Praise the Lord!

Wow. THANK YOU all for praying! I can tell we had our prayer warriors on their knees! Nathan did SO much better this past Monday when we dropped him off! He didn’t even cry!... at all. We walked into the school yard, and the kids in his class were lining up to go inside. When Nathan got close, they all started yelling his name. It was too cute. Nathan got that bashful smile on his face and looked at the ground… most of them were girls who were calling for him. ;)

The meeting with Nathan’s teacher went really well. I think that has helped a lot. We were able to clear up a lot of stuff as we communicated through a translator (an “English” teacher at the school who doesn’t speak very good English. ;) ). Anyway, they didn’t’ realize that we don’t start school until 5 or 6 in the states, so this is Nathan’s first experience with “real” school. They begin school here at 3, so by the time they get to Nathan’s age, they are not really ‘playing’ anymore. They sit the whole time at their desks and do their work. I think that’s been a huge adjustment for Nathan… plus, they begin cursive here as the first letters that the kids learn. They don’t do printing until much later. They didn’t think Nathan knew any of his letters, but it turns out that he just doesn’t recognize them in cursive! Lol.

They have also found a University student to come in a couple hours a day to help Nathan. She is studying English at the University, so it’s been good for both of them. Nathan says he is “teaching” her English. Lol. I think she has made a world of difference for Nathan. He has someone to talk with and to make laugh. We all noticed a huge difference once Marisa came into the picture.

Nathan’s teacher is so amazing. I’m SO thankful for her. (Her name is also Marisa… funny that they BOTH have the same name!) She has been so patient and kind to us, and she has taken such good care of Nathan. I know it’s extra work for her to have Nathan in her class, but she has just completely opened her heart to him. She has pulled up pictures from N.C. to try to make him feel more at home when he’s crying… she hugs him and holds him. She even sent home a photo album of Nathan and his classmates. She is a gift!

Once we were able to figure out the gaps in where Nathan is and where the class is, Marisa was able to get a better idea of how to work with Nathan. She now has a plan to ease him into the “structured” environment by letting him “play” with play dough and do certain activities to strengthen his fine motor skills. She is also going to work with him in capital letters instead of cursive for right now. She says she thinks he is very intelligent, but that the language is a barrier. So, I’m very excited! In the couple days that these changes have been made, we’ve seen an amazing difference in Nathan. He still cried a couple days last week, but it was SO much better than before. I know that your prayers have made a huge difference. Thank you, all of you who prayed!... and all of you who responded to us. It’s so comforting to hear from you. It helps me know that we are not in this alone… we are not fighting this battle by ourselves!!