Your Gifts Will Make Room For You
Hold Up! Wait! Stop … Yall … Oh My Gosh!
I’m An International Teachers at a Bilingual School in Asia!!! Whoa!!!
Some days I am just in awe. Seriously. Today I decided to walk home from work. Its about a 3.1KM walk (which is about 1.92 miles) so not too bad. Our day finished early and I had a few choices, wait for the staff bus which wouldn’t leave for about 45 minutes from the time our day ended, wait for a city bus, take a DiDi (China’s version of uber) or walk. So why not walk. The temperature was nice and I don’t live too far… so walk I did.
As I walked home I really thought about “Your Gifts Will Make Room For You” … that thought kept rolling through my head. Never in a million years did I ever think I would enjoy teaching kindergarten. If I am honest, and I promise you I am being honest, I absolutely love it! I am having the best time in my classroom!
All I have ever wanted to do was change the world through education. All my life I have wanted to be a teacher and it is the only job that I have ever had … and now I am teaching in Asia. This is my second job in Asia and I had the opportunity to work with over a hundred students in the short time that I have been here. I hope that my presence has been helpful for each student that I have met.
I am currently teaching in Songjiang (Shanghai) for Shanghai HD Bilingual School – (https://www.hdschools.org/en/shanghai/) as a Kindergarten English Homeroom Teacher. Someone asked me a little while ago- what does that even mean???? Our school is a bilingual school so our students have multiple teachers, foreign and Chinese and they have lessons in English and in Chinese. I only teach my lessons in English and we have English blocks at different times of the day every day. We focus heavily on phonics to build their reading skills and also work on writing, speaking, and listening skills. We keep learning fun and interactive in our room of 25 young learners with 4 teachers. Life is busy in Ms. Karla’s kindergarten class – but its amazing and intense too! I am so proud of my students learning so much at such a young age. I spoke with a parent today who is a little worried about her child’s reading level and I assured her that if we work together, at school and at home, her child will increase in reading level. That’s a promise for sure!
With all the jobs I have had- all the schools- all the programs – all the all the – none of them have been perfect. But Man o Man … so far this is pretty close to perfect as it gets! IDK if it is the honeymoon/beginning phase of it all – or if its just that good, but I currently have no complaints at my job. I’ll keep y’all posted in future posts on how work is going. I hope it continues this way!
All my years in education, teaching, working with kids, my BSW and my Master’s in Education have prepared me for where I am now. I am honored to have the position that I have now because I know my students are getting an experience like no other. To have bilingual education is already awesome, but to have it for a Black foreigner, IMO is huge. My students will grow up being and it will be normal to be around people who do not look like them. It wont scare them (hopefully) and they will treat these people whom they encounter with decency and respect. They wont jump – and point- and pull out their camera when they see a Black person – they maybe- will just wave and say hello- and continue with what they are doing. They have now encountered an educator who loves and is passionate about education, school, students, and reading, and can give a different perspective about “Black”. There are so many preconceived notions about what a black person is like – (we don’t even have to get into all of that right now) – but I am so glad that I can show that we are educated, fun, caring, and loving towards students. That we are not all like what may be assumed and that “Black is Beautiful” – because ya know… it really is!
Push Through! Wherever you are … whatever you are doing … the decision your battling – that you are on the fence about.
GO for it! BE Brave. Be Bold. Be Fearless. Go After It All.
My gifts have definitely made room for me at HD! My students have stolen my heart. I am learning so much and I am thankful every single day for this experience.
Hope Yall Are Well …. Paz!
I am excited about life! I am filled with Hope. I am overwhelmed with JOY! I am going to do my best to live by the ‘Glad Texts’
#FearlessinShanghai #Thankful #joychangeslives #KMarieTakesChina #BlackGirlMagic #KarlaGirlLivingLife #BlackGirlJoy #LivingMyLifeLikeItsGolden #ChinaorBust #ChinaAintReady #BlackInShanghai #BlackInChina #BlackAmericanInChina #LookOutWorldHereComesKarla #KarlaGirlJoy #BlackGirlInShanghai #eatsleeppartyrepeat #givingisgood #givingisfun #WakandaForever #ShuriAndNakiaAndOkoye #MelaninMagic #Blessed #FaithfulIsMyGod
I love me some Kid President!!!
This Denzel Clip Gets Me Every Time!!!
FEARLESS in SHANGHAI 
Karla,
These updates are wonderful. Thank you for providing a continual lens into this life-changing experience. You should consider compiling these posts and having them published on book form, or seeing if an online publication would pick up this series. More people should know about it.
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