You Know You’re Just About Fluent in Spanish When

…your girls check the spelling of certain words with you for their homework.

…you can explain division of polynomials (also a sign your math skills are still smokin’).

…you can just as easily speak in usted, tú, or vos.

…you know the difference between “Ya llego” (I’ll be right there), “Ya vengo” (I’ll be right back), and “Ya voy” (I’m coming).

…you understand inappropriate humor.

…you don’t switch to English when you get really mad.

…colloquialisms are part of your everyday vocabulary.

…your students aren’t sure if you speak English.

…they also no longer check with another teacher after asking you a question.

…after not speaking with a girl for months (she’s in the city doing her year of service) and finally talking to her on the phone, she exclaims, “¡Ya puedes hablar español!”

Teaching

Since I got back from vacation, I’ve been working two days a week in second grade and three days in first grade. I have definitely had my frustrations this year, mostly with the kids’ behavior, but the lack of resources also makes me feel sometimes like I’m teaching with one hand tied behind my back. But as my volunteer year comes to a close, I’m reflecting on the changes I have been able to make and feel positive about them, especially in regards to teaching methodology and instructional strategies.

I feel like I’ve brought read-aloud to the forefront of instruction here. Kenia always tells me how much she enjoys hearing me read, and the kids always ask me to. I was able to start a Word Wall of words kids should be reading at first glance. We do ten a week on flashcards, and then I put them on the wall for them to practice. For the kids who struggle the most, I did an oral reading fluency take-home activity so they could practice every day with their tíos. For our science theme, we’re studying living things versus nonliving things. I introduced the idea of a Venn diagram, and the students did really well with it, although it was really hard at first. I also had the kids create a personal coat of arms when we studied the individual. The other day, the kids were getting a talking to after yanking the tail off a poor little gecko. All they wanted to do after that was talk about experiences they’d had with animals, so I suggested they write about it. I did an example on the board, we shared ideas, and I sent them off tow work. I was so pleased with their ideas, although I was as usual frustrated by the demand for perfection in spelling in first grade when, for me, ideas have always held more weight. Imagine my delight when I came back from teaching second grade and Kenia was having the kids write their own “avisos” after sharing her own example. She told them that the most important thing was that they were writing and that content is what counted!!

In second grade, I’m working on eliminating round robin reading. The kids lose their place, those who struggle get embarrassed, and those who already read well get bored. I started with a cloze read, where I read aloud and leave out a word which the kids then supply chorally. They seem to be really engaged with that strategy. I’m using questioning strategies to get the kids to make predictions and draw conclusions, since they are really lacking in analysis. I really like that the teacher Xiomara is open to new ideas and asks me to show her strategies. The other day, she was struggling to present an activity on volume and asked me to step in. I had a blast doing it, and the kids really surprised me with how well they understood it. We had several graduated cylinders of various sizes and they had to figure out different ways to make a liter. I was impressed with their use of fractions and repeated addition.
In turn, I’ve learned a lot from the teachers here. When I left Puyallup, I would have said that discipline and management were my strengths, but I have been challenged here in ways I never imagined. The amount of behavioral problems here is astounding, but Kenia has really helped me understand where the kids come from and why they behave the way they do. I now know how to manage not just one tough kid, but a whole classroom full of them. I can’t imagine running into any group of children more challenging than these. I’ve also benefitted from learning the Montessori method, and my work in younger grades will be a big help to me when I start teaching second grade this fall at Meeker Elementary in Puyallup.

Bellydance Comes to the Ranch

When I was home in January, I got all jazzed about the idea of teaching a bellydance class to the older girls on the Ranch. I packed music, some costuming, and zils donated by my former teacher Zanbaka. When I got back, I got permission to start classes. Anyway, for reasons I won’t go into on my blog, my initiative died a sad little death. I did end up showing some of my girls Zanbaka’s bellydance guidebooks where I am featured as the model, which they thought was pretty cool. One of those girls is an officer in the Youths in Action group on the Ranch. They were in charge of this weekend’s activities, including Saturday night’s talent show. When neither the tías in Talita Kumi nor the volunteers came up with a presentation, I was convinced (it didn’t take much) to perform. This was about 15 minutes before the event began, so good thing I studied tribal improvisation. I ran back to the house, where Miriam helped me get ready. I dressed like I did when I performed at Zeiger, so a little more conservative than normal. When I arrived at talleres, people asked me if I was dancing and if so with whom. What I got was lots of, “You’re dancing ALONE?” I was a little nervous; I’m not going to lie. This is something definitely outside of mainstream Honduran culture. It didn’t help that we had technical difficulties, but my music finally came on. When I took my position and the lights went down, I could hear little Jarvin’s voice saying, “Qué bonito!” I only danced for a few minutes, but I managed to have a good time and was really appreciative of the shouts of support from my girls. They really loved it and asked me when I was going to teach them to move like that. They were mesmerized by the zils, and Aida asked me who was playing, not realizing that I was doing it while I danced. My tía Delmy was especially impressed and said she really wished she’d learned to dance from me. It looks like there’s interest, so maybe there’s still time, despite the snail’s pace at which everything moves here. In any case, I got to strut my stuff, and we all know how much I like that.

Choluteca Weekend

This February, three girls from the Ranch were given the opportunity to bypass their year of service and go directly to bachillerato (high school) in Choluteca, a city about 3-4 hours south of Tegus by bus (it’s really close to the Nicaraguan border). They’ve been asking me when I’m going to come visit them, so I decided on the second weekend in March. It helps that one of my favorite kids of all time is there. Magda is such a rockstar. She really has it together. One of my favorite things about her is that she really stuck it to the machistas in talleres and insisted on being allowed to be in welding and then passed her national exams with flying colors. I left school at 1:00 p.m. on Friday and hopped on the bus to Tegus. I got off at El Mayoreo and quickly found a bus to Choluteca. Figuring out transportation all by myself is always a big confidence booster for me. This being Mother’s Day Weekend, the bus took forever to get to Choluteca. Magda must have called me 8 times to make sure I was okay and so she’d know when to meet me at the terminal. I got there a little after 7:00 p.m., and she and Heidy were both there to pick me up. We took a cab to the house where the three girls live. They are staying with the cousin of another pequeña and her three daughters (so with “family”). Ingrid welcomed me into her home and fed me lots of greasy food so that I would leave “bien gorda.” Two of the girls bunked together so I could have my own bed, and they set the fan up right next to me because Choluteca is notoriously hot. Those girls really know how to consentir. I didn’t carry my own bags, never washed my own dishes, and got scolded for making my own bed. And that little pumpkin Magda kept trying to pay for me when we went out. Heidy made me coffee Saturday morning, and then I took my first ever bucket shower. It was a little area outside, blocked off with sheets, those being the only things between me and the rooster next door. I was told to throw water on any of the dogs who tried to come in. After we got ready, Wendy, Magda and I headed to a nearby swimming pool with their friends from school. We were there pretty much all day. I felt shy around the friends because they spoke Spanish differently and really fast. Once we headed to the park in the late afternoon, they started to ask me questions, and we all warmed up to each other and had a great time. We spent the evening back at the house, where Heidy painted my nails for an hour. She’s a perfectionist and had to do an elaborate design. I think it’s a modern teenage Honduran equivalent of the washing of feet in the Bible. It’s an act of service and love. The girls sent me off Sunday morning with lots of hugs and requests for another visit. All in all, it was a lovely weekend.