All right stop what ya doin...cause I'm about to ruin, the image and the style that ya used to

Greetings followers, fans, friends and family members of Matt Becker. I apologize for the long delay in updates. A couple weeks ago I was sick with what felt like strep throat for about seven days. I was in bed and didn't do any work or teaching the whole week. After a few days when I wasn't getting any better I spoke to Peace Corps medical and I was able to start some antibiotics. Those really seemed to help and within a few days of starting them I started feeling better. Once I was back to my normal Matt Becker self I got back to the planning and coordinating for the competition I'm working on with my friend Agii and of course my usual teaching and tutoring. Teaching hasn't been as busy because many of my students are preparing for Mongolia's annual English 'Olympics' competition. The competition is actually today and tomorrow and students from all over Mongolia participate. It’s a pretty big deal and many of the students put a lot of effort into doing well in the Olympics. I have found it quite amusing that because of this my classes have been less busy(less students). My students, who are studying for an ENGLISH competition, seem to have completely forgotten the fact that they have a native English speaking American teacher available to help them any time of the day. I did have three students come to me for help and even one English teacher but the rest of my students seem to be lost on this fact.

Speaking of competitions, some of my students who are on the Olgii student council came to me a few weeks ago after finding out that I was organizing my competition. They told me that they wanted to organize an English or spelling competition and asked me to help out. I of course offered my help and gave them as much input and advice as I could. Surprisingly, they didn’t ask me for much assistance other than for some ideas and tips. A week and a half later, they told me their competition was going to be in a few days. I was surprised that they had everything organized so quickly. They asked me to come to the competition to be a judge and I agreed. I showed up to my work the day of the comp and was very impressed and excited to see a large group of students, a very well organized setup, and two of my best students very much in control of the situation. The girls, Gulim and Asem, who have been my students since August, worked together with the other student council members, various students and World Vision (NGO) to set everything up and get the necessary funding and supplies.

Students from seven of Olgii’s ten schools were present and competing. The comp consisted of teams of students who had to complete a variety of tasks, mostly in English, which is many of the students’ third or fourth language. Each team had to give a team introduction in English, there was a spelling bee section, an English song section, an art section (judges would describe something in English and the students had to draw what it was), and a writing composition and speaking section. The competition lasted a couple hours and both the participants and spectators seemed to really enjoy it. A few of my students were in the competition and they did very well. Myself and another English teacher, my friend Kulshat, were the judges. I had a blast judging the competition, watching all the students compete, and seeing how well my students did in putting together the whole event. I was so proud of my students and it was one of the best days I’ve had since I came to Mongolia.

Going back to the comp that I am organizing….almost everything is finished as far as the planning and organizing goes. The comp is next Friday and will involve teams from nine of Olgii’s ten schools. We have computers, a projector, a giant room with desks, tables and chairs to use, funding for the prizes and refreshments and we’ve made flyers advertising everything. Last week Agii and I went to all the schools and gave the directors invitations and explained the details. This week we just have to pick up the supplies and finalize the questions and curriculum. We are calling it Olgii’s first annual English practice and usage Olympiad. The purpose is to encourage and motivate students in their English language and general knowledge learning, to make it more fun and interesting and to introduce practical uses of the language instead of them just having grammar pounded into their head all year long. Laura has told me that some of her students are really excited and preparing for it and I’ve had a few of my students asking me about it as well. I’m very excited to see how everything goes and to see how well the students perform. I will be sure to take pictures and post up the outcome when it’s finished.

Speaking of pictures, my camera is currently having some issues. The autorun feature isn’t working with my laptop so I haven’t been able to move any of my pics from my camera to my computer. Matt + technology + Mongolia = nothing good. As soon as this problem is fixed I will post up many more pictures. The weather has been great in Olgii lately, it’s warming up, the ice on the river is completely thawed and summer is right around the corner. I’m really looking forward to my trip home this summer and seeing my family and friends for a few weeks. I hope everyone is doing well back home, take care.