Opportunity Knocks

The biggest needs are not always the most obvious or expected. One of the biggest needs we have encountered here is the need for teachers at Bingham Academy, the international school that our kids attend. We knew before we came that having a good, affordable school for our kids to attend was very much a “make-it-or-break-it” issue for us. Many other parents, who are involved in numerous vital ministries in this country, feel the same way. Bingham Academy exists to serve families like ours, that simply couldn’t be here otherwise, as well as numerous local children. But in order to make the school affordable (other international schools are typically upwards of $20,000/year/child), the teachers come and teach at the school as a ministry in itself.

MalEvGetting qualified teachers that are willing to do this is not easy, however. Last spring, when the school was facing a critical shortage of teachers (including an ESL teacher, which I am licensed and qualified for), I started wondering if that was where God was leading me.

To make a long story short, I now teach ESL and Learning Support at Bingham three days/week. I get to work with kids with all sorts of different ages, nationalities, personalities, strengths, and needs. The nature of the job is that the kids I teach are all struggling in school in one way or another, so it has been immensely challenging as I try to discern how to best help each child. But it has also been incredibly rewarding. I love getting to know the kids and investing in their lives, and I love being back in a school setting.

DSC_4187Between teaching at Bingham and English training with national translators, I’m pretty sure I have the best of both worlds!

 

Pictured: Fourth graders playing near their classroom; Mama Nomuula in front of her office; the Monkey and her friend; the Engineer and his classmates cheering for their team