It’s cloudy and 81 today. It’s not really hot though, I think because the sun isn’t out…and there’s a breeze!

And with that, it’s all over…the era has ended :/. It was pretty sad; I just have to keep telling myself that I’m going home soon! That cheers me up!

I went to Marina’s 1A class and she wasn’t there; Marisa, the reg teacher, told me she was in 5A because there were several teachers gone today so the present ones had to be shuffled around a bit. We played a couple of rounds of BINGO with vocab from every unit, so it was a bit more difficult.

Second hour I went to 3B stayed only for a short while; I talked with the class for a bit and then said goodbye. From there I went to 2B. It wasn’t Analen’s hour, so I interrupted the class only for a bit. They all converged on me and gave me a ginormous hug…for like ten minutes! They just kept hugging and hugging and were like “Don’t go!” It was hard to leave that class :(. I had planned on going to another, but I didn’t know which one, so I just went to the Sala de Profes for a bit instead.

Third I went to five-years A like always. We sang the usual songs and I read them a story about Max and Poppy who were packing for a holiday (quite fitting, I thought!). I left at “breakfast time” and went to see Marilu in 6A. I hung out and they asked me questions about what I’m gonna do when I get back home, and stuff like that.

Said goodbye to Rocío (who had to go somewhere) and a few others during the break and talked with Mari some more. Analen gave me her email, which I was really surprised about, because normally we don’t “shoot the breeze” (that’s a saying, right?) like I do with Ana and Mari.

Fourth said goodbye to 4B and we took a class photo (Analen brought her camera…I totally didn’t even think about bringing one…STUPID!). From there I went to 6B, hung out and said “gb”. They all wanted my autograph and email…got a little tired after writing that 23 times! I should have put my email on the board…oh, hindsight!

Last hour I went to Luismi’s to say goodbye to 3B. They started giving me pencils and crayons as souvenirs! After that, it was 2A with Ana. Stayed there for a bit and ended with Mari in 6C…again, more autos and emails!

Walked home, for the last time. I think part of me still hasn’t quite grasped that that’s it; I mean it could just be like a long weekend or something. Actually it is for them, because tomorrow is Castilla-La Mancha Day, so EVERYTHING will be closed and the schools extended it to Friday, for an extra day/long weekend.

Now: More packing and other going home preparations.

Xoxo,

Court

This afternoon it’s a pretty cloudy 80 degrees; there’s a nice breeze too, so it’s not hot!

Well, it was my last Tuesday…sigh. Rocío’s classes showed me their dances for the end of the year festival and we sang the songs too—one by Rihanna and the other by a South or Central American singer, not sure which. Technically, I didn’t sing the latter with them, just kinda be-bopped my head!

I didn’t have class with Marina today (1B or 5A) because she was correcting the standardized-ish tests they gave last week. So I had two free hours…which was nice because it was second and fourth hours, so I was off every other hour!

We did a worksheet in Analen’s class where they had to unscramble some words and then count all the food items in the garden and color only what was written. For example, it would say something like “color 19 tomatoes” and there would be like 23. I explained the worksheet and that was it. As we were leaving for recreo they all ran up and gave me hugs and were like “Don’t go…why do you have to go?” That was sad, but tomorrow is going to be brutal!!

Tomorrow…it all ends; two years coming to a close. I think I’m going to Marina’s class as usual, but I told the others I was going to float around and say goodbye to everyone…so very little real class. I don’t know how it’s gonna go; hoping for the best, preparing for the worst. Yes…I have extra tissues.

SIX days.

Xoxo,

Court

HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY!!!!!

This afternoon it’s 82 with a few clouds; there’s a nice breeze as well, so it’s not bad at all!

Well, it was my last Monday…sigh. This week is both happy and sad; it’s the end of an era. I’m happy to be going home…but I will miss everyone, and Spain!

6A had to do some bookwork because they’re behind the other classes, so we stayed inside and Marilu passed back exams and then came various activities. 6C is all caught up so we went outside in honor of my last day! I can’t think of what this game is called, but we put their chairs in a circle, with one person standing in the middle and then the middle person would call out “All those wearing _______, (socks/a red shirt/glasses/etc) change!” (To practice their clothes vocab). So we had to run and find a new seat…yes, I played with them!

