The super short version of that post is... God gave me a dream to create a class at my school for students with special needs, deemed so "severe" that they are unable to function 100% of the time in the "regular" (general ed.) classroom.
Anywho - About a month later, I wrote another post in which I answered a few questions (which you can read about HERE) about the class. And now that a few month have passed and I'm scheduling churches and schools for speaking engagements for Spring Break and again for the summer, I am getting lots of new questions. So I thought I'd answer some of those questions here.
Tell me more about the kids you'll be teaching.
I'll be teaching students with academic, behavioral, and/or physical disabilities which prevent them from successfully functioning 100% of the time in a "regular" General Ed. classroom. The kids at our school are the children of missionaries, embassy personnel, and other business men and women.
Do you have training in Special Education?
I do. Thanks to 5 years at the University of Montevallo, a teaching certificate from the state of Alabama, a whole lot of professional development in this area, and teaching experience in this field, I am indeed qualified. According to the State of Alabama Department of Education, I'm actually Highly Qualified in teaching Special Education. :)
How's fundraising going?
Really well. I'm so blessed. There are still funds left to raise, but I have faith that God will provide exactly what I need exactly when I need it.
Why are you going to the States at Spring Break?
A few reasons... I have a couple schools who have taken my new class on as their special "charity project" of sorts. So it will give me the chance to speak to them, share with them more about the class, etc. I'll also be speaking at a few churches, and other schools while I'm there. Plus, I'll be able to bring back a lot of the supplies for the new class with me to Senegal, which should save me a lot of money on extra luggage expenses this summer.
Wait. Why not just ship the supplies directly to Senegal? Why bring them as luggage?
$$$
Do you have a list of supplies you need?
I do. Would you like it? Send me an email at enichols85@gmail.com and I'll send it to you.
I heard you had an Amazon Wishlist created. How does that work?
I do. Click HERE. Then follow the prompts to buy something from my list. It will be shipped to my mom's house in Alabama so I can grab it when I'm back in the States again and then bring it with me here in Senegal.
If we want to help you out, which would be better? A financial donation or a donation of actual supplies?
Honestly, any help would be appreciated.
Can we send supplies to you in Senegal?
Definitely! If you'd like my mailing address here in Senegal, send me an email at enichols85@gmail.com and I'll give it to you.
Will you come speak to my church? Small group? School Group?
If it would work out for me to, yes... I'd love that. I'll be back in the States during my school's Spring Break the last week of March and first week of April. Then I'll be back again over the summer. I'd love to find a time that works for both of us so I can come and share some of the awesome things God is doing at Dakar Academy and in Senegal, in general.
And in the spirit of honesty and a bit of reality... I'll share two questions that someone asked a friend of mine who teaches children similar to the ones I'll teach. I'm going to be totally honest here and say I truly do not know what I would've said had I been in her shoes. My friend is incredibly sweet and gracious and bit her tongue and sweetly answered. I don't know that I could have done the same... ;)
Why do you need a degree in Special Education anyways? Isn't it just glorified babysitting?
Oh wow... How do I put this nicely? No. It's definitely not glorified babysitting. There are standards my students must be taught. There are skills and subjects my students will need to master. There are lessons and activities and tests that will need to be differentiated and planned in order to meet the incredibly varied level of abilities of my students. There are therapies to perform. There is data to collect. There is curriculum to plan.
Curriculum planning?! What?! You mean they actually do work?!
See above.
Also, if someone said "you mean those kids actually do work during the day?!" to my face, I'm not sure I'd be able to respond. I think at that point, God would have me turn and walk away before I said something I'd regret.
And now to end this post, I'll share my favorite questions of all. This is what I get asked most often. And I love love love sharing my answers with anyone who will listen.
Why this class? Why this job? Why do you want a job that some feel is so incredibly challenging?
Special Education is my passion. Of the 3 areas in which I'm trained/qualified to teach, Special Ed. is by far my favorite. I love teaching kids who society often casts aside and labels "unlearnable." I love proving society wrong! I love working with individuals who inspire me to be a more loving, caring, accepting person. I love working with students who inspire me daily to not give up, to conquer any obstacles in my way. And you know, I also love a good challenge. How boring would life be if things were always super easy?!
But the simplest answer... I'm doing it because it's what God called me to do.
So now I'll end this Q & A post with a question for you...
Do you have any questions for me?
Any questions about this new class? What about teaching Special Ed.?
Any questions about Dakar Academy? How about life in Senegal?
Any questions about missions or this job God's called me to?
Any other questions?
If you have any questions, either comment on this post or email me at enichols85@gmail.com and I'll answer them ASAP.
And I'll probably also include them in my next post.
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