this past monday at hannigans my team won a free trip to the arab baths!! even though we didn't place in the top three, this was the grab bag prize, and our team name got picked out of the box! so last night after some filling tapas the 5 of us headed over to the baños arabes, and it was amazing! it's basically just a big hot tub, but after a cold rainy day, a big hot tub was pretty awesome! after a little bit, the guy told us to quickly dip in the freezing cold pool, then we went in the steam room for a little. since they weren't kicking us out, we decided to head back into the hot tub for a while before we were served tea in the tea room. we had completely lost track of time, and when we finally left it was 11! (we had got there at 8:30) needless to say, our prize for not winning trivia was better than the first prize!
afterwards, we headed over to our teammates amazing apartment about 5 minutes away. we sat on their rooftop terrace with some wine and some snacks. tough life right?
Sunday, October 23, 2011
pensamientos sobre la escuela
before i write about my super exciting trip to the arab baths, i wanted to share my thoughts on teaching and the school system here...i have discovered that i really really like teaching, something that surprised me a little. i approached this job with a really open mind since i had no idea what exactly i was going to be doing...would i be teaching a whole class? would i just sit there while the teacher goes on and on? would i have to do a lot of preparation? so far i've found that it is a mixture. the 5th grade teacher i work with is really nice (she's my favorite), and she really wants to include me in the lessons and have me teach when possible. she also likes me to prepare things out of class for the students to do. but the 6th grade teacher doesn't seem to know how to use the teaching assistant, so a lot of the time i will just sit there and read something when he asks me to, or go around and check the students work when they're doing a worksheet. the 3rd grade teacher doesn't speak english very well at all, so i have pretty much been teaching those classes. and the 4th grade teachers like to have me involved too. on thursday, i actually helped with the oral part of their test... i took two students at a time, asked them questions about a picture, and then graded them. i was probably more nervous then they were! but they understood me perfectly and did really well!!
there are several things that have really surprised me about the teachers/spanish school system. i don't want to sound like i'm knocking it, since i've only been involved for 3 weeks, but it doesn't seem efficient to me. first of all, many of the teachers don't enforce the "english only" rule. when i was in middle and high school learning a foreign language, my teachers rarely, if ever, spoke in english, even when we were just beginning. but that's how you learn! there is only one teacher i work with who constantly speaks english; all the rest speak spanish more than english. the third grade teacher can barely speak english, so it's a little surprising to me that she's teaching it! another thing that surprised me is the way the teachers act towards the students. they are not afraid to scream and yell at the students, or talk about them negatively right in front of their face. for instance, in the 3rd grade class there is a boy who is overweight. he doesn't cause trouble or anything, but the other day the teacher turned to me and said, while he was right there "oh, he's so big for someone so young!" i was really caught off guard! granted, i'm not sure if he understood her, but the fact that she was saying that shocked me! i wouldn't say the teachers are mean here, but there are definitely a few that will go off on a kid if they aren't on the right page or even if they don't understand...
which brings me to the special ed aspect of the school. or lack thereof. in one of the 3rd grade classes, there is a kid who i think has autism or some sort of mental disability. he is disruptive, gets up and walks around, and speaks the whole time. but instead of having someone there to help him, they had a man who just sat there and did his work for him. i think there may be one period of the day where he leaves the class for a private class, but i'm not positive. i don't know if it is the spanish school system or just my school, but they have no idea how to handle a child with a mental disability. i've seen several other children who need more time on exercises, but the teachers ignore it and continue on.
also, i have no idea how these children learn anything... they are in school for less than 5 hours a day! and the lessons NEVER start on time, and if you subtract the time it takes for the teacher to yell at the kids to be quiet and for them to actually get around to doing an exercise, its probably only 35 minutes of class time instead of 55. then of course they have 30 minutes of recess, and everyone comes back in late and can't settle down for the first half hour of the class. it's crazy! wayy different from my experience!
i'm not trying to put down the spanish school system at all, but these are just some of my observations so far. the kids are bright and fun, maybe a little out of control, but all in all i love them. and to be honest, i went to the same private school for my whole life, so maybe this happens in schools in the U.S. and i just have no idea. but it has definitely been a wake up call!!