Analen was gone with 2B on a fieldtrip and when I got to 4A José Carlos (the reg teacher) was like “you’re giving class today”. Apparently Analen had assigned activities and told José Carlos to have me facilitate them. It wasn’t hard, but I was just annoyed because she said NOTHING to me about this last week! So they worked and I basically answered their questions…for the last time!

To the three-year-olds I read a new story about Ellie, who was too big to jump rope and play with a car with Dog, Cat and Mouse. In the end though, when their ball got stuck in a tree she was able to help them and all was right in the world! Afterwards we did a worksheet in which they had to put on stickers of Cat and Mouse and color in the dog whatever color they fancied! Yeah, there were lots of purple, green and blue dogs!

Javier called a little while ago and said he couldn’t come today, so that pretty much clears my schedule for more packing…woohoo.

SEVEN days to go…this time next week, I’ll be USA bound!

Xoxo,

Court

This afternoon it’s 79 and completely clear! There’s very little wind, so it’s actually quite warm if you have to be outside for a while!

It was another easy day! I didn’t have class first or third hours because Marina and Ana were helping with the fourth level exams (standardized tests, basically). Second and last hours Luis Miguel and I took the kids outside to play baseball again (hence it being warm if you have to be outside for a while!)…so those hours were basically nothing.

The only real “work” was in 4B with Analen’s class…imagine that! I reviewed some vocab with them and read them a Little Red Riding Hood-type of story. I’ve said it many times before and I’ll say it again…it’s really sad (and annoying!) that first level knows more than they do. I was trying to ask them questions about the story and they just didn’t understand!

I just have tomorrow and Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday next week and that’s it for school! I told all the teachers today that I’m going to go around next Wednesday to all the classes and say “bye”, so I won’t be in their classes officially, but just pop in. I’m kinda happy there’s no real class with 4B again…

This afternoon I’m writing my end of the year letter for the program/tweaking the one from last year…yeah, more so the latter! Afterwards, it’s on to more apps!

Xoxo,

Court

Currently it’s 68 and totally sunny! Now if it could just stay like this! No colder, no hotter (well, maybe a little hotter!)

Yesterday my computer decided it didn’t want to start up. Like, it turned on just fine and then the screen stayed black/gray. It’s done that a few times before and has always started up within the hour…don’t know if it’s updating or what…but not this time! I turned it on a little before 2:30 when a got home and I woke up this morning and the screen was still gray (with the computery humming noise that tells you it’s on).

Perhaps since I’ve been such a job application Nazi lately that was God’s way of ensuring I took a break.  I started to get worried and didn’t really know what I was gonna do! I even borrowed a computer from school and brought it home with me today…I mean, my computer is, like, my life, especially here!

Thanks to the Good Lord above, though, the screen was black when I got home a little while ago, meaning everything had loaded and gone to sleep from inactivity. I was (and am!) so incredibly happy, you would’ve thought I’d been offered a job in Lincoln!

Today could have possibly been the easiest day in my two years here: Rocío had to proctor an exam first hour, so no class. Today there was also a general education strike, so many teachers and students didn’t come.

Marina was there but the 1B regular teacher and like 2/3rds of the kids weren’t…so no class second hour. Analen there today, along with nine students, so we went to the video room and watched Scooby Doo videos. Fourth hour Marina had to fill in for one of the sixth levels because Marilu and someone else wasn’t there…so no class with her fifth.

So the only real class I had was Rocío’s last hour. They’ve started to prepare their song/dance for the end of the year festival (Rihanna’s We Found Love) so I helped with the pronunciation, we sang it and watched a music video. That was my day…pretty relaxing. With all my free time I was able to google tech support and tried to find a computer solution…but I don’t need it now!

Class at 4:30 and 7:30 and in between…more applications. Thanks for the break yesterday, God!

Xoxo,

Court

It’s not as hot as it’s been the last few days; it’s 78 and cloudy…and the wind isn’t hot, so that makes it feel cooler!

After the usual activities first hour with five-years A, we…wait for it…played memory (with TEN flashcards {animals} this time!) Ana gave out some stickers and that was it!

