Variety Post!

Hello!
This is a nice little collection of different things in this post.
The first thing is a project I (Amanda) had my 9th graders do as a final project for the Odyssey. I have had many different projects throughout this year but this was one of the coolest as far as what the students turned in. The assignment was to take a bar of soap and carve a Greek statue of Odysseus at the end of the book. It needed to follow Greek form as best as possible and show effort. The results were amazing and our lovely yearbook teacher grabbed pictures for me. Some of the statues are now gracing the school bathroom and my own bathroom now! :-)

Triumphant Odysseus

Odysseus tied up to hear the Sirens

Odysseus with Penelope

Very impressive detail!

Odysseus in classic Greek pose

A bust of Odysseus (this guy made it to our home)

The second part of this post has to do with the future of IA. To begin with, I present to you two videos, one about the history of the school and one about the influence of the school. 

(Matthew is the narrator for both videos as well!)

The International Academy has faced many challenges in getting to where it is today and is a school that serves as a family and home for many students who are already living outside of their home cultures. The value of the school not just in giving an education but in the lives of our students is stressed heavily in any conversation with past students and graduates.

One of the biggest problems the school faces, as is clear in the first video, is the problem of finding a building and buying it. The land prices in the city are outrageous and it would take literally 20 years for the school to save enough to buy the current building.

What the school would like to do is to set aside a fund for a future building, scholarships, and other needs. The aim is, through much faith and prayer, to achieve the necessary sum in 3 to 4 years rather than 20.

If you would like to support the International Academy in by donating, please go to:
http://myiasp.com/contribute.html
The role of the school is vital to these children and both Matthew and I feel that the school has almost done more for us than we have for it.
Please prayerful consider supporting IA in any way at all!


Tomorrow, I am off to work with a Russian girl's group by teaching them how to do water marble nails! :-) Wish me luck!
-Amanda

International Women's Day

Happy International Women's Day from Russia!
Matt suggested I post about why I like women's day since it is one of the bigger holidays over here. :-)
Russia does not celebrate Mother's Day or Father's Day. Instead they have "Defenders of the Fatherland Day" and "International Women's Day." Women's Day is much more common through Europe and include thanking mothers as a part of the holiday.
Personally, I appreciate that I do not have to be a mother to be appreciated in this holiday. Mothers are thanked for being mothers and single women are thanked for being single women; it's a holiday that is more inclusive of all women.
Parent holidays can also be painful for many people, like those who have had negative experiences with their parents or children. But Women's Day includes all women and all those who love them, not just related family members.
It's also nice to have women's place in society publicly acknowledged and celebrated. All cultures have times they can look back on where this was not the case and it is a blessing to see how cultures have moved forward from that.
But regardless of gender, we have been blessed by those who support us and those we work with here. So thank you to the men and women who have done so much for us this past year and half, and many of you for much longer! You are a blessing to us and we only hope to pass this blessing on to the kids at IA!
- Amanda