his mother, "I wrapped Bálint in WC paper today." She was relieved when we told her that we made mummies, and said I was afraid he was being bad. There is a long back story with Márk. If you know it, you probably understand her reaction. I must admit though, he has been much better this year. So far.

Here are some of the mummies:






Overall, I think it was a pretty fun week and that we all had a lot of fun.

Break is starting tomorrow. I am happy that I will have time off, but I will really miss the kids.

Hallowe'en

Today was Hallowe'en. It was a good day.
I came home to get ready for the afternoon and found Palacsinta going after this:

I am not sure if she is the new pet next door, it appears that way, but I never know. In the spirit of today I named her Borszoka'ny. Borszi for short. She is the tiniest thing ever and I really hope that Palacsinta doesn't squish her.

The afternoon went well. Chaos, but what do I expect. We had the kids draw on posters, make pumpkins and spiders and sing a Hallowe'en song.
Here is a group of my 2a girls drawing.


My boys


The class showing what they made:

Ili as a ghost:

Me as a witch:


I love hallowe'en. It is my favourite holiday. How can you not like when random people give you candy?

To have or not to have power

Today, there was no school. The mayor wanted to have a thank you lunch for those who helped when the painting was being returned to the school. Most of us were there by 10. That is when the alcohol pushing started. I stuck with water, considering it was 10am and not 10pm, but eventually had some palinka just before 11.

The snack was szalonna. It was good, but a bit salty.

We soon headed to the gym where Gabriell had some competitions set up. We were divided into groups. The mayors office, two from the school and another group I am not sure from where. It was fun, though the team from the mayors office continually cheated. Our team came in third, not bad, but that is what you get when your team is wearing heels.

Later, we had lunch, sertes porkolt. It was pretty good. I really liked the side of pickles.

I got home and noticed that my light wasn't turning on. I went to find the light bulbs, but then noticed that everything in my house was off. I flipped all the breakers and then thought that the town was just working on something. If you knew me last year, you would realize that coming home to no power or water was not big shock. The town would randomly turn things off and I wouldn't know because someone would forget to tell me. It was also a work day, and they are still doing construction on the church so I really did not think that it was a big issue.

At about 5:30, I started to think things were a little off, because the work outside was all done. It was also starting to get dark. I called Ili to see if there was construction being done, and noticed that my neighbour, whom I share an entire wall with had power. Pisti, one of the caretakers at the school, showed up at my door to check the breakers. He agreed that they were fine and said he will think about what to do. Later, I am told that they are trying to find the electrician who was working in town today to see what happened.

Just before 7, the power comes back on. One of the town hall women tell me that they had hit a switch this morning, thought nothing of it and just never turned it back on because it didn't affect anything. Except me!

I feel the love. And the cold.

Pumpkins

Yesterday, I started carving pumpkins. 1a was amazed that I could carve right in the classroom.

I have 5 pumpkins to carve in 2a, but only got through two of them today.

I am starting to think that the kids think that all jack o' lanterns look the same. When I asked both classes how to cut the face, they came up with the same features.

Sadly, I don't have a picture of 1a's pumpkin, but I will get one next week.

Here are the ones for 2a:

To all Canadians:

Happy Thanksgiving Canada!

FYI:

The history of Thanksgiving in Canada goes back to an explorer, Martin Frobisher, who had been trying to find a northern passage to the Pacific Ocean. Frobisher's Thanksgiving was not for harvest but homecoming. He had safely returned from a search for the Northwest Passage, avoiding the later fate of Henry Hudson and Sir John Franklin. In the year 1578, he held a formal ceremony, in what is now the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, to give thanks for surviving the long journey. The feast was one of the first Thanksgiving celebrations by Europeans in North America. Frobisher was later knighted and had an inlet of the Atlantic Ocean in northern Canada named after him — Frobisher Bay.

Schedules

Tomorrow, I will go to Tata. Carla is having a little get together and I look forward to catching up with a bunch of the other teachers. I also look forward to getting out of here and being away from issues at school.

I don't want to be on the train for so long, but I think it will be worth it.

This week, long like the rest, has finished. I didn't realize how important weekends were last year. My schedule has changed countless time this past week. I hope it is settled, but I never really know.

I go in. They say there is a problem. They point. I nod. The point. I nod. Things are moved and then they are happy. Repeat.

Blowing off steam is vital at some point. Thank you Tata and Carla!

Kids being kids

One of my 1a girls gave me a piece of paper today.

The page inside says "Áilávju Tara."




I have finally gained control over Mark. Now, it is time to conquer Laci's stubborness.

Happy October 6th. Although, I don't think it is a happy occasion.

Been a while

I haven't posted anything in over a week. To be honest, it is because when I get home from school I am just exhausted and don't want to do anything. This year is really taking its toll. I like almost all of the kids, but it really takes so much time to make sure that 19 kids are all at the same point. I have tried going through them one by one, but getting through the class just takes so much time that the other kids are bored and start to do other things. Just keeping control of the class takes so much energy.

I went to an apple festival last weekend.

I went to visit Andi and caught up on anything I missed during the summer.

I lived through another week. It sounds bad, but its true.

I sound bitter again. I really don't mean too. I think I am just tired.

I am looking forward to Hallowe'en though. I am going to be a witch.

I will post some pictures soon. We are having a fun day tomorrow, on my day off, so I should be able to take some good ones.