To the morning four-year-olds I reread the story of Poppy’s Hat (for the last time, according to Ana!) Poppy looks everywhere for it and in the end Ellie’s got it! On the worksheet they had to circle all the hats they could find, which were half hidden by certain objects and then on the back they had to draw a picture of her hat (it’s red with yellow stars). We played memory instead with the afternoon littles and later watched a few videos.

We took 2A to the video room third hour and we tried to watch/read a YouTube video of the story “The Little Red Hen” but the signal there is horrible, so it kept stopping! In the end Ana put on a video of Wallace and Gromit, which she’d already downloaded and had saved on her computer.

6B was finishing talking about some history stuff when I arrived. They were watching and reading about Franco. For the English portion of the class we reviewed their vocab (Our Planet/things to do on vacation) and then I asked them “where do you go on holiday? What do you do there?”

I’ve got class at 5:30 and 7:30…Happy Weekend to Me!

Xoxo,

Court

It’s a very sunshiny 81 today! The heat makes me tired…everyday this week when I’ve gotten home I haven’t had any energy…

It was a very easy/relaxed day! With 1A after the usual activities, we talked a bit about the Olympics (well, a very little bit because they don’t know a whole lot yet, but apparently they’re researching it). Afterwards we started a new unit about Places around the City, i.e. park, shops, museum, and street.

We talked about baseball with Luismi’s classes (3A/B). We watched this YouTube video I found about Goofy and how to play the game. Later, we actually went out and played! Or tried to, at least! It wasn’t exactly “baseball” but they really enjoyed it and it was fun to watch them “play”! I think we’ll continue next week…

Ana wanted to go to the infantil video room to watch a few videos before “breakfast”, so that’s what we did! I don’t think she felt like doing anything else! That was totally cool, though, after being outside with 3A I was tired!

Fourth hour Analen asked me if I had an Olympics PowerPoint to show the classes and I was like “why would I?” She wanted me to look for one, but her computer is full of viruses apparently so I went to the video room. Marilu, Pilar and 6C where in there taking an exam, so I talked to them for a bit too!

No class today (thank goodness, I’m tired!). I’m going back to Carmen’s to finish our Sherlock episode at 7:30! It’s a good one; I didn’t want to stop it yesterday!

Xoxo,

Court

First of all…HAPPPPPPY ANNIVERSARYYYY, Mom and Dad!!! Thirty years is, like, forever! :D So happy and proud you guys are my parents!!!!

It’s a warm 81 degrees today…and not a cloud in the sky!

Today was pretty easy. With Rocío’s fifths I read a little excerpt from their books about the continents and then we worked a bit more with the London Olympics Project/Luis Miguel’s baby. With Marina’s fifth I did a short dictation and we followed that with some workbook pages.

First level was on a field trip today (May is always the popular month…yesterday fifth went, third and fourth are going together in two weeks and I’m not sure about the others) so there was no class second hour.

Third with 2B we sang a song (which first I read the lyrics to and had them repeat…the only thing I remember about the song is that it was rather lame). Later I explained a worksheet in which they had to color the big objects yellow and the small ones green…and I found out a lot of them don’t know what big and small mean!

Class at 4:30 and then I’m going to Carmen’s at 7:30 to watch part of a Sherlock episode (since Friday mornings are our usual meeting days and I couldn’t last week because I had to do the fax stuff). We’ll only be able to watch part of it, though, because she’s got another class at 9:00…

Xoxo,

Court

Today it’s a warm 86 degrees…sun is shining and not a cloud in the sky!

So it’s been a few days! This weekend I’ve been a busy little bee applying for more jobs! On Friday I sent my resume into Des Moines (because apparently their application isn’t internationally user-friendly!) and contacted West Des Moines, but haven’t heard anything from them yet. Then almost all Saturday I was working on an app for Overland Park; actually I applied for three positions and yesterday I applied to Topeka. I have no idea if I’ll hear anything from any of them, but it helps to ease my mind when I’m proactive!

So, on to today! With the sixth levels this morning we started a new unit about “Our Planet” which basically includes things you can do on vacation: take a picnic (yes, they say “take”), jump in the sea, look for treasure (SWEET!) and several more… They copied the vocab, we did some pronunciation practice and we ended with me asking them questions about what they did on their last holiday.

