May 17, 2015

Today’s the Day: I get to meet Mi Familia

Before going to meet our families, we went to the Costa Rican national museum in San Jose. I learned a lot about the Costa Ricans history. I found it interesting that when you look at different countries history there are many things that are similar. In prehistoric time, the Costa Rican people were like the Indians we learn about in America. They hunted and gathered food to eat. They made their own spears just like we did and cooked over a fire just like we did. What I found most interesting was their traditional burial. The ticans would let the body rot and then take the person’s bones and organize them in a little package. The ticans are very resourceful and environmentally aware which I think we lack in America. This burial method is very clever and takes up less space in the ground. It seems like American’s are very wasteful. We are starting to have more and more recycling centers and such but I feel that we are behind in this area.

We were able to walk around San Jose. We went into a hand craft market. It reminded me of a flea market in the states. When teaching students what something is like it could be a good Idea to try to relate it to something they are familiar with. I noticed there were police stands on every few streets. When the police came down the street, some of the vendors would pack up their belongings very quickly and walk away. They were selling illegally and did not want to get caught. I thought this was interesting. I have never see this in the US except for in big cities. We got to go into the National Theatre. The design were so detailed. It was such a beautiful building. I can’t imagine how fantastic it would be to see a performance there. Building are just not made that way anymore. I went to Yellowstone national park last summer and we got to stay in Utah for a night. We were able to go into Utah’s capital building. The detail of that building was like the Costa Ricans national theatre. Next we went to CPI, where I will be taking Spanish classes while I’m here. I’m actually very excited to get started so that I can communicate better. I meet my mama and papa tica tonight. They were so warm and welcoming. Mama tica had dinner ready for me when I got there.  I was very nervous coming into the home. Dinner was mostly silent. I was uncomfortable but I just kept thinking this was a challenge I will have to overcome. This is the whole reason why I am here, to learn what it is like to walk in the shoes of ELL. My family has three sons but they were not there. My papa showed me around the house and the neighbor’s house which are their relatives. It is not uncommon for families to live in the same area together. I like how family oriented Spanish families are. It is not as common to see this in the US. My papa tics was very patient with me. I know very little Spanish but I could pick out a few words. I knew more than I thought I did. It helped that he used examples and used hand motions. I will remember this when I teach my own students and try to give them many visuals. I am looking forward to learning more Spanish tomorrow. As soon as my mama and papa tica went to bed, I started looking up Spanish word in my dictionary. I have noticed that as I learn more and more about Costa Rica I try to relate it to something in America. I think it will be important for me to remember this when I’m teaching English Language Learners. If I can relate what we are learning to something familiar to them I think it will help a lot.

Burial Method

 

Police Stands

National Theatre

My Host Family in Heredia