September, 2005
The end of the first six weeks of school is within sight – we are well into the routine of a school year here at Woodstock School. We are engaged in teaching and learning, participating in after-school sports and clubs, and enjoying weekend activities with the boarding students. It is a busy and fulfilling life. Climbing the 150 stairs to this mountain-side school each day has made us more fit than we have ever been!
Teachers at a boarding school become parents by proxy to their students. Barb’s third graders, who are experiencing their first year of life away from home, are well taken care of by their dorm parents, but need some mothering during the school day. Her students have a sharing time with her each morning, acknowledging their feelings of homesickness, or remembering sibling or parent birthdays. The class then prays for each other and their concerns. Though not all the children come from Christian backgrounds, they are comforted to know that God is watching over them and their distant families.
In addition to teaching eleventh grade computer application classes, Jeff is advisor to a small group of ninth graders. They recently came to our house for dinner. For kids from Nepal, India, Vietnam, Japan, and South Korea, spaghetti was a common meal they all seemed to enjoy, followed by ice cream and cookies. No meal here would be complete without chai (tea with milk and sugar), even for ninth graders. They challenged each other on “Dance Dance Revolution” the playstation game and dance pad we brought with us from the states, then collapsed into watching a movie before heading back to their dorms. Their parents would have been proud of their manners and willingness to help with the meal and cleanup. We think they enjoyed the opportunity to have an evening at home. We plan to invite them to our home often. We hope to acquire some board games and family DVD’s to share with them on future visits.
Christopher has found a “youth group” here in Sunday evening chapel services and on a recent RE (religious education) retreat. Middle and high schoolers meet weekly to worship with praise hymns, engage in some small group activities and games to work on the evening’s theme, and pray together. Barb and Jeff are on the leadership team for this group, and enjoy the energy and willingness of these kids who choose to be there. A recent RE weekend retreat took fifty high schoolers to a nature center on the school campus, where they related to the story of Job, played “Capture the Flag”, and sang with the youth praise band.
Woodstock School has an extensive music program, offering opportunities to sing in a variety of choruses or play western and Indian instruments. Chris jumped at the chance to play drums in the beginner and intermediate bands. Coleman takes voice lessons, sings in the intermediate choir, and plays clarinet in the intermediate band. Jeff has joined the staff chorus. Most children in the school are active in the music program.
Boarding students need to have something constructive to do in the afternoons after school, so sports and clubs opportunities abound. This season, there are a variety of levels of soccer, as well as intramural and inter-school cross-country teams. Gymnastics will begin soon for the youngest tumblers. Hiking club allows all ages to set a goal of kilometers walked, as well as have an opportunity to see all facets of this beautiful mountainside. Barb helps by leading crafts in the elementary school Friendship Club, which offers a bible story, games, songs, and snack every week after school.
There are planned weekend activities for boarders, and day students like our boys are welcome to join in. Day and night hikes are offered, as well as dormitory open houses, complete with music and food. CARE projects are scheduled regularly to give students opportunities to serve the local community as tutors, planting trees, or cleaning up trash on the hillside. Dances, movies, and even a “Wild Hair” night, complete with hair gels, colors and spiky styles, keep these kids having fun and making friends.
We hope this gives you an idea about our initial involvement in Woodstock School. If you want to know more about the school, you might enjoy the book Hill Station Teacher: A Life with India in It by Ruth Unrau, Kidron Creek Publishers, 1997. Next month, we’ll report about church life in the nearby town of Mussoorie. We thank you for your continued interest, support, and prayers.
----Barbara, Jeffrey, Chris, and Coleman Thomas
email: barbarathomas@woodstock.ac.in
postal: Woodstock School, Mussoorie UA 248179, India
U.S. mission coordinator: Kim Kleman-Lewis: mission@pvillepresby.org
