We're Moving!

As you’ve seen, we’ve experienced tremendous growth in the Tutoring Center over this last year. Most days we have more kids coming than we have time or space for. While we don’t have any more helpers, yet, we do have a new facility for the coming school year. A good size house is available to rent in a nearby neighborhood where many of our kids live. In this new space we will be able to have more students as well as offer a greater variety of services. For me, this is the beginning of a dream come true. Since we opened the Tutoring Center in 2009, I always hoped it would grow into a little community center where we could do cooking and gardening with the kids; offer parenting and adult literacy classes, and hold a lending library with all the books we rescued from the California school system. We now have the space to do it, we just need the helpers and the funds to get started.


If you are interested in knowing more about this new stage and how you can be involved, click here. Or send me an email krystaleanne9@gmail.com


We are extremely thankful to Ricardo and Giannina and everyone at La Iglesia Reformada, for so generously sharing their space with us over the last year and a half. They truly have been a huge blessing and wonderful friends. It will be sad not being right next door to them, but I know our relationship with them will continue to grow.

Helpers

Over the last few months, it seems the kids have had more days where school was canceled than days they actually attended. As result, they want to spend the whole day at the Tutoring Center. Unfortunately there is not enough for them to do, (they have no homework since there is no school) and there is definitely not enough room for all the kids to be there at the same time. I feel really bad about having to tell the kids, "No, you can't come study right now", especially when I know they have nothing else to do. But there is no way two teachers can help more than 15 kids at the same time when they all are working on different things, even if we did have space for them.

One day, after a week of no classes, one of my 5th graders had an idea. "What if I come back in the afternoon, and I can help you tutor the little kids?" Great idea! That afternoon she came back with a group of five other 5th and 6th graders who proved to be amazing teacher's assistants. At one point Leah and I had nothing to do, because everyone was working so well and independently with their student teachers. While I wish the kids would have school everyday, this new systems seems to be working out well. The older kids are learning responsibility, patience, and creative thinking. The younger kids receive more personalized attention. Everyone wins!

Alicia and Christian working on Math problems


Fabian and Yurly learning about the difference between domestic and wild animals


Catalina teaching Ana how to estimate measurements


Karla and Brayan working on color and letter recognition

Spontaneous Visit

As I've said before, there's no substitute for being able to share life here, first-hand with friends and family. A few weeks ago, Leah and I had the immense joy of showing our dear friend Sarah around our world here in Costa RIca. She bravely took a few days off of work, traveled over night, and was ready to jump right in. She went to Girls' Group with us, taught 5th grade math with her emerging Spanish skills, rode the busy buses, experienced all our favorite places downtown, got to know most of our family community, and even had time to relax at the beach for a few days! Thank you Sarah, for coming and walking though daily life with us.


Sarah, Leah, and I



Sarah and I outside of our favorite coffee shop



We spent a lot of time just hanging out and talking. It was sooo good!

Catalina

Today I had a great afternoon working with Catalina. She first started coming to the Center over a year ago. In the beginning, whenever she faced a difficult problem or question, she would just give up or take on a horrible attitude. It was so difficult working with her, but bit-by-bit we built up her confidence. Today in class she was introduced to the concept of least common multiples. She didn't understand the teacher's explanation, but wrote down everything on the board. The test on this concept isn't for two more weeks, but she wanted to start figuring it out today. (Already this marks a huge improvement.) We sat there together for over an hour and half, working on her math homework. Me, trying to re-learn the concept from an old Spanish math textbook we have in the center and then trying to explain it using the new vocabulary I just learned in a way a twelve year old can understand. Catalina, faithfully applying her multiplication tables she has finally mastered to figure out multiples of 28, 76, 114. Once Catalina finished all of her homework, which also included identifying prime numbers and determining the divisibility of other numbers, she asked if I could give her more numbers to practice finding the least common multiple. She wanted to make sure she really understood how to do it on her own. A few minutes later, I saw Catalina using her extra practice sheet to teach one of the other 5th graders how to find the least common multiple. I was so proud of her. She has grown so much in this last year.

Even though this may seem like such a small thing, a child doing her homework, for me it marks a change that has taken place in Catalina's character. She no longer is afraid to attempt things she doesn't understand right away. She has developed the confidence and perseverance to figure it out. Furthermore, rather than being smug in now having something she can do but another cannot, she shares her knowledge and patiently walks them through the steps she has just learned. This is the change I long to see in each of our kids. While learning the math concept itself is great, the character development is infinitely more valuable. This is why we do what we do.

Catalina playing "What is my occupation?" at Girls' Group.

