!No Oso Perezoso's Aqui!

Tomorrow we will have been here for one week. I cannot believe how fast our time here is going.  I wish I could have posted every day but we just don't have the time. :) It seems like only yesterday I met my Mama Tica and her family. I remember being so nervous because I didn't know enough Spanish. After tomorrow night I won't see her again. All that nervousness is behind me know.

Today and Tuesday we were able to go to the Calle Hernandez Primary School to teach English. We had the chance to work with the estudiantes in the first and third grades. They were so cute! It was so fun to teach them the different members of their familia and propositions such as on, behind, in front of, next to and around.  They enjoyed telling us where to go and what to do. (I will post pictures this weekend).

Juan Pablo, Rachel, me and Isaac

Today we worked with the fifth graders also. They are more confident in their English and their teacher Dina has done a fabulous job with them. The schools are very different from the schools back home. Students here have more time to play and be interactive than in the US. In CR they focus on not just the subjects but HOW they fit together to create a bigger picture. It's amazing how much the students learn about other cultures. They are also very excited to learn; not just English but other subjects too. Being the only 'secondary' teacher, working in the primary school was fun but proved challenging because I had to constantly rein in my thought process. Nevertheless, I am still able to take that knowledge and make it applicable to my students. For instance, I can take what I have learned about the students here: having 'Brain Breaks", keeping lessons in context, working in heterogeneous groups, working to "demonstrate not translate" what they need to know and apply it to my classroom.  It was noted that student do better when they are in an environment they feel comfortable in. We could tell that Dina's students were very comfortable with her and trusted her implicitly.

Yesterday we visited La Volcán Poas and it's neighboring crater which is now an acid lagoon. The hike was pretty long and steep but we made it. Our guide Javier is fabulous and knows everything about well...everything! Except the IDK trees..lol Seeing the volcano was amazing. We arrived early enough to actually see where the magma shoots up as well as the path the lava takes on it's way down the mountain.

We have had an intense amount of Spanish this week. I feel like I have learned more in the past 4 days of class than I did in all the years I took in school. Our maestra Ana is wonderful; I love the way she teaches us and puts what we learn into context. What we are learning we are able to put into immediate practice outside of the school. I believe this is the main reason I have learned as much as I have already. Immersion into a culture really is the best way to learn.  We are being forced (in a good way) to learn and practice what we learn. It is necessary to understand and communicate with those around you because they may not understand English. This also makes me realize that while I know enough Spanish to get by (Tier 1 words); I do not know nearly enough vocabulary and know little about syntax. Still, I know there is a lot to learn.

So far I have not felt any of the effects of culture shock.  I don't know if that is because of my expectations for this trip or what. I do know that for me, the culture shock usually comes when I get home. I feel that I acclimate well to my environment but when I return home; home is the same but I am different.  At first connecting and conversating with the my tico family was muy dificil pero ahora it is way easier to comprehend what they are talking about.  I was even able to watch a movie in Spanish and understood what was being said (Yay me!).  Yo necisito más praticar porque I don't have everything down. But I'm getting there.  My mama Tica and I had a wonderful conversation last night. We discussed many different things including some of her past estudiantes. It is amazing that she has been doing this for 12 años!

Tomorrow we are going to visit La Carpio. I am very excited to meet Gayle and her team. I am hoping to get the chance to sit down with her and discuss poverty in CR as well as her thoughts on the women empowerment and the increase of human trafficking here.

I'm off to get some sleep. We've been going nonstop and I will be enjoying a sleep in (until 6am).

This Perezoso (sloth) is taking a siesta!

End Note: Yes I know that this is in "Spanglish" I believe it is necessary to keep it as I wrote it to show how my thought processes are being affected.