The end of my Internship

As with many things, the last day of school at Tot To Teen School was quite different than the last day of any school that I have ever been to. The school basically has a dance party the whole entire day with a hired DJ not screening any of the songs. The DJ played the most popular Ghanaian and American music and the kids just danced the whole day in the courtyard of the school with basically no supervision. The teachers are busy finishing up grading all the work and some kids must sit there and help them to compile the grades. Other than the students helping the teachers, the kids basically just ran and danced around the school for a day making is complete chaos. Also, many of these kids can really dance, quite provocatively may I add. Many Ghanaians are really talented dancers (my Ghanaian friends always make fun of how Americans dance) and I learned that the talent comes at quite a young age. I spent the day taking lots of pictures (don’t worry, I will upload them finally when I get back to the States) and saying goodbye, which was sad.

Overall I had a great experience working at the school. I definitely learned a lot and gained a lot of confidence standing in front of the classroom. I was slightly nervous that I would begin teaching and realize that I didn’t like it and make a major career change, but that was not the case. Rather, I confirmed my love for teaching. Over the course of the semester I hope that I have taught the children well and that I have made a lasting impression. I think that I taught them most about life and America. There is a common misconception that everyone is American is rich and that whoever moves to America will be instantly rich as well. I tried to disprove this theory (especially to the teachers who are the main proponents). I think I definitely showed them at not everything is perfect in the USA (in fact, we are far from perfect).

Also, for the vast majority of the students, I was the first Jews they had ever met (as is true with most Ghanaians I meet). When I first told the students I was Jewish when I left for Israel I asked them if they had any questions about being Jewish. Most of them had heard of Jews before, but that was basically it. I gave a basic explanation about only believing in the Old Testament and a few more details. The kids asked lots of questions ranging in topics. One girl who had lived in America for three years asked me to discuss the Holocaust with the class because she knew that most Ghanaians do not learn about it. She had gone to school in New York City and began to learn about the Holocaust in 3rd grade. So even though the students are in 6th grade, they had never even heard of it and she thought it was important for the other kids to be more aware. I briefly explained WWII and the Nazi and concentration camps. They were really engaged and asked many questions, which is especially important because this may very well be their only exposure to learning about the Holocaust in a somewhat formal setting.

As you may have notices, in the end I had a great experience at my internship. I made many close ties with students and staff. Some of the male staff even wanted to marry me, which is not unusual. (I get proposals on a fairly regular basis, probably a couple times a week). I really did grow a lot and I was so thankful to the staff at the school for helping me to develop.