there are several things that have really surprised me about the teachers/spanish school system. i don't want to sound like i'm knocking it, since i've only been involved for 3 weeks, but it doesn't seem efficient to me. first of all, many of the teachers don't enforce the "english only" rule. when i was in middle and high school learning a foreign language, my teachers rarely, if ever, spoke in english, even when we were just beginning. but that's how you learn! there is only one teacher i work with who constantly speaks english; all the rest speak spanish more than english. the third grade teacher can barely speak english, so it's a little surprising to me that she's teaching it! another thing that surprised me is the way the teachers act towards the students. they are not afraid to scream and yell at the students, or talk about them negatively right in front of their face. for instance, in the 3rd grade class there is a boy who is overweight. he doesn't cause trouble or anything, but the other day the teacher turned to me and said, while he was right there "oh, he's so big for someone so young!" i was really caught off guard! granted, i'm not sure if he understood her, but the fact that she was saying that shocked me! i wouldn't say the teachers are mean here, but there are definitely a few that will go off on a kid if they aren't on the right page or even if they don't understand...
which brings me to the special ed aspect of the school. or lack thereof. in one of the 3rd grade classes, there is a kid who i think has autism or some sort of mental disability. he is disruptive, gets up and walks around, and speaks the whole time. but instead of having someone there to help him, they had a man who just sat there and did his work for him. i think there may be one period of the day where he leaves the class for a private class, but i'm not positive. i don't know if it is the spanish school system or just my school, but they have no idea how to handle a child with a mental disability. i've seen several other children who need more time on exercises, but the teachers ignore it and continue on.
also, i have no idea how these children learn anything... they are in school for less than 5 hours a day! and the lessons NEVER start on time, and if you subtract the time it takes for the teacher to yell at the kids to be quiet and for them to actually get around to doing an exercise, its probably only 35 minutes of class time instead of 55. then of course they have 30 minutes of recess, and everyone comes back in late and can't settle down for the first half hour of the class. it's crazy! wayy different from my experience!
i'm not trying to put down the spanish school system at all, but these are just some of my observations so far. the kids are bright and fun, maybe a little out of control, but all in all i love them. and to be honest, i went to the same private school for my whole life, so maybe this happens in schools in the U.S. and i just have no idea. but it has definitely been a wake up call!!
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
scatterbrained thoughts
things i am used to/ slowly getting used to...
-eating eggs for at least one meal of a day. and rice.
-my daily cafe con leche and pan con tomate y queso (toasted bread with a tomato spread and manchego cheese). my friend at my school introduced the toast to me, and it's pretty incredible! everyday at "recreo" (recess) we go out and grab a coffee and toast!
-the teachers yelling at the students in a kind of scary way that would completely unacceptable in the US but doesn't bother the kids at all
-my long walk to and from school... i actually love it! i'm usually running a little late so i have to walk pretty fast... good work out!
-not having an oven... the dinner i made tonight made me realize i don't need an oven to make a good meal (and that i'm not actually that bad at cooking!)!
still adjusting to...
-the way people walk here! they take up the whole sidewalk; will not move if you are walking towards them and so you have to walk in the street; mostly everyone walks like they've never had anywhere to be in their lives; and they cut you off any chance they get.
-the orange juice here... it's no tropicana!
-i haven't tried the milk yet... it's not refrigerated at the store (neither are the eggs) so i'm a little ehhh about it
-no hockey! i caught some football games last week, and the mlb playoffs have been on, but no hockey!
-my phone... as american and spoiled as i sound, i miss my smart phone!
-speaking british english at school... "Have you got a maths book?" "Yes, I've got a maths book." it's weird
-still can't stand the dog poop!
- not having a lot of clothes. i'm getting extremely bored with my wardrobe
-eating eggs for at least one meal of a day. and rice.
-my daily cafe con leche and pan con tomate y queso (toasted bread with a tomato spread and manchego cheese). my friend at my school introduced the toast to me, and it's pretty incredible! everyday at "recreo" (recess) we go out and grab a coffee and toast!
-the teachers yelling at the students in a kind of scary way that would completely unacceptable in the US but doesn't bother the kids at all
-my long walk to and from school... i actually love it! i'm usually running a little late so i have to walk pretty fast... good work out!
-not having an oven... the dinner i made tonight made me realize i don't need an oven to make a good meal (and that i'm not actually that bad at cooking!)!
still adjusting to...
-the way people walk here! they take up the whole sidewalk; will not move if you are walking towards them and so you have to walk in the street; mostly everyone walks like they've never had anywhere to be in their lives; and they cut you off any chance they get.
-the orange juice here... it's no tropicana!
