This blog needs something spiffy...so I've decided to write a few things I've noticed in Chile and at school...I hope you can share my laughter!
No trashcans...ok, that is a lie - every 20 or so blocks you can find a trashcan similar to the size of one at Starbucks. About 12 inches wide and three feet high. They are metal and always overflowing! The custom here is to simply leave trash on the street.
I have around 546 students each week plus 8 debate students and a soon-to-be extracurricular "American Cultures" class.
I found peanut butter last week and nearly fainted with excitement. I don't even buy peanut butter at home...but something about the processed peanut makes me so incredibly happy everyday!
No soap - no toilet paper - no problem. I pack toilet paper with me every day for school. Soap does not exist in most bathrooms. Apparently, the United States is a little OCD about hand washing. Thank god I started to de-germ-a-phob two years ago... My hand sanitizer is fab.
Pizza...in Chile, you can substitute the tomato sauce with ketchup...because their tomato sauce is more like a non-smoky bbq sauce... Its good, its just sweet. Popular toppings include yellow cheese and large, thick deli slices of ham. At home when making pizza - you also microwave it. Leslie and Rodrigo looked at me as if I had three heads when I asked if we were going to bake it...
Milk and eggs - not refrigerated in the store.
Chocolate chips do not exist - except in packaged cookies. Chocolate is very expensive and not very popular in this region of Chile. Manjar - or dulce de leche - is king. It is used on crackers - in cakes - as a flavor for ice cream, yogurt, and many, many other sweets. It is similar to caramel - as popular as Nutella is in Europe and pb is in the States.
You can't refer to the US as America...because this is America also. The States seems to be the most common name in English.
The accent and dialect here is completely different than Spanish. Esta Aqui becomes 'taki.' Vamos becomes 'vamo.' Tricky for someone trying to remember Spanish...
This week, I launched a new lesson plan. On Monday, my students stared at me blankly. I decided Monday night to revamp my teaching method...ditch the lessons and go straight for the games. The second level is learning about transportation - so what better way to approach the subject than by using "Pimp My Ride?!" Yes, friends - I pulled from MTV. And guess what happened...they loved it! I've been using the lesson plan all week. I've printed coloring book pictures of cars, boats, helicopters, etc and asked the students to pimp their rides. First, I open the class with: What is Pimp My Ride? I laugh (inside) every time I say that. I can't believe I'm actually asking that question in class. After a few questioning looks - I refer to the board where I've copied the logo. The class (all of them) breaks down in laughter. Their faces say: yes, we did hear that correctly. I start hearing words...English words...car...repair...Xhibit... I separate them into groups of three and ask them to explain the vehicle and then make it better. The same students who have difficulty saying: my favorite color is blue - suddenly can say exhaust pipe and aerodynamic. The students that had no interest last week - start asking me: how do I say...what is that...(while pointing to the pictures). The more creative ideas: a fire truck that shoots ice cream, a bus with sofas instead of seats, a fire truck with a rum factory, gold rims with dollar signs, flames painted across the sides... I was asked how to spell catalytic converter...I have no idea. I'm quite pleased with my new philosophy of teaching. Not all students were as advanced, but even the lower level English students enjoyed the exercise and tried.
No trashcans...ok, that is a lie - every 20 or so blocks you can find a trashcan similar to the size of one at Starbucks. About 12 inches wide and three feet high. They are metal and always overflowing! The custom here is to simply leave trash on the street.
I have around 546 students each week plus 8 debate students and a soon-to-be extracurricular "American Cultures" class.
I found peanut butter last week and nearly fainted with excitement. I don't even buy peanut butter at home...but something about the processed peanut makes me so incredibly happy everyday!
No soap - no toilet paper - no problem. I pack toilet paper with me every day for school. Soap does not exist in most bathrooms. Apparently, the United States is a little OCD about hand washing. Thank god I started to de-germ-a-phob two years ago... My hand sanitizer is fab.
Pizza...in Chile, you can substitute the tomato sauce with ketchup...because their tomato sauce is more like a non-smoky bbq sauce... Its good, its just sweet. Popular toppings include yellow cheese and large, thick deli slices of ham. At home when making pizza - you also microwave it. Leslie and Rodrigo looked at me as if I had three heads when I asked if we were going to bake it...
Milk and eggs - not refrigerated in the store.
Chocolate chips do not exist - except in packaged cookies. Chocolate is very expensive and not very popular in this region of Chile. Manjar - or dulce de leche - is king. It is used on crackers - in cakes - as a flavor for ice cream, yogurt, and many, many other sweets. It is similar to caramel - as popular as Nutella is in Europe and pb is in the States.
You can't refer to the US as America...because this is America also. The States seems to be the most common name in English.
The accent and dialect here is completely different than Spanish. Esta Aqui becomes 'taki.' Vamos becomes 'vamo.' Tricky for someone trying to remember Spanish...
This week, I launched a new lesson plan. On Monday, my students stared at me blankly. I decided Monday night to revamp my teaching method...ditch the lessons and go straight for the games. The second level is learning about transportation - so what better way to approach the subject than by using "Pimp My Ride?!" Yes, friends - I pulled from MTV. And guess what happened...they loved it! I've been using the lesson plan all week. I've printed coloring book pictures of cars, boats, helicopters, etc and asked the students to pimp their rides. First, I open the class with: What is Pimp My Ride? I laugh (inside) every time I say that. I can't believe I'm actually asking that question in class. After a few questioning looks - I refer to the board where I've copied the logo. The class (all of them) breaks down in laughter. Their faces say: yes, we did hear that correctly. I start hearing words...English words...car...repair...Xhibit... I separate them into groups of three and ask them to explain the vehicle and then make it better. The same students who have difficulty saying: my favorite color is blue - suddenly can say exhaust pipe and aerodynamic. The students that had no interest last week - start asking me: how do I say...what is that...(while pointing to the pictures). The more creative ideas: a fire truck that shoots ice cream, a bus with sofas instead of seats, a fire truck with a rum factory, gold rims with dollar signs, flames painted across the sides... I was asked how to spell catalytic converter...I have no idea. I'm quite pleased with my new philosophy of teaching. Not all students were as advanced, but even the lower level English students enjoyed the exercise and tried.
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