English Camp! Success!

We woke up Friday morning, anxious to spend time with the local school children.  The schools here are preparing for summer vacation, but that doesn't mean that they aren't still serious about school.  It is very important that the children learn a second language, and in particular English. This skill gives them a better chance at finding a job when they get older.
After breakfast, we gathered in the Cafe to put finishing touches on our lessons. As the plans were ironed out, it was finally decided that the kids would rotate through the three language stations (rather than staying with the same group of 8 students all morning).
The three groups practiced their lessons and had them approved by Chris. Each of the three groups was confident about their lesson.

We had 30 students ages 9-11 come join us, with their English teacher and a couple other teachers from school.  We were getting a bit nervous about our lessons.  Would they be enough?

We learned quickly that our students knew a fair amount of English. We also learned that they copy/repeat, sometimes without understanding.

Team 1 started out with a great scavenger hunt around the property. They had drawn clues, taking the teams from one place to another. It was fun to see their excitement when figuring out the word/location. Once all the clues were discovered, they played tag and also did extra English lessons, like introducing themselves and their ages and learning about the members of their family.  This was a successful activity.

Team 2 taught a lesson about 10 different fruits.  Chris and Chris were a little nervous about how this was going to shake out, but, true to their enthusiasm, the team managed to have a combination of live fruit and some illustrations. They used different skills to engage the students, and should be proud of their work.

The students left this station with a crown that had a cut out of a fruit, and both the English and Thai version of the fruit written on either side.
The third group play What Time is it Mr. Water Buffalo.  They, too, met with good success. The kids caught on really well, and worked on their numbers.  All in all, it was a very productive morning.