English Lessons This Week (11th, 12th, and 13th of July)

Monday’s class in Tipitapa was excellent! Unfortunately, Belen was out with her mom, so she couldn't make it. Aura and Everth remembered a lot of the material we had covered in the previous class. Reviewing was a breeze and we were able to move onto new material in no time at all. They both took notes and, by the end of the class, they were able to practice using some of the new vocabulary and phrases without looking at their notes! Hennessy had a great time coloring and playing with my camera.

Tuesday’s class, Winny’s class, was pretty great. Sadly, Winny came home a little late, but she caught up very quickly. I noticed that she has been taking very thorough notes. She is still a little shy about speaking English, because she doesn't think she can pronounce the words correctly. After I pointed out that I frequently sound like a “doofus” when I speak Spanish, she warmed up a little. Winny is definitely a very bright girl.

Wednesday’s class was quite difficult. I only had about half of the Camilo Ortega group. Ninoska, Sonia, Carlos, Leonardo, and Stephanie were the only ones who attended. Sonia clearly did not want to participate and was a bit of a distraction to the other students. She stayed for about half the class before I asked her to leave. The mothers also created a bit of a disturbance, towards the end of the class, by chatting right next to where we were setup. Leonardo, Carlos, Ninoska, and Stephanie did an amazing job at focusing and not letting any of the surrounding commotion distract them too much. Ninoska’s sudden urge to participate and her ability to retain a large amount of information in a short amount of time surprised me. Carlos already knew many English phrases and was eager to learn more.

Although this week did consist of a few trying moments, I enjoyed spending time with everyone. Watching the students that chose to participate demonstrate what they've learned is truly a delight.

English Lesson and Camilo Ortega Field Trip

Wednesday’s class went very smoothly! Despite a few students opting out of participating in the class, it was still a success. Those that did participate did an excellent job. Glenda, Isaac, Leonardo, Stephanie (Kimberly), Kati, and a friend of Stephanie all showed an interest in learning. Nadiuska, Didier, and BradDylan did some coloring and perused the pages of a few Hooked on Phonics (similar to Dick and Jane) books. They all took a short, oral quiz at the end of the class and received candy in exchange for their hard work.

Thursday, I accompanied the Camilo Ortega students on their field trip to the volcano in Masaya and Catarina. Around 9:00AM, a school of a little over a few hundred students crammed into a total of seven yellow school buses. Ninoska appointed herself as my tour guide throughout the trip. She stayed by my side and made sure everything went smoothly for me. We all did a little exploring by the volcano and I was introduced to some of their classmates and friends. On our way down from the top, we stopped at the museum. They all enjoyed looking at the dead insects and stuffed wildlife. Later, we crammed back into the buses and went to Catarina, where the kids got to do some swimming and relaxing by the mountainside. Overall, it was a very relaxing trip! I’m enjoying everyday here!

Daniel's First English Lesson

Below is an update from Daniel Schutrum-Boward, our Summer Intern, who just taught his first English lesson yesterday. Check back for updates from Daniel throughout July!

Yesterday’s class, held at Sylvia’s home, was truly a success! Everth, Aura, and Belen all did an excellent job demonstrating what they have already learned in previous classes and that they are all eager to learn more. We reviewed basic phrases and delved into a few more difficult subjects. Hennessy and two friends spent the class time coloring and observing the older students.

On another note, Nicaragua has been very good to me so far! I took a little journey to Granada Sunday and toured the market. I’ve also been exploring the area around the hostel. I look forward to reuniting with the rest of the VISEDAL kids over the next couple of days!

Here are some updates from Daniel on the children he's taught so far:

Aura: Aura did pretty well. Her pronunciation seems to be pretty good. She took notes.
Belen: It took Belen a little time to get warmed up. She had a little trouble with pronunciation. She took notes.
Everth: Everth did very well. It seems like he already had a pretty sturdy foundation. He struggled a little with pronunciation. He took some notes.
Winny: Overall, Winny did very well. I could tell that she could understand and was absorbing the information but she became very shy when I would call on her. She took notes.