We're Still Waiting

On January 2 we were set apart as missionaries by our stake president in Orem to begin our Suva Fiji ITEP mission. Unfortunately we were still in the process of submitting our visa application and we were not able to travel to Fiji just yet and begin our mission. We finally got the application submitted about January 17. Since we weren't going yet, we went to California to help Abbie and James with their 3 cuties while they took a week trip with Debi & Phil (James's parents) to Maui. We were happy to help out. We love our grandkids and love the chance to be wtih them. Katie was already planning on helping out Wednesday through Saturday since we were suppose to be on our mission. We came the Thursday before and kept the kids Saturday to Wednesday. Katie came Tuesday and on Thursday, we flew to Honolulu for 5 days. We had previously found some super cheap flights to Oahu so since we were already in the LA area we decided to go. We spent 2 days in Honolulu and then met up with our ITEP missionary coordinators in Laie for 3 days. We did a few tourists things, went to Pearle Harbor, hiked Diamond Head, went to the Polynesian Cultural Center and to Kualoa Ranch where Jurassic World was filmed. While at the PPC we ran into our friends who taught English with us in China. I love surprises like that. They are from Idaho and were visiting Hawaii with their children. We also got to watch some professional surfers during the Billabong Pipeline Surfing Contest. Amazing surfers on some huge waves. We also toured the Dole Pineapple Plantation. We spent Sunday with Elder and Sister Johnson, our coordinators, walked the beach, went to church, walked around the temple grounds, and had dinner with them and another missionary couple who had previously been in Samoa as ITEP missionaries. On Monday we toured BYUH and talked with Jonathan Shute, who is the BYUH professor over the ITEP program. We got him excited to try and get ITEP missionaries all on the same entering and leaving track and do more formal trainings before entering the mission field. As ITEP missionaries we teach BYUH education courses to teachers in Fiji who do not have teaching certificates. The church owns 2 schools in Suva, a Primary School K-6 and the Fiji LDS Church College which teaches 7-13. So the low down is, we are still in Utah and have not yet received our visa. We spoke with our mission president, Brad Markus, a week ago Saturday. He had submitted our application to the immigration department and thought it would be another month. As we continued to talk with him, he decided to see if he could get us there on a tourist visa, which would be much faster. We got really excited with that idea but have not heard anything since. I really thought we would be out of here by March 1 but seeing that it is only 7 days away and haven't received any flight information, I don't think we're going to make it. So just as things have gone for the past 23 months, we wait. We wait and we wait and we wait. Isaiah 40:31 "But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength." And in Alma 32:42 we learn that when we are patient..."by and by ye shall pluck the fruit thereof." We could sure use strength and knowing that blessings will come. We shall continue to be patient and wait upon the Lord and His timing so that we will one day "pluck the fruit." We WILL make it to Fiji and have the opportunity to teach the fine teachers at the schools and help in any other ways that they need. We just don't know when. But check back soon. We're hopeful. Here's some pictures in no particular order from the 2 weeks in California and Hawaii. 

Elder Bill & Sister Ravae Johnson

Kim and I at the temple

Kualoa Ranch with Elder & Sister Johnson

Schramm Fam 

Macie lost her first tooth while Abbie & James were in Hawaii. Macie was so excited but her mom and dad were not too happy that they missed it!

Jurassic World

FIJI

Bob & Debbie Bowen! Such a fun surprise!

We met this man at the buffet at the PCC. He is from Fiji and we know his cousin who teaches at the LDS College.

Pipeline Surfing Contest

Honolulu

At the top of Diamond Head. You can see forever!

Dole Pineapple Whip....soooooo good!

Hukilau Beach like the song and dance. This is the place! Who knew? Not me! And I taught my class the hukilau when I taught Kindergarten way back. I think it was the year that Abbie was in my class.

Jurassic World

Stopped at a food truck that is famous for their garlic shrimp! AMAZING! So good.

Dinner with Elder and Sister Johnson and Elder and Sister Lloyd, former ITEP missionaries in the Pacific, now missionaries in Hawaii.

Everyone always rants and raves about the Hawaii Shaved Ice. We tried a couple of places that were good but no better than what you get in Utah. But our last night there, the Johnsons took us to this place where we found out why people rant and rave about the "shave ice". I don't know how they get it so fine and soft. It just melts in your mouth. Abbie described it like snow! So glad we finally got to experience it.

13th Year Mentors

Just a little background information before I get started.  During the last school year, shortly after we arrived in Fiji, the teachers that teach the year 9 students asked to have a meeting with Kim and I.  Of course we agreed.  They were very concerned about the number of students that they felt were reading way below grade level and because of it, they were not able to be successful in their classes.  At that time, I tested 12-15 students and the teachers were correct.  They were reading on a level anywhere from beginning first grade to 5th grade. Many of those reading at 4th and 5th grade levels could read accurately but had very little comprehension.  Part of this stems from English being their second language.

