Well this is embarrassing. I've been back in Madrid for almost three weeks now and this is my first "official" blog of year 2. I hope you got a kick out of the last post that commented on the food my students were going to be eating this month. I've alerted the authorities and they are fully aware and saddened that the kids will be eating grilled breast....
This week was our first week of school and honestly, it felt to be back. I was really happy to see my students, parents, and grandparents. Lots of hugs and happy faces all around :) This school year my role has changed a little bit. I'm teaching twenty hours per week, but I feel as though I'm "moving up the English Teacher ladder" as my Mom puts it. I teach five hours to a 1st Grade class. They're part of the bilingual program, so I speak to them only in English. It's definitely a challenge because they're so young, but I can already see an improvement after one week! I then teach three hours to a 3rd Grade class. With the 1st Grade class and then during one hour of the 3rd Grade class, I'm co-teaching with another teacher. My principal paired me with her so I can help her improve her English. It's also a way for me to actually teach the curriculum, as Spanish regulations make it difficult for myself and the other native speaker to teach. We're both still working on getting fully "certified". I then have eight hours with various 3rd-6th grade class, teaching conversational English. This year some things have changed, so I won't be teaching English to the other 1st and 2nd grade classes, because they have so many hours of English already. BUT, I am going to start giving "apoyo", which means support four hours a week to students in the 1st and 2nd grades who are going to be identified as struggling in English. I'm really excited about my new position(s) and love that I'm doing several different things.
Classes are also in full swing at the university. My life is pretty much consumed by reading 19th century Spanish novels and Latin American testimony books. Somewhere and somehow, I find time to read for my Political Communications, Latin American Philosophy, and Theology.
I'm also in the midst of making some huge decisions, namely what I'm going to be doing next year. Yes, some of you are probably thinking to yourself that I just came back, so why am I already thinking that far ahead. I have to plan that far in advance due to a thing called Residency Visas and plane tickets. I'm exploring all options. I feel that I have several leads on jobs back in Louisville, but I would also find it hard to leave Spain. At this point I have no clue what I'm going to do, but I have complete faith in God to give me an answer in the next two months. I ask for your prayers as I go through this difficult, yet necessary decision-making process.
This week was our first week of school and honestly, it felt to be back. I was really happy to see my students, parents, and grandparents. Lots of hugs and happy faces all around :) This school year my role has changed a little bit. I'm teaching twenty hours per week, but I feel as though I'm "moving up the English Teacher ladder" as my Mom puts it. I teach five hours to a 1st Grade class. They're part of the bilingual program, so I speak to them only in English. It's definitely a challenge because they're so young, but I can already see an improvement after one week! I then teach three hours to a 3rd Grade class. With the 1st Grade class and then during one hour of the 3rd Grade class, I'm co-teaching with another teacher. My principal paired me with her so I can help her improve her English. It's also a way for me to actually teach the curriculum, as Spanish regulations make it difficult for myself and the other native speaker to teach. We're both still working on getting fully "certified". I then have eight hours with various 3rd-6th grade class, teaching conversational English. This year some things have changed, so I won't be teaching English to the other 1st and 2nd grade classes, because they have so many hours of English already. BUT, I am going to start giving "apoyo", which means support four hours a week to students in the 1st and 2nd grades who are going to be identified as struggling in English. I'm really excited about my new position(s) and love that I'm doing several different things.
Classes are also in full swing at the university. My life is pretty much consumed by reading 19th century Spanish novels and Latin American testimony books. Somewhere and somehow, I find time to read for my Political Communications, Latin American Philosophy, and Theology.
I'm also in the midst of making some huge decisions, namely what I'm going to be doing next year. Yes, some of you are probably thinking to yourself that I just came back, so why am I already thinking that far ahead. I have to plan that far in advance due to a thing called Residency Visas and plane tickets. I'm exploring all options. I feel that I have several leads on jobs back in Louisville, but I would also find it hard to leave Spain. At this point I have no clue what I'm going to do, but I have complete faith in God to give me an answer in the next two months. I ask for your prayers as I go through this difficult, yet necessary decision-making process.
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