My Class 2016

We're into week six of a new school year here at Cush Christian School. This is my class.

I have 29 students, the same number as last year. Interestingly, though, whereas last year I had 17 girls and 12 boys, this year I have almost the exact opposite: 16 boys and 13 girls.

The class I teach is what we are calling grade 1C. In this grade, the children learn English phonics and how to read in English, plus some basic math, social studies and science. In the previous class, 1B, the children learn oral English, and in the one before that, 1A, they learn to read in their mother tongue, Dinka. Children who start at our school having never attended school before usually know no English.

Here are close-ups of some of my students.

Thiik, Garang D.

Abuk, Nyibol

Agol, Adhuel

Akol, Akot

Atak, Ajak, Awut

Lino, Deng

Majok, Dut

Ngor, Garang A.

Thuuch

You may have noticed that several of my students look rather old to be in a basic class like mine. I do have two or three older students who began at our school just a year ago, having never been to school before. But I also have some who are new to our school this year, but attended other schools before. They can already read English, but they lack a knowledge of English phonics, which is a prerequisite for the individualized learning that begins in grade 2. Their pronunciation is pretty bad, and they have trouble sounding out new words correctly. So they're in my class for at least the first third of the year, to learn phonics. If they do well, they'll move on to the next grade after that.