April highlights

We enjoyed having a team from Florida this month. They did a variety of things while they were here, including participating in medical operatives, one of which was in Sabana Perdida. While part of the team worked at that, our teens worked alongside their teens under the direction of other adults on the team, to build a much-needed storage cabinet, and do some painting at the school in SP. The teens also had the opportunity to strike up a few friendly games of chess, battleship, and connect four.

Later in the week, the team invited students from both Sabana Perdida, and CCES to go to the science museum. This was a special treat, and the kids enjoyed it a lot. We adults enjoyed just watching the kids having such fun. Afterward, in the courtyard, one of the team members showed the students how to make little rockets out of film cannisters, vinegar, and soda.

We look forward to their return next year.

The students are progressing in their studies. We have two classes at SP. One is for the students who are totally beginners--that don't know Sign, can't count, don't know the abc's etc. The second is all those who do know those things. This past month we've been able to move two students from the first classroom to the second. They are very excited to be with the more advanced group.

Our more advanced students learned this month how to find a Bible passage by chapter and verse. They are learning to read some simple verses, and they highlight them so they can find them again. These are very important baby steps. Several of them attend the Sunday School as well.

We made a trip to the annual Dominican Book Fair this week. Our SP students went along with the hearing students and teachers, for a total of about 100 people in a single American style school bus. The book fair is mainly a large book sale. There are vendors from Central & South American countries, and Spain. Field trips here are quite different from in the US. The children aren't nearly as closely supervised. Yet, when it was time to go, no one had gotten lost, even though there were hundreds of other school children in the same kind of uniforms. Any time we get out of the regular classroom is special. Twice in a month is unheard of!

This Friday we had another teacher workshop. It's encouraging to see that the teachers really want to improve their skills. We are also getting lots of requests for a Sign Language class, from parents, siblings of the deaf students, teachers, and people interested in deaf ministry. We have been trying to put it off until the summer, as there is so much going on. There are probably enough students for two or three classes.

Please continue to remember us in your prayers. The DR presidential elections are just a few weeks away. Politics affects everything here.