First Day Jitters

Yesterday was our first day teaching and by the time we reached the school I was actually very excited for it! The night before I was nervous and apprehensive but for some reason once we reached the school and I saw my students I was so anxious to teach. Since it was my first day with them I wanted to get to know them a little bit better so we started with family members. They drew a picture of their family and wrote the English names of each member underneath. We then hung their pictures up on the wall. For the first day it went much smoother than I expected and the kids seem to be catching on to things so quickly. It can be really easy to underestimate them but they are so smart...I think I might be learning more from them! Yesterday turned out to be a varily long day, after classes myself and my roommates and another group of girls stayed at the school until about 7:30, then we went with the founder of the school, Giuseppi Teruel, and some of the other workers at the school to help them pass out food to families that live on the streets. The school cooks tamales, bread and coffee and goes out 3 times a week to feed various groups around the city. Last night one of the stops we made was at a landfill that is located in the middle of the city. It was a very intense experience. I had never seen the level of poverty that we were exposed to last night. Giuseppi likes us to go with him because it helps us to see where our students come from. It helped me to have such a respect for my students and their families. They are so resilient. If nothing else I now recognize my own blessings more fully.

It is a little hard to tell but in the back ground just over the roof of the building is the top of one of the volcanoes that surrounds the city.

One of the volcanoes El Aguacilm (sp?)

Playing spoons with our host family, Pablo and Pablito:-)