Two Years

On October 22, I celebrated 2 years of being here in Costa Rica. I many ways I feel like I've been here infinitely longer-- I can't remember what is likes to be able to do all ten items on your to-do list in one day, or to experience consecutive days without rain. I'm overwhelmed when I look around the Tutoring Center seeing 20 kids there nearly everyday, and wonder how we grew so fast. But I also thought I would be perfectly fluent in Spanish by now, able to discuss philosophy and my greatest dreams without thinking about how to conjugate verbs or where to put pronouns. (I'm learning to recognize this is an unrealistic goal )

I love Costa Rica and love the work I get to be a part of here. Yes, it is so hard being away from family and community. I often feel like I'm missing out on huge pieces of your lives, and it's challenging to share life here in away that makes sense for those of you who've never been here. But we are trying.

My initial 2 year community with SI is up, but I don't feel my time in Costa Rica has come to an end. I'm extending my commitment for another year. There are many exciting things coming up, especially with the Tutoring Center. I'm excited to see where we will go.

Here are a few of my favorite things....

Family, Friends-both new and old








Outdoor Adventures







Exploring San Jose





Our kids!

Girls' Group Weekend!

To end our first official term of Girls' Group we had the great privilege of taking our girls to the beach for the weekend. For most of them it was their first time ever to see the ocean even though they only live two hours away from it. Beyond opening up their world, the weekend was a special time for us to deepen our relationship with the girls outside of our normal, more formal structure. There were many good conversations and sharing moments nestled in all of the giddy laughter and high-pitched screams. It was a weekend packed full of first time adventures and bonding experiences. Girls, who before this trip, would not have considered the other a friend, now share inside jokes and countless wonderful memories. And what's even better, there's a whole other handful of girls who want to be a faithful part of Girls' Group when the new session starts up at the end of this month.

All of us getting ready to leave from the Tutoring Center: 6 girls, Erin Janzen, Giannina, Leah and myself.


First sight of the beach


Leah was plugging her ears the screams were so loud!


The house we stayed at had a pool, and I think the girls liked it almost as much as the beach.




After lunch we convinced them the beach really would be as much fun as the pool...


First steps in the ocean; they were not disappointed.


Catalina filled her swimsuit with shells, while repeatedly asking, "No one is going to get mad at me for taking all of these? Will more shells come?" She was baffled, overwhelmed, and so excited all at the same time.




Everyone had a buddy so no one got accidentally swept away by the waves. None of the girls actually know how to swim.




Maria wasn't too sure about the ocean water, but she loved collecting shells and walking along the beach.


Burying Estefani in the sand.


The girls love cooking together. It was a great experience to share in the meal preparation. We were a little worried the girls would miss their typical beans and rice, but they did well with peanut butter and jelly, spaghetti, and pancakes.


Every slumber party needs great pajamas, especially matching ones



Down below the bridge are giant crocodiles, another first for the girls


One last special treat: McDonalds. The girls got just a little excited when they learned about "free refills".



There's so many pictures and stories I could share from the weekend. If you want to see more you can check out the rest here, and if you want to hear more about our time, send me an email. Thank you to everyone for all of your encouraging words, thoughts, and prayers when we first stepped out and started Girls' Group. It has been an incredible blessing to be apart of these girls' lives and to be able see how setting aside a special time for them makes such an impact in their lives. Even though at times it is so challenging, I look forward to being able to continue to walk alongside them and pour into the new girls joining our group.

Loving

Yes, I run a tutoring center in Los Guido. Yes, I am a university trained teacher. I have lots of great ideas of how to make learning fun and engaging, involving various learning styles and never staying too long on one activity so kids don't get board. But most days, this is not what my children need most. They need someone who sees all of them and is able to respond to that with love and patience. As the kids trust us more, they let us into their worlds, their worlds that are often just barely hanging in balance, their worlds that affect every other interaction and decision. Being let in is a great privilege, but also an overwhelming responsibility. I now know that Maria calling other children ugly and stupid mostly likely stems from the fact her mom does the same thing to her, as we witnessed during a recent home visit. By no means does this make it okay for Maria to say these derogatory things to her classmates, but it's not a simple as saying, "Marie, we don't say things like that because it's not nice." This is a just a small example.

Each day there are countless interactions like this, many being much more severe in nature. I would like to say I embrace them all as "teachable moments" and we have calm discussions through each misstep, but we all know this impossible, especially in a second language. I would like to be able to stop and with patience and love talk with the child about why she is acting this way, why he said that, why she hates her. And sometimes it possible. But most of the time it's not. There are 15 other kids who need individual attention in that moment. Kids who's moms have brought them to get help with their homework, since after all, we are a tutoring center. This tension of seemingly conflicting goals (educational support v. overall life support) is something I struggle with almost everyday. I know that education is really just a vehicle to relationship and life change, but that vehicle needs to be effective if we are going to keep using it. But I don't want to be so stuck to the expressed educational goals, that I miss loving and serving the whole child.

The truth is, these kids have my heart. I will do pretty much anything to help them. This is why weeks like these last few, where almost everyday we have some melt-down or blow-up in the Center, are so personally challenging. I want to do right by my kids. I want to love them in the best way possible, but so often I don't know what that is or how to do it. No amount of university training can teach you that.

