End of School - May 2011 Graduation!

Another school year has finished and Angaur Elementary School has another graduate.  Again this year, there was only one in the 8^th grade class.  Unfortunately, the weather that day was horrible, so instead of having the event outdoors in the usual beautiful tropical paradise that is Angaur, it was conducted in our community center.  Enjoy the pictures. 

The graduate giving his graduation speech. 

The graduate with the PTA president and the Principal. 

Friends pose for a celebratory photo. 

No Palauan celebration is complete without dancing! 

GUAM!

Made it to Guam.  Made it there bright and early Friday morning.  We had some time, as the Spelling Bee was not until Saturday morning. The flight was uneventful and we were picked up at the airport by a member of Tsun’s extended family.  They were nice enough to wake up at the crack of dawn and take Tsun and me to breakfast at McDonald’s.  After sharing an Egg McMuffin we continue on to his family’s house and spent some time with the family.  In the afternoon they drop us off at our hotel and we check in.  We made plans for dinner with his family and they were to pick us up at the hotel that night- it gave us a chance to get cleaned up, rest, and prepare for the Spelling Bee in the morning.

Then comes a change of plans.  Earthquake in Japan and tsunami warnings go out all over the Pacific.  The streets to the hotel are closed, and we are instructed by local authorities to go back to our room at the hotel and wait for the waves.  We were not too worried, as we felt that being on the 15^th floor of the Guam Mariott, we’d be safe.  Before we barricaded ourselves in our hotel room, we went on the search for something to eat, since the dinner plans from earlier had to be cancelled.  We work our way down the street in the tourist area to find all the restaurants either closed or in the process of closing.  The only thing that is open is a souvenir shop that also happens to sell snacks.  The place is packed to the gills with tourists buying water, chips, snacks, etc.  We pick out some chips, beef jerky, apples, and some muffins and make our way back to our hotel and sit on the balcony and wait for the waves.  Luckily for everyone, the waves didn’t come and Guam was spared from any damaging waves.

So the next morning we are well rested and ready for the Spelling Bee.  We make our way down to the convention hall at the Mariott and check in and do some last minute practicing of words.  Tsun did phenomenal- he made it to the fourth round and was in the top half of the contestants there.  He had a small group of fans there cheering for him, we were all very proud.  After the Spelling Bee, another extended family member found us and insisted on taking us to dinner.

With all the Spelling Bee business complete, we had one full day to play around.  We went to the Micronesia Mall and I got the chance to introduce an important part of my culture to Tsun- TacoBell, Sabarro, Subway, KFC, and ColdStone.  Isn’t America great?  We also spent a few hours at the arcade and riding the bumper cars and indoor roller coaster in the mall.    I was very thankful that Tsun had such a great group of family members that took care of us while we were in Guam.  They really made the trip a great success.   

Some pics of the champion as we explored Guam.

Some pics of the champion with his extended family.

The view from  our hotel room. 

Hotel Pool 

The view at night- as we waited for the tsunami

Waiting for the tsunami 

The spelling bee is about to start. 

Calm as a cucumber. 

Orthographize.

Six of my students in the 7th and 8th grade have spent several weeks practicing for the national spelling bee in Palau. We had nightly sessions at my house in Angaur where we studied practice words from different origins. English words that have been adapted from other languages such as French, Spanish, Japanese, Slavic languages, German, and even some eponyms were all included in the practice lists. My students worked extremely hard and we were able to make it to Koror to compete.

While we were in Koror, we took advantage of our time there and did a few field trips. We went to Dolphin Pacific which is a non-profit, eco-tourism organization in Palau that gave us a tour of their facility and took the time to show us some of the feats their dolphins are trained to do. Also, we went to the Coral Reef Center and had a tour that showed the kids all of the species and varied habitats in Palau. Lastly, we went to the Belau National Museum. There we had a guide show us around the museum and walk us through Palau’s history- and the effects from the Spanish, German, Japanese, and Americans who have influenced this island over the years. Of course, while in Koror we took advantage of a few other treats we don’t usually get on Angaur: pizza, burgers, and ice cream!

The spelling bee was a success. My students did phenomenally well. Angaur has not participated for some time in this competition, at least a few years. Our geographic location and small enrollment has proven to be a hindrance in the past. Luckily our team had great support from the principal, teachers, and parents- as well as some of the state government officials. Without that support, I doubt that we would have been as successful as we were.

My sole 8th grade student, Tsun (I call him “Tsunami”- because he’s a force to be reckoned with) got first place. He spelled word after word correctly, and was up against one another one of the smartest students I’ve ever seen, a student from Koror (she was the returning champ). I was sitting on the edge of my seat watching these two students battle it out for the first place title. Then it happened, Tsun was to be given a word- and if spelled correctly, he’d win. The word: “Orthographize”. When I heard that, my heart sank- it was not a word we’ve studied. Frankly, it was not a word I even knew existed. But Tsun, like a pro, nailed it. Cheers and applause filled the room and his father rushed up and gave his son a huge hug.

Now- it gets even better. Because Tsun won the spelling bee, he gets to compete in the next stage of the bee. Tsun won an all expense paid trip to Guam for him and me, this coming weekend where we’ll compete Saturday night. Tsun has never been out of Palau, so he is very excited (and a little apprehensive) for trip. So, wish us luck this weekend, and I’ll update my blog with details from the spelling bee.

AND- for those of you, like me, who didn’t know what “Orthrographize” means “to spell correctly or according to usage; to correct in regard to spelling.”

When we arrived back in Angaur, everyone was there waiting for us. They gave a hero’s welcome to the students when they arrived.

The team.

My winning team and the trophy.

The top three winners, and their coaches (all Peace Corps Volunteers).

Our Champ and his family.

“Can you repeat the word please?” – Student
“Yes, your word is ‘thespian’” – Announcer

My team.

Our pre-Spelling Bee snack. Bem Armii- burgers and fries.

A special dinner put on by Angaur government officials to show their support for the students before the spelling bee.

My mama and me.

My 7th grader very excited to be learning about Palau’s history at the National Museum. I tried match his enthusiasm.

Watching a turtle at the Coral Reef Center.

At Dolphin Pacific, the kids got to be really close to the action.