May 20, 2015

Proud Teacher Moment

I had a very proud moment at the school. This was our first day at Calle Herandez primary school. I worked with first and third graders. One boy, Daniel, in particular in my first grade class had a disability. We were working in a small group and the lesson was on identifying family members in English. Two students were able to do this activity with ease. The student with special needs was not grasping this lessons concepts as quickly as the other students. I worked with Daniel individually. I related the English word grandmother with a picture of my grandmother. Then I drew my grandmother and had him draw his. He understood by the picture of my grandmother that she was my “abuela.” I demonstrated a lot and related the three picture together to teach him grandmother. I did the same thing for the other members of his family. By the end of the day, it was amazing to see his progress. Just to see the smile on his face and the confidence he had gained made me so proud. This experience strengthened my belief that all children can learn even those with special needs. Daniel barely knew his own language and was still able to learn a language completely foreign to him. It is the kind of experiences like this one that makes me know 100% that teaching is what I want to do. Spanish class has been good. My professor is very helpful. I think the small classes have really made it such a wonderful experience so far. It has not all been good through. Today I was very tired and I felt like my brain was melting in Spanish class. When learning a different language, you have to concentrate very hard to catch what the teacher is saying. I can only imagine how our English language learners feel in our classes in America. Sometime you just want to give up. I have experienced the same feeling in my home. It is hard to communicate and sometimes I want to just go to my room but I force myself to attempt to interact with my family even if it is just sitting with them in silence. It is not easy living in another’s person’s home. The living standards here are much different than in the states. At home if I saw one bug, then I would clean like crazy and set off a bug bomb. Here bugs are just part of life. If a cockroach runs across the floor they don’t even acknowledge it. I keep telling myself that it is just different here and try not to make a big deal of it.

My Spanish Class (The little one is my professor.)

 

 

 Daniel