Last Sunday to Tuesday, Rolan and I acted as chaperones/advisers (try not to laugh) to the group of 12th graders who were selected to participate in the Israel Middle East Model United Nations conference (also known as TIME-MUN) held at the American International School in Even Yehuda. Meaning, we were the only "adults" responsible for a group of eight 17 year-old students who pretty much only signed up for the Model-UN conference to miss school, hang out with eachother and eat free food.
Rolan and I were really hesitant to go on this trip. One of our teachers used some serious Jewish-mom guilt to coerce us into going, telling us that no one else in the school could take the kids and she wouldn't want them to miss out on this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to meet students from other countries and discuss important international issues. So, reluctantly, we put on our best business-casual attire and boarded the van to Even Yehuda.
The American International School (AIS) was incredible. Immediately upon check-in, I met students from the US, Mongolia, Israel and South Africa. The campus was beautiful, which it should be considering the fact that it's one of the most prestigious schools in Israel and home to the offspring of multiple foreign ambassadors. And, as far as the students were concerned, the conference was very well organized and exciting. Definitely a cool thing for them to take part in.
That being said, Rolan and I were mind-blowingly bored. There was literally nothing for the advisers to do apart from attend one daily half-hour meeting and then sit in the teacher's lounge forever. The second day of the conference included dinner and a dance for the kids. This meant that Rolan and I sat on our butts for 14 straight hours. Baruch Hashem for my laptop and iTunes, without which we might never have been able to watch countless episodes of Modern Family and Jersey Shore. In an email to my mom, I described the conference as "a very strong combination of really fun and so, so incredibly boring." I went on to say that "I don't think I'd take it back but at the same time I don't ever want to be that bored again in my entire life." All we had to do was eat. As a result, I consumed about 15 mushroom burekas, a few muffins, veggie schnitzel, and about a thousand cups of coffee.
To avoid going stir crazy, we popped into a few of the committee meetings to see what the kids were up to all day. A highlight was standing in on guest speaker Shai Agassi, who is spear-heading the movement to make electric cars a reality in Israel and then the rest of the world. Mr. Agassi was so inspiring. And to think, he's been named one of Time's 100 most influential people, and he only has a Bachelor's degree! Now that gives me hope.
The best part of the whole conference was spending time with our kids from Makif Vav. We had such an great group of students with us, and it was so much fun getting to know them. I only wish I had the opportunity to hang out with them earlier, because I grew so attached to them over those two days that now it's just making it that much harder to leave. I know that as a teacher (or whatever I am), I probably shouldn't be picking favorites, but I totally have. I can't help it! These kids are awesome. In the end, I'm so glad that we got to attend the conference and get to know these amazing people. Here's a very John Hughes-esque shot of my favorites (and Rolan–obviously also a favorite) at the conference:
Rolan and I were really hesitant to go on this trip. One of our teachers used some serious Jewish-mom guilt to coerce us into going, telling us that no one else in the school could take the kids and she wouldn't want them to miss out on this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to meet students from other countries and discuss important international issues. So, reluctantly, we put on our best business-casual attire and boarded the van to Even Yehuda.
The American International School (AIS) was incredible. Immediately upon check-in, I met students from the US, Mongolia, Israel and South Africa. The campus was beautiful, which it should be considering the fact that it's one of the most prestigious schools in Israel and home to the offspring of multiple foreign ambassadors. And, as far as the students were concerned, the conference was very well organized and exciting. Definitely a cool thing for them to take part in.
That being said, Rolan and I were mind-blowingly bored. There was literally nothing for the advisers to do apart from attend one daily half-hour meeting and then sit in the teacher's lounge forever. The second day of the conference included dinner and a dance for the kids. This meant that Rolan and I sat on our butts for 14 straight hours. Baruch Hashem for my laptop and iTunes, without which we might never have been able to watch countless episodes of Modern Family and Jersey Shore. In an email to my mom, I described the conference as "a very strong combination of really fun and so, so incredibly boring." I went on to say that "I don't think I'd take it back but at the same time I don't ever want to be that bored again in my entire life." All we had to do was eat. As a result, I consumed about 15 mushroom burekas, a few muffins, veggie schnitzel, and about a thousand cups of coffee.
To avoid going stir crazy, we popped into a few of the committee meetings to see what the kids were up to all day. A highlight was standing in on guest speaker Shai Agassi, who is spear-heading the movement to make electric cars a reality in Israel and then the rest of the world. Mr. Agassi was so inspiring. And to think, he's been named one of Time's 100 most influential people, and he only has a Bachelor's degree! Now that gives me hope.
The best part of the whole conference was spending time with our kids from Makif Vav. We had such an great group of students with us, and it was so much fun getting to know them. I only wish I had the opportunity to hang out with them earlier, because I grew so attached to them over those two days that now it's just making it that much harder to leave. I know that as a teacher (or whatever I am), I probably shouldn't be picking favorites, but I totally have. I can't help it! These kids are awesome. In the end, I'm so glad that we got to attend the conference and get to know these amazing people. Here's a very John Hughes-esque shot of my favorites (and Rolan–obviously also a favorite) at the conference:
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| Eden, Rolan, Omri, Danielle, Ayelet, and Stas |
1 comments:
You wanna make me cry??!
I love you guys!!
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