I have finished my first month in India! It is hard to believe that a month has passed. The days feel very long here but the weeks go fast. I have adjusted well to India. I no longer feel like I am just visiting India and feel more like I am living here. I have a routine and I am comfortable walking around the neighborhood. This weekend a lot of new people came to the house and I have taken on the role of tour guide: funny to think that only 4 weeks ago I was the one being toured.
I have come to like India more and more. There are definitely two sides to this country. On the one hand, there is the India in which I am constantly stared at, where I feel the need to cover my head and walk fast with my eyes down. On the other, there is the India where children smile and wave when they see me, where I asked a woman where to buy bindis and she gave me a pack of her own bindis that she had just purchased, as well as a string bracelet. Amita, the head of the organization, said during our orientation that India is the land of contrast, and this could not be more true.
The project is going especially well. Last week I did a unit on different types of environments (desert, tundra, forest, etc.) and the girls really learned some things. I made up a game called Desert or Tundra? which they enjoyed. It involved one side of the room being the desert and the other being the tundra, and I would say a characteristic like, "lots of sand!" or "very cold all the time!" and they would run to the side of the room I described. Last one there was out, and they had to stand with me and call out descriptions. I gave a small test on Friday, and I am pleased to say that the girls retained a lot of information. Over the next three week I plan to do a unit on the human body, going through some of the organ systems. I started today with cells, so we'll see how that works out.
Overall, I am very happy I made the decision to come here. I have already had many valuable experiences and met some incredible people. And I still have 4 months to go!
I have come to like India more and more. There are definitely two sides to this country. On the one hand, there is the India in which I am constantly stared at, where I feel the need to cover my head and walk fast with my eyes down. On the other, there is the India where children smile and wave when they see me, where I asked a woman where to buy bindis and she gave me a pack of her own bindis that she had just purchased, as well as a string bracelet. Amita, the head of the organization, said during our orientation that India is the land of contrast, and this could not be more true.
The project is going especially well. Last week I did a unit on different types of environments (desert, tundra, forest, etc.) and the girls really learned some things. I made up a game called Desert or Tundra? which they enjoyed. It involved one side of the room being the desert and the other being the tundra, and I would say a characteristic like, "lots of sand!" or "very cold all the time!" and they would run to the side of the room I described. Last one there was out, and they had to stand with me and call out descriptions. I gave a small test on Friday, and I am pleased to say that the girls retained a lot of information. Over the next three week I plan to do a unit on the human body, going through some of the organ systems. I started today with cells, so we'll see how that works out.
Overall, I am very happy I made the decision to come here. I have already had many valuable experiences and met some incredible people. And I still have 4 months to go!
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