Teaching Spanish

One of the dreams we have for this trip is to make a connection between some young people in Newton and the school children of Munoces.  To that end we have partnered with Doug Smith, a sixth grade teacher at Aurora Heights School and a veteran of several trips to El Salvador.  Doug shares the dream to connect his students with the youngsters of Munoces because he realizes the potential for growth and awareness that such a connection would create.  Of course, one of the major barriers to the connection is language so, just as we will attempt to teach a little English to the students in Munoces, we have been attempting to teach a little Spanish to the sixth graders in Doug's homeroom.  With the blessing of the administrator, we have used four days of language arts time to teach a little about the village of Munoces and some basic Spanish phrases that could be used to greet their peers in Munoces. 

Of course, four hours is not enough time to accomplish much but the students participated with enthusiasm and many of them were ready to tape a greeting in Spanish for us to take to the students in Munoces next week.  It has been fun to work with them and see how quickly they can pick up some of the phrases.  Two of the students came from households where Spanish is spoken at home and they were a great help to us.  It was much easier giving instructions in English but it seemed a little silly for me to be teaching Spanish when I speak it so poorly myself!  In El Salvador I am an expert in the language I am teaching but I stumble with the instructions that must be given in Spanish.
Warren is preparing a video program of the classroom and students at Aurora Heights that we plan to show the Munoces students and we will bring back video from Munoces to show to the students in Doug's classroom when we return.  We also dream of making a Skype connection between the two classrooms but first we need to find out if the Munoces school has gotten internet capabilities.  They had electricity and five computers for the first time when we taught there last year and we think they might have gotten an internet connection through the same NGOs (non-governmental organizations) but we're not sure. 
Now it's time to begin the lists and packing.  And among the treasures we will be taking with us are the best wishes of some eleven and twelve year-olds at Aurora Heights School.  Thanks Doug and students!