A breakthrough!

I work with three teachers at my school. One is fabulous, Pilar. She speaks excellent English and is very creative and hardworking. Next is Marilo. She can be boring in class... isn't quite as creative and her English isn't as good as Pilar's but she makes an effort and every once in a while we do a game or something that relates to math and English with the kids. Then there is Pedro. I am supposed to help him with third year Chemistry and with a 4th year elective science class. During our planning periods for chem, we have been translating all of the chapter summaries in order to have the English supplement to the class, thus making it "bilingual". Most classes this semester I spent just working on the translation document. In 4th year science, the kids have individual projects that they work on during class on computers. So, they talk amongst themselves in Spanish. I was wondering what exactly I was doing in that class basically all semester until finally last week I took matters into my own hands. Within an hour, I had found a music video about the scientific method, typed the lyrics, translated them and written up comprehension questions. I came into class with speakers to play the audio and basically just took over.
The video was super campy and silly... but they liked it! Long story short: they paid attention and I think they actually learned something!!! Anyway, I was VERY pleased with myself. GO me :)

Here's the video:

TWO Thanksgivings?!

Yes, its true. to make up for being away from freinds and family, I gorged with Thanksgiving gusto not once but twice. On Thursday I made a pretty darn legit and authentic American Thanksgiving dinner for my Spanish roommates and freinds plus a few Americans. I had everything except for the turkey: mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, "Stuffing" (turned out to be weird, liquidy consistency, although they said they liked it....) and cranberry that my mom sent! I baked pumpkin pie and chocoalte chip cookies with the boys that I tutor for a funtional vocabulary exam. They passed with flying colors and now want to make cookies during class instead of doing homework.



The Thanksgiving dinner party and me and my roommates!


As if that amount of revelry wasnt enough, the next day I went down to Puerto to visit with my other American contingent. They had one up on my Thanksgiving spread: An actaul turkey! There is an American military base a few towns over and somehow they managed to smuggle one out. It was delish. We tried to go out that night but we were pretty sluggish. (We TRIED to explain to the Spaniard that you are not supposed to move after eating Thanksgiving dinner, but they wouldnt hear of staying in digesting on a Friday night).

All in all, a fabulous holiday. :)