Here is a quick update with some pictures.

Cesar's classes are winding down and he finished taking his MTEL (teacher test), which took literally all day. He left at 5:45 and did not get back until 7:30! He thinks he did well on it though. This week he will finish his last class and then will just teach in the morning for the last two weeks. I begin my program next week and I am very excited. Last night I went to see a "Tribute to August Wilson" that students from the school I will be working at performed. I went with a guy that I will be working with at the school and he seems great and really smart. I am definitely excited about starting the internship at Codman.

The kids are doing well. We have been spending a lot of time at the library reading on the rug, checking out books, listening to story times, participating in sing-alongs, and watching movies. It is an amazing library! Using the books that we have checked out or purchased, the kids and I have read a novel a day practically. They love just sitting and listening to me read and it is a nice way to prevent them from bothering each other.

We also went into the city to watch Winnie the Pooh and Sabine actually sat through the whole thing and watched it. Then we walked around trying to find something to eat and I was so surprised to find very little open on Sunday in the city. Harvard Square is overrun on Sunday with tourists and everything is open, so I was surprised that it was not the same in Boston. Anyway, we finally found a place that we never need to go to again and then we went to the park and let the kids play.


After reading a book on Jane Goodall during story time, Che decided he wanted to become a bird observer. So at the playground he began observing birds, brought them food, found a place where he could hide so as not to scare them but could still watch them. Then he came home and wrote down all his observations and drew pictures. He then put them all in a folder labeled "Things About Birds".

Another activity that was inspired by our reading was the creation of the Land of Oz map. After reading the novel, Che and I (with a little help from Sabine) created a detailed map of all of Oz using descriptions from the book to create it. It took us almost three hours to complete it and I kept asking Che if he wanted to stop and he said "no". He was really into it!


Sabine of course is also picking up little things here and there from books and repeating them, but two of things she said recently I can't figure out where she heard them from: "witches eat boogers" and "girls don't poop".

Last but not least, I have been running along the river (more like jogging) in the mornings. On one particularly nice morning, I saw the sun rise a bit over some tall Harvard buildings. It was beautiful, but it made me realize that I have not seen a single sunset in Cambridge, and that I miss the gorgeous sunsets in St. Croix. I am going to have to get out of the city and see a sunset soon...

Here is a picture of Che's "Thinking Cap" that he created:


Here are some pictures of the kids at our playground:


Here is a picture of Sabine "hiding" during Hide and Seek: