We were talking about my teaching experience when she asked The Question:
“So, what was your favorite moment?”
“She” was the volunteer coordinator for CREST. I’d stopped by the offices to wrap up some business and chat. When The Question came, I paused, opened my mouth in a sort-of smile, and stared off into a point 40 degrees to my right. A swarm of thoughts whipped through my mind. Here are a few of ‘em:
*During my intermediate Puerto Jimenez class wrap-up party, one student named Jonathan said he’d learned a lot but didn’t have confidence. I turned to William and Fabio, two relatively fearless speakers, and asked them if they had tips for Jonathan. Fabio said he didn’t think he was confident, that he was embarrassed to speak English. “But not here,” he added, meaning my class. I loved that so much. I spent a few years in Chicago improvisational theater. One of the things every teacher at the beginning stresses is making a safe, supportive environment where there is no fear of mistakes. I wanted to bring that to the TEFL classroom, and, at least for Fabio, I did.
*To teach giving directions to my beginning classes, I gave basic phrases — “turn left,” “go straight,” and so on — and had the class follow my lead around the classroom. When I felt bold, I would take them out of the class and around the school grounds; “How do I get to the cafe?” I’d ask, and off we’d go in a line, me in the lead and following whatever direction they’d yell. My beginning class in Golfito was nailing this, so I added a twist: I led the line with my eyes closed. This was great because they still did excellent with the added pressure, and it’ll hopefully be a lesson they won’t forget. Bonus: I didn’t sprain an ankle!
*We were giving advice with “should” and “shouldn’t.” The task for the students was to say to a partner, “I (have a problem), what should I do?” The partner was to respond with some good advice. We had a odd number of students, so I paired with Tiffany, a high-schooler who had a Ph.D in adorable. The first problem in the exercise was: “I am too fat,” and it went
down as follows:
KENT: I am too fat–
TIFFANY: — yes, you are.
Class erupts in laughter, as yet another improv trusim prevails: The truth is always funny.
Kent most recently left his post as an English teacher in Puerto Jimenez, Costa Rica. To see what he’s up to, check out his blog or follow him on Twitter.
Latest posts by kentgreen
- The Centries: Handing Out Awards to Central America - August 9th, 2010
- Sub-juncting Myself to a Test of Generosity - August 4th, 2010
- Nobody (At Least Not Me) Knows the Trouble Guatemala's Seen - August 2nd, 2010
- Oh No, Ojos! (or, Why Gringos Don't Make Eye Contact) - July 28th, 2010
- We Dance If We Want To (so why don't we?) - July 26th, 2010
- Getting Schooled in Spanish Schools - July 21st, 2010
- Guatemala's REAL Danger: Not Wanting to Leave - July 19th, 2010
- Living the High Life (and not even knowing it) - July 14th, 2010
- The Devils of Panama City - July 7th, 2010
- Paging Maintenance, We Have a Crisis in Aisle 4 - July 5th, 2010
