Day 2 of Teaching: San Pablo Village

          I have now completed my second day in the Standard I and II classroom at San Pablo Village! What a wonderful whirlwind it has been! The love I have for these children after just two days, 13 total hours of being with the students, is undeniable. I have learned so much already, and I am ready to see where the next teaching days take me. 

          As I said I am with Standard I and II. The grade level equivalent in U.S. is 2nd grade through 4th grade. However, grade levels don't always reflect the students' age like it usually does in the States. I have a large age range of students from, 7- 13 years old. This is happens here because students are required to pass a test at the end of a Standard, and if they don't pass they stay in the Standard they are in currently. Student's are able to retake the test as many times as they want however, the test cost money and many of the children and families in San Pablo Village can't afford this. 

          However, don't let their poverty fool you. These students have more love, happiness, and excitement about life than any other student I have taught, worked with, or observed in classrooms throughout my placements in the Education Program. If there is one thing I have noticed is that these student's don't let 100 degree weather, 90% humidity effect their lives or happiness. We are all still outside during breaks playing volleyball, baseball, toss, frisbee, visiting the river, or playing duck-duck goose-- no matter the temperature. These children have so much pride in their village, and it is so humbling. Humbling because I look around the village and I see nothing compared to what I have, what students in the States have and yet, they are beyond excited to show us all that they have. Their pride amazes me and I have truly already been humbled by this experience, and it is only day 2 of teaching. 

          Now, I want to give you a microscope view into my classroom. I have a total of 30 students however, we split the Standards for math since they are working towards different standards, goals, and looking at different topics. I have taken Standard II under my wing and I began teaching them an introductory lesson on decimals using place value charts. Today I taught them how to say rational numbers aloud using a poem. The poem described how to look at a rational number by identifying the "first" and "last" name of the number. This was a very beneficial and effective way to teach these students because it was relatable and they were engaged. I used place value units to teach them that a decimal is part of a whole, and tomorrow I am going to continue teaching them this concept and move into addition and subtraction of rational numbers and decimals. 

           I was able to use many visuals thanks to the wonderful donators, and materials purchased from the College of Education at UofL, and this has engaged students on many levels. I was able to relate the lesson to the type of chips they eat, "takis", which is a very spicy cheesy cheetos essentially. I used this to explain part to whole, and show them when you have only half of a taki you don't have a whole. so the decimal looks like; "0.5".
          Tomorrow I have many more engaging lessons, activities, and games planned. I am excited to see where I can take my students' academic level over the next 4 teaching days. It was difficult to determine students' knowledge before coming here, but thanks to the supportive professors, student leader, and colleagues, we have all been able to teach each other and create the best lessons we can to promote a positive and effective learning experience for our mentor teacher and our students. 

Hasta Luego from Belize!

-Bridget Donoghue Standards I and II