Although I fear we might not get to Thailand (I'll update you in class), this blog http://www.thailandfromabove.com/ makes me hope that things will work out. The photos - taken by a drone! - really illustrate the rich Thai culture. Take a look at some of the photos - they're amazing!

Our Visit to Wat Nawamintararachutis

In preparation for our trip, we visited Wat Nawamintarararachutis, a Buddhist meditation and Thai cultural center in Raynham, MA. We had an opportunity to meet with five of the Thai Buddhist monks who reside at the center to learn about Buddhism in Thailand and practice some of the procedures we'll observe when we visit a few of the sacred Buddhist temples there. When the center officially opens in June of this year, it will be the largest Thai Buddhist monastery outside of Thailand. 

This "wat" - or temple - is dedicated to Therevada Buddhism, the sect of Buddhism that is prevalent in Thailand, as well as Cambodia, Laos, Sri Lanka, and Burma. Meditation and concentration is critical to attain enlightenment in this tradition and the monks there spend much of their time in this endeavor. We brought gifts to the monks - baskets of fruit, food, and a small monetary donation - and participated in a blessing. Although I didn't understand the words the monks chanted during the blessing, it was very moving and I appreciated the time they took to show us how to properly present our gifts and be part of the chant. I was one of the people to present the gifts and I was nervous that I might do the wrong thing. I knew that as a female, I was not supposed to touch the monk; when I presented our gifts I had to place the offerings on a special mat before the monk was able to take the item.

The last time that I was at a Buddhist temple was in Beijing, China where I visited the Yonghe Temple, which is a Tibetan Buddhist temple. I was struck by a number of differences and I think one of the things that I will do prior to my trip is learn a little more about the various sects of Buddhism and then compare the temples that we visit in Thailand with the other temples that I have been to.

If you have a chance to visit Raynham - about 45 minutes south of Chestnut Hill - I highly recommend that you visit Wat Nawamin. It's an amazing opportunity to learn about Thai culture and Buddhism.

Traveling to Thailand

This February I'll be traveling with a group of K-12 educators to Thailand! The purpose of our trip is to learn about the history and culture of Thailand and to consider how our experiences can not only inform our work but help bring global learning into our own classrooms. Throughout our course, we'll explore various ways to engage elementary students with the world and follow other educators on their journey to do so.

The educators that I'm traveling with are going on the trip as a professional development experience. We spent the months before the trip learning about Thailand with a few meetings after school. Our first speaker who presented at two of our meetings worked for a few NGOs in Thailand and he gave us a basic overview of the country and its culture. Our second speaker currently lives in Boston but was born in Thailand and is active in educational issues in the country; since we plan to visit schools on our trip, it was extremely beneficial to hear about schooling from an expert. One of our final preparation experiences involves visiting a Buddhist Temple in Massachusetts, which we have planned for the end of January.

All of the teachers on this trip are expected to bring their experience into their classrooms. In the next few weeks, we'll explore some of the blogs that they have created for their students and we'll think about how you might engage your own students with global learning. I'll also be blogging from Thailand while I'm there so you'll have a chance to see the student perspective as well. I'm excited to share my travel with you!

YOUR ASSIGNMENT: In the comments section, write a brief post where you consider SOME of the following questions:

• What are some ways that you might enrich your students' learning through a travel experience? 
• What do you think your students could learn? 
• Have you ever used your experiences in another place (state or country) to teach students about a specific topic? Have you seen examples of this type of teaching in your pre-prac experiences or your own education?