-i haven't tried the milk yet... it's not refrigerated at the store (neither are the eggs) so i'm a little ehhh about it
-no hockey! i caught some football games last week, and the mlb playoffs have been on, but no hockey!
-my phone... as american and spoiled as i sound, i miss my smart phone!
-speaking british english at school... "Have you got a maths book?" "Yes, I've got a maths book." it's weird
-still can't stand the dog poop!
- not having a lot of clothes. i'm getting extremely bored with my wardrobe
Sunday, October 16, 2011
ahhh the weekend....
this weekend my friends and i decided to live life as the spaniards do. unfortunately, none of us are wired for it, but it was a good effort. on friday night we went to a discoteca. in spain, the discotecas stay open until ungodly hours, usually until about 8 in the morning. and people usually don't arrive at these clubs until 3 or 4. it's crazy! so we decided to test out this lifestyle, and in the end, i think i'll stick to the american way of life. i wound up sleeping away my entire saturday! i really don't like wasting the weekend, and that's exactly what i did. but it was a fun experience minus the guys, which brings me to my next ranting point...
in spain, they have a word, "machismo," which basically describes a lot of the men here. it's that they think they're superior to women, and the women should accept that. maybe that would fly with spanish girls, but it definitely doesn't with us americanas. in the club, guys are constantly grabbing your arm (and other things...) and then will look at you like your crazy if you pull away. my one friend told me that on the way back from the bathroom some guy grabbed her, she pulled away, and he elbowed her. what?? in the words of billy madison, "that's assault brotha!" the grabbing and stuff is just annoying and obnoxious, and i'm pretty sure i'm taller/stronger than a majority of the men here, and could definitely kick some ass. and that's saying something because i'm not very strong. the guys also probably spend more time doing their hair then i do. and they live with their parents until they're like 28 (although at this rate i may be doing the same...) so don't worry grandma, it's highly unlikely i'll be bringing home a spanish boyfriend!
on a brighter note! i decided to go to mass at the big cathedral in the center of granada. it's an absolutely amazing place, and on the weekends it's the only place in the city that's busy. so i decided to go to 1:00 mass. i'm not sure if it happens every week, but this sunday the archbishop was saying mass. and a boys choir from london was singing. it was pretty cool! usually mass here is only half an hour. they blow through everything, there's no singing, the homily is about 3 minutes, and then everyone's our of there. but today's was an hour and fifteen minutes. but anyway, it was really pretty and afterwards i got gelato :)
so all in all it was a pretty great weekend complete with tapas, dancing, and gelato! i'm off to watch some american football now!! adios!
in spain, they have a word, "machismo," which basically describes a lot of the men here. it's that they think they're superior to women, and the women should accept that. maybe that would fly with spanish girls, but it definitely doesn't with us americanas. in the club, guys are constantly grabbing your arm (and other things...) and then will look at you like your crazy if you pull away. my one friend told me that on the way back from the bathroom some guy grabbed her, she pulled away, and he elbowed her. what?? in the words of billy madison, "that's assault brotha!" the grabbing and stuff is just annoying and obnoxious, and i'm pretty sure i'm taller/stronger than a majority of the men here, and could definitely kick some ass. and that's saying something because i'm not very strong. the guys also probably spend more time doing their hair then i do. and they live with their parents until they're like 28 (although at this rate i may be doing the same...) so don't worry grandma, it's highly unlikely i'll be bringing home a spanish boyfriend!
on a brighter note! i decided to go to mass at the big cathedral in the center of granada. it's an absolutely amazing place, and on the weekends it's the only place in the city that's busy. so i decided to go to 1:00 mass. i'm not sure if it happens every week, but this sunday the archbishop was saying mass. and a boys choir from london was singing. it was pretty cool! usually mass here is only half an hour. they blow through everything, there's no singing, the homily is about 3 minutes, and then everyone's our of there. but today's was an hour and fifteen minutes. but anyway, it was really pretty and afterwards i got gelato :)
so all in all it was a pretty great weekend complete with tapas, dancing, and gelato! i'm off to watch some american football now!! adios!
