David's Diary: Tuesday, December 11, 2001
School Is Out
Pizza and Movies
Four months ago, we started school in the South of The Netherlands. Today, we celebrated the end of the first term of school with a pizza and movie blowout in the main cabin of Dragonsinger. All three children have worked hard to complete their school work and for Karalee and I we have learned a lot being their teachers for the last few months. At times, it has seemed like a difficult struggle, but with the feedback of their formal teachers in Vancouver we know that all three have done well.
We have been teaching Jocelyn, Kevin, and Allen through the Greater Vancouver Distance Education School. This is a recognized school set up by the Ministry of Education in British Columbia. Before leaving Vancouver, we obtained all of the course materials for all three children for the entire year. Each day Karalee and I work with each child to complete the formal materials that were provided by the school. As we complete each section, we send it back to Vancouver for marking and comments, which we receive by email.
Just as we would if we had been in Vancouver, we celebrate the end of term with a special treat. We visit the pizza stand at the head of the quay in Port Vendres and let each child pick their favorite pizza toppings. With the pizza safely back on Dragonsinger, we set up our DVD player on the chart table and hook up our special Harmon Karden speakers. Our choice for the night was Pearl Harbour and with all of the action we appreciate the realistic visual effects and sound that we get from our portable DVD system. It is after 11:00 when we all head to bed, but at least tomorrow we can sleep in and have an early start to Christmas Holidays.