But I try my best. I stumble through Spanish. I hug them. I cry on my way home. And I trust that as much as I love them, God loves them infinitely more. Where my feeble attempts fail, he is still caring for them. He knows their situations, their language, their hearts. He can speak to them where my words are a jumbled mess of misused pronouns and conditional tense. He can embrace them when they run out of the Tutoring Center before I ever have a chance to talk to them. He loves them (and me) more than I can comprehend.

And so I go to the Tutoring Center each day, heart ready to love, knowing it will be hard and it will probably hurt, but trusting that I don't have to do it all.

Some of our faithful students. These kids are there everyday!

From Center Time

This is what it looks like most days as we walk out of Los Guido, a host of kids accompanying us to the car or bus stop.

Family Time!

There's nothing quite like being able to share your life first-hand with the one's you love. Certainly one of the greatest challenges of living in Costa Rica is being so far away from my family and friends. That distance is compound by the fact the daily factors of my life here are so foreign to most people living in the States. They can't fully understand how tiring it can be to take buses everywhere; or how going to the grocery store isn't a simple exercise; or how road construction can completely change the local public school schedule for months thus effecting everything at the Tutoring Center. These are things that no matter how hard I try, cannot be fully understood from a distance. So to be able to have my mom, dad, and brother, Benje, be able to come down and live life with me for bit, was such a blessing. They road the bus, hung out with my kids at the Center, experienced San Jose, and explored the beauty of Costa Rica. It was so wonderful to be able to catch up on life over long dinners and lazy afternoons at the beach. No matter how good technology is, it's not the same as being able to sit with the one's you love. Though I will always wish I could have more time with them, I am so thankful that each was able to come and share in life here.


Click on the picture below to see the rest of the photos from our time together.

Family Time

Summer Wrap-up

Things are beginning to settle down a little after our packed summer season. We had quite a few groups of great helpers come work alongside us in the Tutoring Center. It's always good to have extra hands and loving hearts. Plus, the kids at the Center love getting to meet new people and get a kick out trying to help the teams practice their Spanish. Even though the teams are only here for such a short time, I know that lives are being impacted. It's difficult at the end of the two weeks, both for the American students and our kids to say goodbye. Our hope is that these experiences will have a life-growing impact for both groups. Thank you to everyone who came and shared life with us this summer. We hope you have taken what you learned here and are continuing to serve and have an impact back home in your community.


Playing "What is my profession?" with the girls as we talked about Dreams and Goals during Girls' Group.


An impromptu recess. The kids love when teams come because they get to play more games and run around outside since we have extra people to help supervise.


Silly boys!


Ki and Rebecca working on a puzzle during break time.

Blake's Here!

I know this is a little late, but the last few months have been a bit busy. Blake is here for 9 months to work on his Spanish and help out with SI. He's getting ready to move in with a Costa Rican host family, but it has been so fun having him at my house for the last 2 months. We haven't lived together since he was eleven years old, so we all kinds of new things to learn about each other. Luckily, his new host family is just a short walk from my house, so we'll still be seeing lots of each other. I'm so grateful to be able to share this experience of living and working in Costa Rica, with my little brother. He continues to be a source of encouragement and inspiration to me.

Museo de Niños

For awhile now, Leah and I have been talking about wanting to take our kids to the great Children’s Museum in San Jose. We were a little overwhelmed by the thought of how to organize such an event, especially the task of keeping track of all the kids while in the museum. We finally decided we would brave the outing during winter vacation when we would have the help of short-term team members in keeping the kids together in the museum. I called the museum and set up a tour. They even waived the kids’ entrance fee. We decided to limit the trip to kids 8 years old and above, since we only had 20 spots. There were a lot of really sad 7 year olds, but we promised we’d do another trip soon.

On the day of the outing, we had a great ratio of 2 to 1, children to adults. When we arrived at the museum, I was so thankful we had so many helpers. They actually closed entrance to the museum for the rest of the day shortly after we got there, because there were already so many people there. Inside was packed, but the kids didn’t seem to mind. They had a great time weaving in between the crowds, trying out all the hands on activities they’d never seen before. I loved getting to watch the kids investigate and experience so many new things. Julio, my 8 year old counterpart, kept turning around and yelling, “Look at this!!! Look at this!!!”, before dashing off to something new.
The kids had so much fun! For most of them, it was their first experience going to a museum. I can’t wait to take the kids there again. There was so much in museum we couldn’t see as a result of time and it being over-crowded. Hopefully next time I’ll be able to take the 7 year olds too.

Everyone on the bus

From Vacation and Museum

Exploring the Train


Catalina and Marjorie


Roger


Reyner learning about banana production, one of the major exports in Costa Rica


Waiting to go into the radio recording studio


"Shopping" in the grocery store and learning about healthy food choices


Several of the kids were so wiped out they fell asleep on the bus ride home, but not Julio.