Friday, October 14, 2011
whirlwind two weeks
well, i finally made a blog! i've been here for a little over two weeks and absolutely loving every second. i don't know what it is, if i'm older and more mature or what, but i think i'm enjoying my time here more than when i studied abroad in 2009. i loved my Delaware group of course, but i don't think i was ready to go away yet. but now i'm older and ready to try anything. or i wonder if it was because i was so comfortable with my group that i was less outgoing and less willing to do/try new things. either way, i'm having an amazing time so far!!!
the first few days were very stressful, trying to find an apartment was the biggest challenge i've encountered so far. after visiting a few apartments and being very disappointed, i finally settled on one really close to where i lived last time. not the prettiest area of granada, but i like it! i'm about a 30 minute walk from school, which is actually a blessing in disguise. but i LOVE my school! it's so much fun there, the teachers are really nice and helpful, and the kids crack me up. i work monday-thursday, usually from about 10:50-2. last week the teachers actually let me do some of the teaching... i was nervous at first but have found that i really like teaching! the only issue is that the students are used to "british english" and they have a tough time understanding my accent, since i don't always pronounce all the letters. for instance, i told the 4th grade class i love harry potter. in the other classes i had actually received applause when i said that, so when i didn't get any reaction i was bummed. they all stared blankly, as did the teacher. she finally realized what i was saying, and repeated in an english accent "'arry poTTer". applause ensued. my favorite story so far from school happened yesterday when i was teaching the 3rd grade science class about the 5 senses and we were going over taste (sweet, sour, salty, bitter). so i asked what kinds of foods or drinks are bitter. a kid raised his hand and responded "chupitos!!" chupitos are shots. not quite sure how this kid knows what a shot of alcohol tastes like, but i couldn't stop laughing.
what else... social life! i've met a decent amount of people so far! i have two really good friends that i basically do everything with. we have been to hannigan's two weeks in a row for monday night trivia, and placed 5th place both times. we're about due for third place. we've also been taking advantage of the free tapas. seriously the best thing ever. we've found some places that serve you sandwiches and french fries, so for a 2 euro glass of wine you get a full meal. it's a beautiful thing!
things i love about granada...
siesta
free tapas
my school
the architecture
the mixture of cultures
gelato
the park
the shopping
things i'm still getting used to...
no oven (but in reality what do i care, i'm a terrible cook and probably wouldn't cook even if we had one!)
having to light the water heater if i want to take a hot shower
no dryer/ the washer takes 2 hours
the dirty streets/dog crap
i'm really reallyyyy going to try to keep up with this blog! hope you all enjoy (all 4 of you!)!!
the first few days were very stressful, trying to find an apartment was the biggest challenge i've encountered so far. after visiting a few apartments and being very disappointed, i finally settled on one really close to where i lived last time. not the prettiest area of granada, but i like it! i'm about a 30 minute walk from school, which is actually a blessing in disguise. but i LOVE my school! it's so much fun there, the teachers are really nice and helpful, and the kids crack me up. i work monday-thursday, usually from about 10:50-2. last week the teachers actually let me do some of the teaching... i was nervous at first but have found that i really like teaching! the only issue is that the students are used to "british english" and they have a tough time understanding my accent, since i don't always pronounce all the letters. for instance, i told the 4th grade class i love harry potter. in the other classes i had actually received applause when i said that, so when i didn't get any reaction i was bummed. they all stared blankly, as did the teacher. she finally realized what i was saying, and repeated in an english accent "'arry poTTer". applause ensued. my favorite story so far from school happened yesterday when i was teaching the 3rd grade science class about the 5 senses and we were going over taste (sweet, sour, salty, bitter). so i asked what kinds of foods or drinks are bitter. a kid raised his hand and responded "chupitos!!" chupitos are shots. not quite sure how this kid knows what a shot of alcohol tastes like, but i couldn't stop laughing.
what else... social life! i've met a decent amount of people so far! i have two really good friends that i basically do everything with. we have been to hannigan's two weeks in a row for monday night trivia, and placed 5th place both times. we're about due for third place. we've also been taking advantage of the free tapas. seriously the best thing ever. we've found some places that serve you sandwiches and french fries, so for a 2 euro glass of wine you get a full meal. it's a beautiful thing!
things i love about granada...
siesta
free tapas
my school
the architecture
the mixture of cultures
gelato
the park
the shopping
things i'm still getting used to...
no oven (but in reality what do i care, i'm a terrible cook and probably wouldn't cook even if we had one!)
having to light the water heater if i want to take a hot shower
no dryer/ the washer takes 2 hours
the dirty streets/dog crap
i'm really reallyyyy going to try to keep up with this blog! hope you all enjoy (all 4 of you!)!!
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