One Week and Counting...

Our departure for Uganda is fast approaching!  With just a week until we leave, the sudden reality of this trip is starting to sink in, causing some nerves in making sure I will have everything I would need and am ready for working with the Academy, as well as some excitement in the fact that it's almost here!

During my prep, I was fortunate to already have a few items on hand from past excursions abroad.  That being said, there was still quite a few pieces to look into and acquire before going to Uganda.  Vaccinations are needed, Malaria pills prescribed, ample amount of insect and sun protection gathered, and making sure wardrobe pieces were suitable for the more conservative area without melting in the 90+ degree temperatures.  The heat will most certainly be a bit of a change from the current climate here in Virginia (as I write this, it's currently foggy, raining, and set-in-your-bones chilly outside)!

As for the work we'll be doing with the Arlington Academy of Hope, we're currently putting together our strategies and materials for the workshops to be done with teachers at the Academy as well as teachers in government-run outreach schools.  The two main instructional strategies we'll be working on with them are differentiation strategies and grouping strategies.  I'm working with Rob, Dillon, and Pim on the grouping strategies portion of the workshop.  We plan to present, emulate, and practice a number of different grouping strategies with the teachers to give them different options to incorporate into their classrooms.  We'll have 60 minutes for our portion of the workshop at the Academy to do this (30 minutes at the outreach schools), and while that seems like a lot of time, I have a feeling it'll fly by!  I'm looking forward to meeting and working with these teachers to both help them improve their own teaching styles as well as expanding and learning more of my own.

I'm anticipating this trip to be very enlightening, eye-opening, and an all-around great experience.  This is a unique opportunity and I plan to step on the plan next week with an open mind to be sure I take in as much as I can.

That's all for me- back to packing, prepping, and crossing the days off the calendar!

Ryann

Preparing for Teaching Differentiation

Center for Global Education

 Marymount University, Arlington, Virginia

This afternoon, Kelsey, Kristina, Kara and me (Sue), met at Reinsch Library to plan our Professional Development Presentation on Differentiation for the teachers at the Arlington Academy of Hope near Mbale, Uganda. What was evident from the moment we started talking, was our excitement to share our teaching experiences with the staff at AAH. We look forward to getting to know the teachers and their students, so that we can offer effective Differentiation strategies for their practice. All of us anticipate a valuable and unique learning experience that we will remember throughout our careers as educators. 

We also tried to focus on the educational needs of the students at AAH, although we acknowledged that our understanding at this point is somewhat limited. This didn't deter our robust brainstorming, which led us from defining Differentiation, to contemplating how best to teach the instructional process from pre-assessing to post-assessing, as well as including diverse learning styles and the importance of higher-order thinking skills. If we missed metacognition, we'll include it next time we plan! In a very short period of time, we had many ideas for structuring and supporting our presentation.

As we prepare for our time in Uganda, we wondered about how we can best collaborate with the teachers at AAH and the outreach schools. The conversation also kept returning to our anticipation of meeting the students who attend AAH. The opportunities we will have to interact and teach the children of this community will be the highlight of our trip to Uganda. We are confident that our collaboration with AAH's teachers will positively benefit their students' lifelong love of learning. 

Thank you, Sue.

Getting ready!

I've been excited about our upcoming trip to Uganda for a long time, and finally our departure date is less than a month away. When I spent time at the Arlington Academy of Hope last summer, I got to observe many classrooms at the Arlington Junior School and the outreach schools. I was inspired by the enthusiasm at the school -- the teachers are so dedicated and seem to really love their work and their students. We are going to deliver a teacher training workshop, but I am looking forward to once again learning from the AAH teachers too.

I have lived, worked, and travelled in more than a dozen countries on the African continent, and bringing students who are experiencing this part of the world for the first time is a special treat. In 2012 I took Marymount students to Senegal and they helped me to rediscover the wonder of seeing Senegal with new eyes. I can't wait to travel with this group!