Six new volunteers arrived in San Ramon, Costa Rica last weekend and one of the new teaching English volunteers, Jessica, filled the spots of Nikki and Moritz, who left us a few weeks ago, at a rural school in San Ramon. The teacher there and all of the kids are extremely appreciative of volunteers, especially because our volunteers help out the teacher with proper pronunciation so she can give more individual support to her students.
As is customary with all new volunteers, our coordinator Laura brought Jessica on her first day volunteering and this is what she reported from their trip:
New volunteers always arrive, but the past two weeks I’ve been saying a lot of goodbyes to volunteers that I’ve grown to love. As hard as it is for volunteers to leave each other though, saying farewell to the children they have gotten to know and love through teaching is sometimes even harder. Laura and I visited Nikki and Moritz on their last day teaching English and got to see how important they have become, as teachers and role models, to their students. The energetic and adorable second-graders almost caused Nikki to fall over backwards with the force of their hugs, and then they chased Moritz down the hall to keep him from leaving. Check out a video of that on our youtube page! Read the rest of this entry »
Moritz volunteered teaching English at Escuela Bolivar in San Ramon last year and on Monday returned to the school to cheering and applauding children. He feels great to be back with so many of the same kids and the same teachers, and happy that he could keep his promise to return that he made last summer. Camilo accompanied him on his first day back to volunteering and according to Camilo, Moritz is like a “rock star” in the school.
Jen Paskach has been volunteering in our teaching English project in Cusco for the past three weeks. She is volunteering at a local after school program that provides academic support and extracurricular activities to underprivileged children.
Alexis arrived in San Ramon, Costa Rica last weekend and is volunteering teaching English at Escuela La Sabana. Our local coordinator, Camilo, accompanied Alexis on her first day volunteering. Camilo introduced Alexis to the teachers and staff she will be working with and joined her in singing English songs with her new students.
We had 7 new arrivals in San Ramon, Costa Rica this weekend! Our local coordinators, Laura and Camilo, accompanied the new volunteers on the first day at their projects. Laura accompanied Nykkiesha on her first day teaching English at Bolivar School.
Here is Laura’s report from the trip:
June 28th, 2010
I picked up Nykkiesha from the dorm at 8:30 a.m and together we walked to the bus stop to Piedades Sur.We got off of the bus and walked a kilometer until we reached Bolivar school. It was, like always, a beautiful walk. When we arrived to school it was 9:40; The English teacher, Isabel, was very nice and warmly welcomed us to the school. Nykkiesha was given a tour of the little school and was introduced to all of the staff members.
uVolunteer Allison has been working with special needs adults at a school just outside San Ramon. She shares her experience of a Special Olympics event held for her students.
On the 6 October, 2009 students of a school for adults with special needs in the small town of San Isidro outside San Ramon, participated in the Olimpadas Especiales 2009.
It was an early departure from San Ramon for Alajuela, where the track events were held. Students were accompanied by professoras Cynthia and Marita, uVolunteer Allison, coach Huberth and family members. Excitement mounted during the beautifully scenic bus journey. Students previously had a few training sessions with their enthusiastic coach Huberth, with naturalsporting prowess clearly evident in some of the competitors.
Despite competing against each other, in the spirit of Pura Vida, the harmony amongst the students did not change. Each encouraged the other to reach the finish line, while the sun shone brilliantly for everyone.
The last months I have been busy following the volunteers around on their projects. And apart from the fact that it’s a lot of fun (especially for me), it also gives me some insight in the way things are run.
The last week I have been following around our teaching volunteers, from 4th grade to adults, from beginners to advanced and no matter which level, it’s exhausting! I went to class with Adrienne and Zsuzsanna, Tom, Jordan, Laura, Moritz, Rawan and Leonie who all brought out the teacher within. And it’s really not as easy as you may think. Try to explain to someone what your birthday is when they don’t speak a word of English (or don’t know when their birthday is in the worst case).
For that reason, I though I’d write down some ideas and guidelines that might help your teaching experience being easier and better, based on what I’ve seen in the classes, my own experiences when learning English and some professional advices online:
It’s important to come prepared to your classes. Apart from the fact that it will be more comfortable for you, it will also help you keep your class more organized, especially when you’re working with kids. Before you start, try to make a lesson planning of things you want to do and set goals for yourself and for your class to accomplish. There are many resources to be found on the internet which I will list below.
Try to speak English in the classes as much as possible. Even if your students don’t know any English, they will learn a lot faster when you set an example. Only use Spanish (when you can) as a last resort.
Use sign language and clear gestures when talking to your class. don’t switch back too easily to explain things in Spanish, but make an attempt to explain it again in English, but slower, or in different words.
Make use of pictures. Pictures are a good way to explain certain concepts, but apart from that, they are also a great way for your students to remember words and phrases as they can actually visualize the word.
When you start with a class that has no or very little knowledge of English, you might want to start with things that are familiar to them, like songs or phrases. (ehow)
Try to interact with your class. Especially when you’re working with kids, it’s important that you keep their (short) attention. You can do so by playing games or let the kids do exercises. In one of the classes, they taught the students the song: ‘head, shoulders, knee and toe’, where the kids point out every body part they sing about. By singing a song, it is easier for the kids to remember the words, plus they will have more fun studying them! Other things you can do:
Play boardgames, like Hangman or Word snake where your class actively interacts and need to apply their English. More educative games to be found here.
Let your students prepare a little play or presentation in groups. This way, they are forced to use their English and also their creativity. It’s very effective because they also learn to improvise while speaking and they can help each other.
Show English movies and songs. This way, the students can also get used to different accents and it will help the students enunciate better.
Teach your class a song or rime in English. They are normally easier to remember. More information on songs for classes are to be found here.
Keep in mind that these tips are no guarantee for success, but can help your experience getting better. More importantly, make sure that you teach with enthusiasm and have fun in what you do!
Any suggestions on how to make your teaching English Abroad experience better are welcome!
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