Well Little Alice has been in school for a month now and she is growing beautifully! She is considered a Beginning English Learner in her first grade classroom. She has received quite a bit of help at school.
Having a child in the house is not cheap. We have to buy school uniforms along with play cloths as well as adding on more food, and toys. We have also bought some English Learning toys from some school supplies to help her learn. Her favorite are the Leap Frog games, they keep her occupied for hours! I recommend these for all children because they say the name and have some rich pictures. She has learn so much from these!
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Developing differently and with a little bit of help a long away.
We took Alice to the park today. She met some other little girls that were her age. Mike's niece Wendy was there with some friends from school. We told asked Wendy if she would want to play with Alice. Alice hesitated at first but then followed Wendy and watched what the other girls did. I've noticed that Alice is very observant and watches the other girls before reacting. Wendy would point to something and Alice would nod yes or no.
Wendy seems like she is developmentally on the same level as the other children. She is a little shy and reserved but I think that comes with being in a completely new environment. She watches before she participates but before long she follows along and starts to engage with the other children. It's hard for me to assess where she is cognitively because of the language barrier. The agency said she had very good speaking skills in Russian so that is a good sign. She seems to be problem solving very well. She was playing with some simple puzzles and did it fairly quickly. Physically she is in great shape. Her records say she is growing right on tract.
Tomorrow she starts school. She will have to take the CELDT test to test her English level. From there she will receive daily English Language Development. We'll also be meeting with a Social Worker making sure that Alice is being well cared for and all of her needs are being met.
Wendy seems like she is developmentally on the same level as the other children. She is a little shy and reserved but I think that comes with being in a completely new environment. She watches before she participates but before long she follows along and starts to engage with the other children. It's hard for me to assess where she is cognitively because of the language barrier. The agency said she had very good speaking skills in Russian so that is a good sign. She seems to be problem solving very well. She was playing with some simple puzzles and did it fairly quickly. Physically she is in great shape. Her records say she is growing right on tract.
Tomorrow she starts school. She will have to take the CELDT test to test her English level. From there she will receive daily English Language Development. We'll also be meeting with a Social Worker making sure that Alice is being well cared for and all of her needs are being met.
How does it feel to be the parent of this amazing little girl?
I love my little Rusky! It is a challenge some time communicating with her but she is slowly picking up essential words. Such as hungry, bathroom and sleepy. It has been interesting playing guessing games trying to figure out what exactly she wants.
Mike has had some challenges. He is used to his nieces that he just can tell no to but with Alice we need to show and pantomime with when we need her not to do something. He's worried about her adjusting to life in the U.S.
It's a little scary when we go out somewhere such as the store because if she gets lost she will not be able to communicate with anyone unless they speak Russian. It's very similar to having an infant because infants are unable to communicate with one of what their needs are.
Mike has had some challenges. He is used to his nieces that he just can tell no to but with Alice we need to show and pantomime with when we need her not to do something. He's worried about her adjusting to life in the U.S.
It's a little scary when we go out somewhere such as the store because if she gets lost she will not be able to communicate with anyone unless they speak Russian. It's very similar to having an infant because infants are unable to communicate with one of what their needs are.
Well today's the day! Mike and I finally brought our little daughter Alice home! We flew in from Russian last night at 11 pm and we spent our first day together getting to know each other. I went up to West Hollywood before she got here so I could pick up some Russian food to help her assimilate into our home. Russians have so many amazing pastries!
Today I served dinner our on the patio. She dipped bread in her milk, which I heard is customary for Russians. She has been very quiet but very curious about her new surroundings. We got her a little Disney Bear that she has not let go of. The adoption agency said she is a fan of the British soccer team Arsenal because one of their players is also on the Russian National Team, any English she speaks she has picked up from watching the games. It is so cute listening to her broken English that has a mixture of a British and Russian accent!
Well more coming tomorrow!
Today I served dinner our on the patio. She dipped bread in her milk, which I heard is customary for Russians. She has been very quiet but very curious about her new surroundings. We got her a little Disney Bear that she has not let go of. The adoption agency said she is a fan of the British soccer team Arsenal because one of their players is also on the Russian National Team, any English she speaks she has picked up from watching the games. It is so cute listening to her broken English that has a mixture of a British and Russian accent!
Well more coming tomorrow!
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