This morning, I made my way into St. David's school for my weekly visit. Each week, I greet the secretary and the principal and then I'm whisked off to a classroom, just in time to join the students for breakfast before the National Anthem and the prayer are played and recited.
This day began with a visit to Grade 5 students. Unlike the Kindergarten and Grade 1s with whom I had visited on previous occasions, this group were sombre. After their greeting, politely uttered, they quickly returned to the comfort of their books (this is reading and quiet leisure time, as well as time for eating a bowl of cereal). Thankfully a few of the students answered the prompt to offer this newcomer a bowl of crunchy goodness, so I chomped my way from one desk to another, asking questions about what each child was reading.
Once that tour was complete, the silence resumed, and the teacher was almost apologetic for the 'good behaviour' which has been instilled in the students. I had a choice to make: I could either bid them all adieu and leave the room, or I could try to engage them. Being the adventurous type, I chose the latter. Eyeing the smart board which hung on the blackboard, I ventured to tell the teacher that I'd like to know how one of those things works. It took a little bit of coaxing, but eventually, he agreed to fire it up, and I asked one of the students to show me how it works. Before long, the board was ready for any lesson that might unfold.
I then began speaking with the students, You all saw me at Mass yesterday, but how many of you remember my name? (The reader should know that the principal of the school had introduced me to the class when I had arrived only about 20 minutes previously). One student answered with a degree of certitude: Father Tony. I wrote the letters T - ONY on the smart board, then asked the next question: Does anyone know the longer name that is usually associated with my name? One of the students replied hesitatingly, FATHER Tony? I wrote FR in front of my name on the board. Turning back to the class, I saw quisical looks on many faces, so I decided to play a game of hangman. I placed dashes at appropriate places so the name appeared as FR _ _ T _ O N Y, and then invited more participation. One by one they guessed a letter, and it wasn't long before they had the puzzle figured out.
Next I introduced them to my family name. Knowing that until very recently, people did not refer to priests by their first names, but rather by their family names, I wrote my family name below my Christian name, and one of these bright students pronounced it correctly the first time (so much for thinking that the pronunciation was challenging in the least). I then explained that the etimology of the name is Cantonese. In fact, I even went as far as to write the Chinese family name in characters. By now, I knew that I had their attention. One student even volunteered to share with me the Chinese character for 'energy'.
The next part of the explanation involved a mercator map, so I asked the teacher whether he could project one for me onto the smart board. Once it was up, I proceeded to explain to the students that my paternal family originated in Canton, China (I placed a red dot somewhere in south-western China on the map), and my maternal family roots can be traced back to Medeira (I placed another red dot somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Spain). The next chapter of the story involved some of my ancestors emigrating to Guyana (in South America, not Africa), so I placed a red dot in Guyana, and then traced the routes for the migration of each of these two families.
I also added dots to illustrate where Sudbury is located, and where some of the other countries they knew were located, just so they would be able to situate themselves.
Having provided a bit of a lesson in culture, in geography and in history, I left the classroom a few moments later with a promise to bring for them the Chinese characters for the rest of my family name. That will be an adventure for another day.
This day began with a visit to Grade 5 students. Unlike the Kindergarten and Grade 1s with whom I had visited on previous occasions, this group were sombre. After their greeting, politely uttered, they quickly returned to the comfort of their books (this is reading and quiet leisure time, as well as time for eating a bowl of cereal). Thankfully a few of the students answered the prompt to offer this newcomer a bowl of crunchy goodness, so I chomped my way from one desk to another, asking questions about what each child was reading.
Once that tour was complete, the silence resumed, and the teacher was almost apologetic for the 'good behaviour' which has been instilled in the students. I had a choice to make: I could either bid them all adieu and leave the room, or I could try to engage them. Being the adventurous type, I chose the latter. Eyeing the smart board which hung on the blackboard, I ventured to tell the teacher that I'd like to know how one of those things works. It took a little bit of coaxing, but eventually, he agreed to fire it up, and I asked one of the students to show me how it works. Before long, the board was ready for any lesson that might unfold.
I then began speaking with the students, You all saw me at Mass yesterday, but how many of you remember my name? (The reader should know that the principal of the school had introduced me to the class when I had arrived only about 20 minutes previously). One student answered with a degree of certitude: Father Tony. I wrote the letters T - ONY on the smart board, then asked the next question: Does anyone know the longer name that is usually associated with my name? One of the students replied hesitatingly, FATHER Tony? I wrote FR in front of my name on the board. Turning back to the class, I saw quisical looks on many faces, so I decided to play a game of hangman. I placed dashes at appropriate places so the name appeared as FR _ _ T _ O N Y, and then invited more participation. One by one they guessed a letter, and it wasn't long before they had the puzzle figured out.
Next I introduced them to my family name. Knowing that until very recently, people did not refer to priests by their first names, but rather by their family names, I wrote my family name below my Christian name, and one of these bright students pronounced it correctly the first time (so much for thinking that the pronunciation was challenging in the least). I then explained that the etimology of the name is Cantonese. In fact, I even went as far as to write the Chinese family name in characters. By now, I knew that I had their attention. One student even volunteered to share with me the Chinese character for 'energy'.
The next part of the explanation involved a mercator map, so I asked the teacher whether he could project one for me onto the smart board. Once it was up, I proceeded to explain to the students that my paternal family originated in Canton, China (I placed a red dot somewhere in south-western China on the map), and my maternal family roots can be traced back to Medeira (I placed another red dot somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Spain). The next chapter of the story involved some of my ancestors emigrating to Guyana (in South America, not Africa), so I placed a red dot in Guyana, and then traced the routes for the migration of each of these two families.
I also added dots to illustrate where Sudbury is located, and where some of the other countries they knew were located, just so they would be able to situate themselves.
Having provided a bit of a lesson in culture, in geography and in history, I left the classroom a few moments later with a promise to bring for them the Chinese characters for the rest of my family name. That will be an adventure for another day.
4 comments:
Love it!!!
Love your blog and your incredible insights!! Thank you for sharing - will be bookmarking the site and reading regularly!!
I am most appreciative of the time and effort that you are devoting to nurturing a vibrant and dynamic parish school relationship. Keep up the excellent work!
Roland Muzzatti
Father Tony,
I was a student in that class and wanted to say thanks for teaching us. I can't wait until you come back and visit us again. I like reading your blog. I am the one in the class who told you that part of my family is from Hungary.
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