End of Our First Class

Giant Clam on South Side of the Island of Upolu, Samoa.

We did it!  We officially taught the last lesson of our class Foundations of Education EDU 212 for BYU-Hawaii.  Their final is this coming week.  We are already starting to prepare for the next class on teaching English through sheltered instruction (BYU-H EDU 340)

We had a wonderful time this Friday attending Sauniatu day celebrating the organization of the town and the visit of David O’Mckay.  He gave an apostolic blessing to the people and the town.  You can still feel a powerfully peaceful feeling when you enter it.  There were speeches, dancing, songs, and a feast of mammoth proportions.  Of course, we were put in the front of the crowd and given their finest food.  These people are so kind and respectful.  It makes us want to do a really good job here when we serve them.  We are hoping that we can get 4 of the teachers at Sauniatu to pass their English test in two weeks.  They can get their ITEP certificates as soon as they pass this test.  Janice has been working with them.

We traveled to the south side of the island yesterday and snorkeled out to the giant clam sanctuary.  The clams grow up to 3 feet across and have beautiful colors.  The tropical fish swim in and out of their open clam shells but if you put your hand close, they close up quickly.

We are working hard every day and hit the bed exhausted every night.  We are working on our Samoan and feel it a privilege to be here serving.  We are very happy!

Beautiful Gift from the Uili Family