I can't believe that a week in the classroom has already passes us by. The week has been blur and full of mixed emotions. I began the week with shock because at points I my mind would freeze because I was being bombarded with questions in Spanish and there was no one to turn to for help. Talking about having to learn on the fly. At the schools there are very few who can speak good English and most of the teachers speak less English than I can Spanish. That is not a lot. The second day was much better and the students are great. They have really been helping me learn how to speak Spanish and I am picking up on a lot more than I did when I arrived. I still have troubles determining what is said simply due to listening. Por favor, escribalo has been a much used sentence in my arsenal of Spanish. In English it mean write it down please. From looking at it I can usually figure it out but I do always carry my Spanish-English dictionary with me.
There are a few interesting observations that I have made about the schools in Ecuador compared to home. The first is that there are no substitutes. If the teacher is sick then there is no teacher in the classroom. Either the students teach themselves or they go out a play. Sure your saying what student would actually do work when the teacher is not there, at least that was always my perspective when I was in high school. The students here are very well behaved and have a lot of respect for the schools and teachers.
No substitutes have put into the position where we are forced into the classroom. It is a really daunting task to try to teach and not be able to understand half of the questions. In these situations it has turned into a learning experience for the students and myself, today for example we were filling in for teachers all day. One of the highlights of my day was first hearing one student singing If Your Happy and You Know it Clap your Hands (a song in which I taught the grade 8 class yesterday. Today I taught them "The Bear Goes Over the Mountain." When I do these songs I have the students sing in English and then we translate to Spanish. At this point they teach me the song in Spanish and then we sing both versions. Many of the students are very musical driven and I feel the songs have really help them build the confidence to speak English and is a fun way to learn. They are taking more risk when talking to me and are trying to speak English.
This week has been very rewarding and very diminishing. It is a terrible feeling to be in a room and not understand a word that is spoken. It really puts things into perspective about how easily a student can fall behind in a class simply due to the lack of understanding. It is something that teachers should be more aware of and because of this experience so far it has influenced my views about teaching. I think I have already come a way with an understanding of my students and I have acquired some techniques that I would implement in the classroom at home. I have so much respect for the school and the students. I am loving my experiences at the schools and cannot wait until Monday. I have planned at some point to read 1 fish 2 fish, red fish blue fish to the students and have them make a picture book the corresponds to the story. I am really excited to see the end product.
This weekend we are off to the markets so I'm sure there will be some stories to tell tomorrow.
talk to you all soon
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