After testing the students we met with the teachers again and I gave them the information that I found.  The next question was, now what?  What do we do for these students? We talked about several options.  One of them was for me to teach these teachers some reading strategies that they could teach their students.  Another was for us to start a tutoring program with the 13th year students.  Teach and train students to tutor younger students who were below grade level.  By now, it's October.  To start a tutoring program would be fruitless since school is over mid November.   So, I started tutoring one student who couldn't read at all.  We couldn't come up with a time that I could train the teachers on what to do with these students who can't read so that was put on hold.  (I always felt bad that it never happened because to me that was the best option.  They need to know how they can help their students!)  We had a meeting with the 12th year students, those that would be 13th years the follow year, (at least those that were present. Many students stop coming  or come less often to school towards the end of the year because they have taken their year end tests and they don't see a need to be there.) We explained the tutoring idea to the students.   Kim did most of this.  He helped them to see that this would be a Christ-like service.  That they would be able to develop skills that could be helpful for them the remainder of their lives.  That this would help them when they become parents.  And that they may see that they like teaching and put their studies towards becoming an educator.   We gave them applications to sign up if they were interested.  There were about 15 students that signed up.

Once school got started again in January.  We worked with the councilor to find a time when these students would be available to do the tutoring.  It turned out that the majority of them had a study period together.  There were a few that had class during that time that prevented them from joining the tutoring program.  We changed the program to a mentoring program and I began teaching them the things they needed to know to help them tutor a student.  I taught them the early reading behaviors, reading strategies, how words work, how to take a running record, writing activities and strategies and how a tutoring lesson might work.  Then I had to teach them HOW to test the students.  This took about 4 weeks.  The teachers gave us 50 names of students they thought could benefit from the tutoring and we began testing.  For the first couple of days, it was pretty chaotic.  When you think you've taught, you find out there are things you miss or they didn't understand.  But after 2 weeks of testing we had figured out who the 12 students would be that would be tutored.  There were 3 students reading level B (end of kindergarten level), 3 students on 1st grade levels (E, G, J),  2 on a 2nd grade level and the rest were 3rd grade levels.  We got permission from parents to pull them out of class every day for 30 minutes.  The electrician teacher donated his room since he didn't have a class during the time we were going to tutor.  We were set and ready to go.

Once the students started coming, I realized again that there is just so much teaching the mentors needed that I obviously didn't teach well or they just didn't understand.  I was constantly giving them reminders and explaining things to them.  Then we had teachers that started to be concerned that the students were missing out on too much instruction time in class.  We had to make sure that those students were only tutored for 20 minutes.  We had about 2 successful weeks of tutoring (which we called mentoring) when the virus struck and schools were closed and the program was abruptly ended!  We can only hope that once we get back and running again, that the mentors will have retained their knowledge of reading and will be able to get back to tutoring these students.

Here's a few pictures of this amazing adventure and learning experience for all of us.  I sure grew to love these 12 students that were the mentors.  They are great great great kids.

 TRAINING BEGINS

 First training lesson complete.  These were the only mentors. Five more joined in the next day or two.  L to R: Adrian, Maira, AJ, Lani, Vanessa, Kasa and Samuel.

 TUTORING FINALLY BEGINS:

 Met with probably a year 7 student.

 AJ with a year 10 or 11 student.

 Melania with a year 12 student.

 Joseph with a year 10 student.  Maira behind doing some prep work.

 Lani doing some preliminary testing.

Adrian and Vanessa getting their binders ready.

 Just giving a little personal instruction and help to Adrian.

Nabuika (Bull) is here!  We invited all mentors to our flat for a reward pizza and movie night.

L to R: Bull, Joseph, Ama (Reama), AJ and Melania

 Vanessa, AJ and Ama.

Metui (Met) and Bull

Adrian, Ama, Joseph, Me, Melania, Vanessa, AJ, Bull and Met

Melania, Adrian and Ama

 Just a reminder that they really are just high school kids. 😂😂

 We had a great discussion about their dreams and future plans.

 Group Picture: Starting in the back and moving forward: 

Bull, Vanessa, Lani, Melania, Maira, Me

Joseph, Adrian, Ama, AJ 

Kasa and Met 

Kasa and Met are the head students at the school.  Kind of like being the student body president only there are 2-a female and a male.

 Time to go home.  One of the teachers came and picked them up in the school van.  The policy is if it's a school sponsored activity then it's the school's responsibility to make sure they get home. 

 The secretary took these 3 home in her car that was already full with her 3 children. But don't worry, "the police go to sleep so it's ok!" 😂😂😂

 Maira, Kasanita, and I can't remember her name. 

Kasanitais the head student (female student body president) and these are her assistants.  Two out of the 3 are mentors.  The girl on the right wanted to be a mentor but she had an accounting class at the same time of the mentoring class. 

 The male prefects being announced.  All 3 head prefects are mentors. This is Joseph and Adrian, both assistants and Met is on the stage after just being announced to be the Head Male Student.

The pinning of prefects is a big deal.  There are many students that are pinned prefects.  They all have different responsibilities in helping with the school.  Here are the head prefects with their assistants with Elder and Sister Johansson, area authority.  They were the guest speakers.  

Adrian, Joseph, Metui, Elder Adolf Johansson, Sister Martha Johansson, Kasanita, LaMaira, and ??. This shows you the caliber the mentor students are.  They are wonderful young men and women.

The last day we were at the school, we cleaned up our office and put everything away just in case we don't return.  Then we handed out the pins we had for the mentors and their students.  They were to receive them after teaching 20 lessons.  I'm so sad that they never had the opportunity to complete the program.  They were just getting the hang of it.  Samuel was so proud to get his pin. 😃