Far From Home

My heart broke yesterday when one of my students came to me after school.

She asked me earlier in the day if I'd be here after school because she wanted to talk to me. CC is a beginner English speaker who came to the U.S. a few years ago for about a year, then returned to Mexico. She came back in August 2011 & it has been so fun to teach her & get to know her. She is somewhat quiet if she doesn't know you & has the sweetest nature about her.

She came into my room right after school & said, "Miss, I can't stay today, will you be here tomorrow?" I told her yes, but then I asked her what she needed to talk about. She hesitated & didn't want to start the conversation. I kept asking & told her just to tell me what it was about & that we would talk more about it later.

Finally, after a minute or so of fidgeting & thinking (I'm sure trying to translate the words in her head, mixed with "I don't know if I want to start this now..."), her eyes filled up with tears & she said, "I miss my mom."

I opened my arms immediately & held her, telling her I was so sorry. I didn't know what to say. It sucks. I actually have 3 girls from Mexico who live with extended family in Austin because their parents are back in Mexico.

I understand these parents are sending their kids to live here to get a good education, but it is so hard to be that far from your parents & siblings for this long. They get to see them at Christmas during the school year & that's it! By law, we must educate these children & I'm so thankful that I have this job. I know I have the best job on campus, getting to work with these incredible students. I hear them talk about their schools in Mexico & I know they are getting a good education there. So, sometimes I ask myself if sending them to the US by themselves is really "better" for them.

Stomach Talk

After lunch, my stomach was digesting (I guess) & it made a noise. I said to my two girls, "Oh, I think my stomach is talking to y'all after lunch."

Angelica (started learning English last year) quickly replied, "I think mine is responding to yours."

CSI: Kealing

I wanted to introduce a learning strategy to my students that will help them "find clues" in what they're reading to help them better answer the questions about the text. It's called the Inference Strategy. I was determined to make this strategy fun!

I set up a crime scene (with random pieces of evidence) & the kids walked in & said, "Whoa! What? What happened?" I looked at them with the same surprised face & said, "Oh no! I don't know...I guess that's YOUR job. I mean, obviously the victim's dead, but you have to figure out HOW he died, based on what you know."

They LOVED it! With journals in hand, they went & knelt down by the scene to study all the evidence & see what they could come up with. I was excited to see them get into it & the excitement transferred over when they expressed joy about being investigators while they read passages. This is the moment I've been waiting for!! To have my students excited about READING! Ha! Who knew I had to set up a fake crime scene to help that happen.

The second day I presented this was really funny. I began the class with some Intense Music for the students to listen to as they studied the crime scene. (I literally googled "Intense Music" as I that's exactly what I got.) They felt like they were in a movie. ;)

What Do YOU Want For Christmas?

I asked one of my classes a simple question. "What did you ask Santa for this year?" The responses were genuine & made me smile...

EG is not famous for his sweet nature (because he is normally talking, day-dreaming, or making excuses for himself), but his response melted my heart.

What did I ask Santa for this year? I asked Santa for good time with my family so we can laugh & spend time together.

MC is not known for her selflessness (because she has been displaying a "I'm gonna do what I want & I dare you to try to stop me" mentality lately), so her response caught me off guard.

I'm not asking Santa for nothing! I mean, anything. I'm too old for presents. Uh uh, no no. I don't need all that. We just gonna haaang out & be a crazy family.

I was so surprised, as most of the students at our school have a very thick sense of entitlement that isn't even valid. It was refreshing & wonderful to hear them talk about the holidays.

She's Getting Bossy...And I Like It.

One of my newcomers last year, Angelica, has undoubtedly been one of the biggest joys in my life in the past 1.5 years. She is so hard-working, self-motivated, & is a very kind person. She has learned English so quickly & jumped so many proficiency levels in one year, it's simply shocking.

I would like to brag on her for a moment (as if I haven't already). She says she wants to be a teacher when she grows up. Well, I've got news for everyone... She's already acting like one in my classroom, and I like it.

Either we share a brain, or she has an uncanny ability to know exactly what I'm thinking, OR all teachers think alike. Which means she's chosen the perfect profession for herself. This girl is becoming more & more vocal as the days go by & her peers are getting used to her (borderline) scolding them, (constructively) correcting them, & asking them questions to check themselves. Sometimes, I feel like I should give her part of my salary. It only seems fair.

Last week, the students took a spelling test & we did a peer check afterwards. Angelica asked me to come over & recheck one of Erik's words because she couldn't read it (ie, his handwriting wasn't his best performance.) As I reviewed the word, Erik became defensive & said, "What?! I write small, ok?! It's right, the word is right, I just write small." Angelica & I both looked at him & as I opened my mouth to respond, this little girl ever-so-slightly raised her voice & said,"Then, you need to write big." Literally, took the words right out of my mouth.

Again, it's simply a joy.