Amira’s first day of kindergarten!  She is attending the American International School of Abuja.  We’ve been told that there are approximately 50 countries represented within the student body.  The school is attended primarily by families that fit the in the business, embassy, and political realm.  25% of the students are from America, 25% are from Nigeria, and the last 50% of the students are from other nations.  She is in Kindergarten Blue and has 20 students in her class.  She is one of the few American’s in her class but is the second Amira.  Amira’s head teacher is from Australia but spent many years in the Netherlands.  The teacher helper is from Nigeria.  Only 5 students showed up the first day of school...many were still traveling back to Nigeria from the summer holiday, as people say here.  We will post more pictures once we download them.  

 

It was very exciting to see Amira in such an international setting.  But I was as sad as I was excited.  Last year Amira attended Oakdale Christian School.  It was an amazing school!  The teachers love for the children showed through the way they interacted with the children, the way they viewed each child as a whole person and child of God, and also by  the way they opened the classroom and learning to parents.  I did not get this same feeling from Amira’s new school.  Our friend Sheila teaches grade three at this school.   It has been very helpful using Sheila as a resource in order to learn more about the culture within the school.  She commented that last year there were several parents she never saw in her classroom the entire year.  This seems to be a culture of it’s own and will take some time for us to learn.   I need to be patient and learn more about this new school system...but my stomach is just in knots right now!  I’m missing the “back to school letters” we got last year, the home visit we received from Amira’s teacher, and the communication that established trust, allowing us to confidently send our child into another person’s care.  

 

We’re praying for a good year!  

 

photo:  A bit fuzzy since it was taken with our carry-in-the-purse camera.  Amira is standing on the front steps of the American International School of Abuja (AISA).