Today was better! However, we have been here for 2 days and it is still raining. Does the sun ever shine in Monte Verde? We visited the Elementary School in Santa Elena today. The students are on a split schedule with several grades attending in the morning and others in the afternoon. So the morning schedule is from 7 to 12:10 or so and then the afternoon schedule is 12:30 to 5:40? I think. Teachers are at school from 6:45 to 6:00...I assume as they teach both sessions! Something to think about as we plan our days around a 7:45 to 2:30 schedule. There were 35 - 38 students in each classroom today....lots of kids! We had a class of 1st graders that we read books to. They were very simple books in English that we translated into Spanish...so that both sentences were on the same page. The students enjoyed this activity as it gave them an opportunity to hear words in English and us an opportunity to practice our Spanish! We also taught a Science AIMS lesson to a 5th grade class. It was a math/graphing activity using jelly beans. We taught this lesson to the group of students in Heredia too. My groups (2), loved this activity. My second group was better behaved than my first group...don't know why except that the lesson was taught just before recess! I think they got "antsy"(sp?).
The AIMS lesson was in Spanish and I taught the lesson in English. This gave them an opportunity to hear the words in English that they could see in Spanish on the worksheets. I think this is a good strategy to use with ESL/ELL students. After being in Spanish class where all of the instructions and lessons are in Spanish, I can understand the importance of having those instructions in the "native" language. It takes a lot of concentration to decode words (looking at context, using what little vocabulary I have)and then complete the assignment! They also have vegetable and flower garden at the school; as well as a well maintained trail into the forest with an outdoor classroom area (see picture).
I spent some time tonight at the local internet cafe called the "Tree House". It's in downtown St Elena. I also visited the local SuperMercado (much like our Walmart) and picked up a local newspaper about the eruption of the Volcano Arenal that happened on Monday. I am still translating that story, so I don't have all of the "news" yet. It's another lesson learned about how much we depend on news in our language to keep us informed....the simple things that we take for granted...until we are in a "foreign country"! By the time I get this story translated, it's old news....but a great practice exercise. Everynight my CR family watches the news at 7pm. They are called Noticias. I know there are things going on in the country, community, and the world...but I don't know what they are.........end of day 12! Do you think our students feel the same????
I had an interesting experience with trying to hire a taxi tonight to get home. There were 3 of us at the cafe, so we wanted to share a ride. We were turned down by 2 different drivers, before we found a person that was willing to take us! Imagine that! It took 2 translators and several of us showing our maps of our family houses with directional instructions, before we were able to convince our driver that we knew where we were going and could show him if he was willing to risk it! Please remember that there are no addresses in CR. The house is listed a 800 meters west from the cemetary and 75 meters south of the Villas...4th house in the forest! First thing tomorrow in Spanish class...is to get the words for "turn right here" and "turn left here" !!!!!!
End of day 12....
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