Helenenorth

 Hello everyone Yes--27 more days--nineteen or less teaching days--.  The adventure continues.  At least the weather is warm and sunny today--but who knows, it might be a blizzard tomorrow.  Snow stays right through until July, if you can believe it!! Covid is surging once again in the village, so very few students are coming to school.  On Friday, I had 6 out of 11.  The high school side had about 10 kids--very discouraging.   They are having last classes on Monday and then they swing into exams.  There are about 60 kids registered in grades 7-12.  Because school has been closed for more then 40 days this year, the students will not be doing the provincial exams, they will be doing the in school exams--if they show up. On the intermediate side, 3-6, we have about 34 students.  I have the largest class at 13--but I have never had full attendance.  Here in Quebec, they use letter grades, for everyone.  I find this so stupid...

 Greetings---where does the time go when you are having fun!!  Yes, about 4 more weeks, and then this chapter will be over.  I spent sometime this morning go back over the last 10 months, what an adventure!! The new experiences continue to happen.  A lovely young couple has joined us from the south.  The young woman is a member of the Canadian volleyball team, and she is working for Volleyball Canada.  They pay her way to come to northern communities to promote volleyball, and that is just what she is doing.  Today, she organized a community tournament, and she got a great turn out.  She is hoping to put together a girls team and then take them to a tournament in another community.  This is all paid for by the Volleyball association!  Her partner is the "super sub".  He is available to replace people who are away for the day.  They both are enthusiastic and good hearted people! The weather has been between a blast of winter wit...

 Hello everyone Life continues to be interesting here.  For the last week, people from all over Nunavik have gathered in our school gym for meetings.  It has been so interesting to watch the many people come and go.  All ages are represented.  Yesterday, an elderly lady with a walking cane struggled in.  At the end of the meeting, she needed help down the stairs, and then she proceeded to jump on her ski doo and zoom away!! There was a big feast on Tuesday evening--I was invited, but didn't go because I was too tired!!  However, last Friday, there was a mini feast in the kitchen.  The Inuit spread cardboard on the floor.  Everyone sat around on the perimeter.  The raw, frozen meat including ptarmigan, caribou, whale and seal was sliced thinly with the ulu and people ate it with their fingers.  Some spread a little salt on the cardboard, and then rubbed the meat into it before eating.  I liked it--like Inuit Sushi! We had our fi...

 Greetings all Where is the time going??  Would you believe that there is 7 weeks left in this northern adventure. The powers that be have offered a pretty good signing bonus, and I am very tempted--but, I am running out of steam, and want  to do my own thing.  With bittersweetness, I am on the count down. We have been back in school for a week, following March break and a quick, but important and memorable trip to the coast. In real time, it is month 5 for the students--and as we all know, time is the element that we have  no control over.  Just now, we are seeing regular attendance by most students, and a settling into routine.  The rolling on the floor, the crying jags, the throwing of paper off desks, the temper tantrums and all the other attention seeking behaviors are pretty much the thing of the past.  The movement of students in hall ways has been corrected by a combined effort of the elementary staff, and the tone of the school is much im...