Settling into life in Ft. Dauphin
We’ve been in Ft. Dauphin a little over two weeks now. I have to remind myself of that when I feel frustrated with myself for not knowing how to do something simple, because it feels like we’ve been here longer. We made friends with our host family on our big trip in 2022. They are wonderful people, and when the opportunity to assist with their Montessori school came up I was delighted. They have two kids S’s age and five dogs.
Dogs in school means a happy S
We arrived at 3:00 am Thursday morning and slept a little, I got up and went to school around 9:00 because I was so excited, but I gave the boys the day off.
They mostly relaxed in our studio apartment, but as soon as the school day ended S was out playing with his old friends. His initial shyness was very brief, and they have played together at every opportunity since.
C is taking a college class, and thought he enrolled in a condensed version starting in October so he would have time to get settled here first. It started just before we left, so he had some catching up to do and has been very busy with that. He’s all caught up now though. and we’re adding his other subjects back in as we can.
I’ve been busy with school and setting up our little house. I love our view.
Its a small space, but Sean and I are at school during the day and we have access to that building for evenings and weekends as well. Collin practices violin there, for example. We also know that many people here would find our little place to be quite luxurious.
I’m getting the hang of shopping, which is a little trickier when working. Fruits and veggies are usually sold on the streets, but they’re out by the time I get there, so need to get better at planning and buying ahead on weekends.
My principal and I have gotten into a routine of an early morning walk to set intentions for the day. Is beautiful, always.
Fishing boats going out
The best part by far for me is school. The kids and teachers both are so excited to learn. We already have implemented early language lessons in both French and Malagash and the kids are so excited to be on the road to reading. I’m excited to see the difference I’m making in just a short time.
First ever Malagash lesson in Nightingale Montessori Sound Shapes TM
Reviewing math scope and sequence
It’s been a busy and wonderful two weeks. We, in Ft. Dauphin, remain unaffected by the protests that are going on in various cities around Madagascar.