Photo Camp Update and More

The most recent photo camp was a one day workshop where the students answered the question, Where do I come from?  The students came up with some fantastic ideas including photos with their moms, families, friends, and even their dogs.  I am so glad that one of my Peace Corps friends introduced me to the Outside the Lens foundation because these talleres have definitely become one of my favorite secondary projects.  

Inside the classroom, working as an English teacher, there is only so much that you can learn about a students life, but working with my students at the camps I have gained so much insight into their lives.  I have now been to each of their houses, met their parents, and been offered some sort of fruit juice (no doubt because I show up drenched in sweat from the walk). This has helped foster a bond I now have with my camera camp students and their families that I don’t have with the rest of my English students.  I do however feel like I have become much more understanding with the vast majority of my students inside the classroom since the inception of the camp.  I now have a better idea of what the que pena could mean when their assigned homework is not on top of their desk at the beginning of class.  They probably didn’t have anywhere to work, may not have had dinner, or had to take care of their X number of siblings.  Although I swear some continue to break the classroom rules like their lives depended on it. 

I also like to think that due to the camera camp I was invited to a quinciñeras and have been gifted a puppy.  Yup thats right, during one of the projects that called for photos of their houses, I thought I was just sweatily enjoying a mango juice, but before I could even finish the refreshment, I was taken to a wheelbarrow full of puppies and then offered one.  Now how could one possible say no to a day old puppy in a wheelbarrow?    So I now have a puppy for the first time in my life.  Thanks Camera camp!  

I am a little intimidated by the new responsibilities that I will now have seeing I have never owned a puppy, but Quilla pronounced Kia like the car and named after the town I live in La Boquilla, and I off to a promising start.  We already had our first vet visit and are scheduled for a second at the end of the month.  As I put her in the cardboard box that once held my PC issued water filter and we boarded the local bus I realized that plenty of trial and error learning is headed my way, but then again that is nothing new. 

A more recent picture to come

English Song Competition #2

Wow it has been too long!

This past week was the third annual English Song Fest and for the first time there were elementary schoolers participating, YAY!  My role this year was a bit different than it was last year, as a judge.  I was responsible for finding the judges (three fellow volunteers), teaching my elementary schoolers their songs and helping the middle/high schoolers with the pronunciation of their lyrics.  With these responsibilities I learned three basic pricipals:

1. My 3rd graders love reggae.
2. Colombian middle school girls love Justin Bieber 
3. Akon’s I want to Make love right now na na is totally acceptable to sing at a school function

As each elementary school grade only has one hour of english a week I new I needed to tweak the curriculum a bit in order to start introducing the songs in advance.  So it wasn’t long until I started belted out Bob Marley’s Three Little Birds for one of my 3rd grade classes and No Woman No Cry for a 4th grade class, The Beatle’s Let it be for another 4th grade course, and Rihanna’s Diamonds for my 5th graders.  

I was honestly surprised by how quickly everyone picked up the lyrics.  By the third week we were working our way through entire songs.  Now we do plenty of singing in English class, but this is the first time we attempted songs that weren’t necessarily intended for elementary schoolers.  I have to say watching 30 3rd graders sing and dance to Bob Marley has to be one of the cutest things I have seen in Colombia thus far.  I am sad that this was the last English Song Festival that I will see, but I am confident that the competition will be around for years to come!  
  

The judges

My Elementary schoolers getting ready to sing

    

The video is of the winner (8th grader) who obviously sang Justin Bieber.