Primary School Science Fair

 

We were invited to be judges and speak after a month-long science fair at the primary school.

 

 

They had a parade and dressed up to represent the various fields of scientific study...

 

 

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They presented us with salusalus( like leis) as thanks for our participation in the day. This distinguished looking fellow is Principal Qaqa ( pronounced Nganga). He was a very famous rugby player in his day and is well known all over the island and the south pacific. A very friendly man!

 

One of their beloved teachers Fei has received a call to serve a mission in Kirbati. She will be sorely missed. She took the opportunity to hug every child in the school her last day.

 

 

Always open for a photo op with these beautiful and loving children!

 

 

 

McGoon's Lagoon

All the Senior Missionaries went to the wonderful beach home of Ratu (chief) McGoon...a Scottish Fijian...and went net fishing and later ate some amazing fish...

The View from their home

 

The amazing McGoon

 

A graveyard that the sea has claimed...

Missionaries and others dragging in nets...

 

 

More hauling in...

 

 

Baby baracuda

 

Nice swordfish...

 

Spunky McGoon children and grandchildren...

 

Another McGoon grandchild gets us coconut for lunch...mmmm...glorious day!

 

 

 

 

 

 

One Year Mark...Eden tells me I need to repent...

Hi sorry to all or any who may have wondered where we went...fallen off the end of the world here...no...just busy with mission life...so here goes with a little catch up...
I turned 60 in March this year and had the pleasure of spending it in Takapuna Beach, NZ at a principal's conference for all of the South Pacific schools...it was long days but with some wonderful new initiatives in language development...and some sea kayaking on the side...

 

This was a rough day but sooo much fun!

 

 

This is Sister Pam Jacobsen my supervisor in Auckland...she and I share the same birthday and birth year...it was a fun coincidence!!!

 

 

Lest you think all we do is go to beaches and kayak...this is what we spend 90% of our time doing...teaching and preping to teach...not so glamorous but worthwhile we hope...

 

 

 

 

 

End of Term and getting ready for Christmas

Sandya Singh and her beautiful children at Diwali

 

 

 

 

Diwali dinner with the Davis' and Kala Singh and her family...yummy

 

Litia Bale...one of the lovely people we work with at the college after graduation...tired lady!!!

 

 

 

 

 

Proud Principal Solomone and his wife graduating daughter...

 

 

 

Teachers and students celebrating at Prom...

 

 

Some serious fun was being had by all!!!

 

 

Christmas staff dinner with the Primary and College

 

 

Tima and Ernest Vitinavulagi and their matching Christmas outfits...cute!!!

 

 

Sweet family of Joyce and Jiare at the baptism of their 8 year old daughter Ester...

 

Proud member of 7 months Jiare baptizes daughter Ester...Lovely moment!

 

 

 

 

Suva seawall sunset...we are very blessed!

 

 

 

 



Making fish lolo!

This was me squeezing the milk out of grated coconut for fish lolo ( coconut fish). A labour intensive activity but well worth the effort!

 

Beginning the Third Term at LDS College and Primary School

After finishing a course on Classroom Assessment with some of these wonderful teachers at the LDS College...I wanted to treat them with lunch. I asked a few people to show me how to make a dish called lolo fish. It is basically coconut milk fish. This included getting 6 coconuts grated and then squeezing by hand the cream first and then the milk out of the shredded coconut. I got wahoo,  yummy fish steaks at the market and combined them with onion and garlic and ginger and a green  spinach-like vegie called bele. Served it all with casava which is a pototo-like vegie. It was delicious and I felt very proud of my accomplishment. They ate it all up!

The Primary School Implemented a New Positive Behaviour Support Model

We had been teaching a course in the Primary school on Special Education in the General Classroom. Part of one unit was about Positive Behaviour Support which is a program used widely in the US to help teachers focus on positive behaviour and rewards in the classroom. It has had great success in changing the enviroment of schools and increasing scholastic outcomes. The schools here decided they would like to implent this program but we wanted to have an LDS focus. We waited a few weeks and it turned out that the church had an Area meeting of all the church schools in the South Pacific and what did they teach but a model of positive behaviour support for LDS schools. It was fairly amazing to us and we felt the Lord's hand in this. It is all laid out for us with implementation strategies. Because we had been working on the concepts for several months the Primary School was able to move quickly and implement it the first day of term. The following pictures are of the 6 B's as they are called. Be Grateful, be smart, be clean, be true, be humble and be prayerful. These are broken down into behavioural components for each area of the school ( ie. like library, classroom, bathrooms, cafeteria etc) They have had a wonderful week and the children are excited with this new positive focus and the rewards that come with it.

 

 

 

 

 

Three day break from school and first trip round the Island

This was our first stop on our round the island trip. LeRoy has a new totem buddy.

 

The Singatoka River area. We stopped here to visit some young missionaries. They live on top of a hill over looking the town and with a view of this Hindu Temple.



 

 

LeRoy had to have his picture taken with this sign...seriously!

 

 

We went on our trip with Elder and Sister Whiting...one of his goals was to eat at the Hard Rock Cafe in Denerau...it was pretty good!

 

 

These are our wonderful neighbours and fellow missionaries the Whitings...we are really blessed to live by such wonderful people.

 

 

These wondeful Bula Boy did fire dancing and were amazing entertainers.

 

 

This is one of a gazillion pictures I took of this sunset...this one won out.

 

 

This was our first view of Beachcomber Island. The water was truly this blue and so warm.

 

 

These wonderful south sea musicians were the first to greet us!

 

 

I couldn't wait to get out and snorkel. They took us out to the reef and allowed us to wander around. It was beautiful and we saw all kinds of beautiful fish and coral. Can't get enough of this!

 

 

This looked like an egret...not sure but he allowed me to get really close to take his pic.

 

 

Had to get a shot of this...they're everywhere...

 

 

 

These fruit bats are huge...they were nesting in this mango tree...mangos are ripe and yummy on this side of the island.

 

This is the north east side of the island and more like a rain forest. Fiji is a really diverse place.