March 4, 2012: Making Ukrainian Pysanky Eggs

I was very excited to learn that a workshop on making traditional Ukrainian pysanky eggs was being held at our local library yesterday.  Off I went to work with Kathleen and eleven other brave souls.  Kathleen gave us some background information on the history and cultural connection of the eggs to the Ukrainina people.  Then she walked us through the process of creating these beautiful eggs....well,at least those made by professionals and every one else!  It was a fun afternoon and I learned a great deal about a craft that I hope to see first hand while I am in Ukraine next month.  It is also one item that I want to bring back as a memento of my adventure. 
I have included pictures of my attempts to make a beautiful egg through the process. First we took a traditional kristka, which is a tool that you use to scrape honey bee wax into a tiny funnel and melt over a candle. The kristka is your "drawing tool" You then make wax lines and swirls on your egg with the kristka. When you feel that you have all of the lines that you want, you dip the egg in dye. You dry the egg, add more wax lines, and dip the egg into another color of dye. You repeat the process until you believe that you are done. The wax is then melted by holding the egg close to the candle flame and gently wiping it off. The final step is to varnish the egg. I haven't varnished mine yet....maybe it will help??

March 3, 2012: Our schedule for Ukraine!

Zaporizhzhya

Lydia and the EFL teachers

St Nicholas Cathedral

Our schedule for our visit to Ukraine is beginning to come together.  Our group of eleven teachers from all over the nation (Texas, Idaho, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, West Virginia, Ohio, Rhoda Island, and Massachusetts) will fly to Kiev, the capital city of Ukraine, on April 14, 2012. We will spend the first four days there visiting schools, having discussions with education officials, and learning about the school system in Ukraine.  Then we will fan out all over the nation for an eight day visit with a cooperating teacher in their school.
I received my assignment and I am really excited to learn that I will be traveling with Sara, who is also a middle school social studies teacher from Massachusetts.  We will be working with Lydia who is an EFL teacher, at the Zaporizhzhya Classical Lyceum, which is in the city of Запорі́жжя (Zaporizhzhya). It is located a 10 hour train ride southeast of Kiev. We are really looking forward to visiting the city and spending time working in the school with the teachers and students.
Lydia sent us an itinerary for our time with her, and it is clear that we are going to have a spectacular visit. We’ll learn and see so much during our time in Zaporizhzhya. Everything on the schedule looks exciting, but here are some of the activities that Sara and I found most intriguing:

• Observing classes taught by Lydia and her colleagues, and getting a chance to co-teach with them
• Participating in a round table discussion with 11th grade students on American cultural diversity
• Eating traditional foods at local restaurants and and in a local home
• Having at a picnic on the Khortitsa Island and visiting local botanical gardens
• Visiting a town orphan house
• Participating in teacher discussion groups on student discipline and parent involvement
• Seeing tourist sites around town, from museums and art exhibitions to theatrical performances
• Providing professional development for the teachers in Lidiya's school
• Attending a conference with 100 principals from some of the best schools all over Ukraine

We will have the opportunity to work with the students, connect our students to the students in Ukraine through Skype, and create better understanding and perspectives through sharing "daily life" videos, gifts, and letters. I am so excited to be able to help provide this opportunity for my students!

February 18, 2012: Washington, DC Symposium

The Ukraine Group

Viktoria teaching us about her beautiful country.

After months of learning about global education through our on-line class and assignments to complete, we finally were able to meet each other in person at a symposium held in Washington, DC on February 17-18, 2012.  We had the opportunity to talk with each other about what we had learned, share lessons taught with a global education influence, and work together on the beginning elements of our adventure to Ukraine.  There are eleven teachers traveling to Ukraine from April 14 - 28, 2012.  We hail from Texas, Idaho, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, West Virginia, Ohio, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts.  We are all very excited about our visit to this beautiful and unique country.  We especially enjoyed the opportunity to talk with a TEA teacher from Ukraine, Viktoria, who helped us to understand the way that the school system works in Ukraine and some basic information about her country. As we move forward with our plans and preparations for our journey, I will keep you updated!