4A had an exam so Analen said I could take advantage of the time and do whatever. So I went to the office to tell Alberto the fax thing had been resolved but he wasn’t there, so I ended up talking to Mari Tere for a bit. Oh and I forgot, yesterday I also made some chocolate chip cookies and brought those in today.

To the three-year-olds I reread the story of Ellie and the Trash Bin. Then the worksheet really had nothing to do with that (they had to color the stem of a flower and put green stickers on a white section of the grass), but whatever!

Class at 4:30 and THREE WEEKS TO GO!!!!!!!!!

Xoxo,

Court

Oh m’goodness! Today it’s a super sunny 81…it feels awesome!!

I was with Ana most of the day in infantil and I gotta say the kids were quite annoying…like, all of them: they were talking, rambunctious and super antsy! They were a happy bunch today, which, don’t get me wrong, I love, but if they could have just paid a little more attention! It’s totally the weather…

We watched several videos on Ana’s computer with five-years A and she had to stop them quite a bit to wait for quiet and call them to attention!

We reviewed shapes with the four-year-olds and later with the morning class did a worksheet where they had to color the like shapes the same color. I can’t tell you how many times I saw a little with the wrong color crayon! I mean, even if they weren’t listening when I explained it, there was a legend up top for them to look at…even four-year-olds should be able to follow a simple legend, come on, now! With the afternoon class we sang a couple of songs about shapes.

Ana brought 2A to the video room and we watched the video of the story about Charlie, Lee, Monica and Ruby and the pumpkin in the school garden. I asked them questions afterwards…it’s always the same kids who raise their hands or pay attention!

6B has an exam tomorrow, so we reviewed their vocab (tidy your room, lay the table, etc). I asked them questions using the past tense and we finished with the text about three kids from around the world (France, China and Argentina) and took a look at how their lives were different. Pretty much what we did on Monday with A and C…

Happy weekend to me! Class at 5:30 and that’s it!

Xoxo,

Court

It’s getting warmer every day! Today it’s 81 and mostly sunny!

After the usual review in 1A, we talked more about seasons and how landscapes reflect each season, i.e. green grass, flowers, animals, snowy fields, frozen lakes… I read a short little paragraph from their books and then together Marina and I helped them with a worksheet—they were given two pictures and had to tell which picture showed which description…grass, flowers, snow, etc.

We continued with the video from last week and talked more about the United States with 3A and B. At one point the video says apple pie and baseball are symbols of America and that lead Luis Miguel to want to talk about baseball next week and I think play it, too! We’ll see how that goes…

I was quite late to five-years A because Luismi ALWAYS runs over in his classes! ALWAYS! So by the time I got there, they were already doing a “worksheet”…which really was just drawing a picture of a tractor.

Analen asked me to do this worksheet with Raúl whilst the rest of the class corrected some activities. The only problem was he wasn’t in the mood to work BUT he was being quiet for the most part and doing his own thing, so I just kind of let him alone…I’m not gonna try to force that kid to work; others…yes. Him…no!

No class today…just chillaxing and I think I’m gonna clean a bit!

Xoxo,

Court

It’s a cloudy 73 today.

Since Luis Miguel’s come, he’s been all gung-ho about doing a project about the London Olympics with primary schools from different countries…I don’t really understand the project. So, with Rocío’s classes we took a look at a London advertisement, with the Olympic rings, and then they had to draw their symbol/emblem/whatever.

I read 2B a story about Charlie, Ruby, Monica, Lee and the school garden. They watered their pumpkin so much it grew ridiculously gigantic…and then they made pumpkin soup!I asked comprehension questions, which most understood, and we ended with some workbook pages.

Marina’s fifth was finishing a science exam (which she told me about beforehand so I showed up like 10ish minutes late, per her request). After the exam I read the story “Tilly and the Tsunami”, a true story about a tsunami in Thailand in 2004 and the British girl who helped save many peoples’ lives!

Class with Ana and Marina at 7:30.

Xoxo,

Court

Currently it’s 65 and a bit cloudy and windy too.

All yesterday and part of Saturday too, I felt like crud. :/ I slept horribly Saturday night and ended up sleeping a lot of yesterday. I don’t know what the deal was—my throat and head were acting up. My throat still feels a bit “heavy” when I swallow but I feel so much better than yesterday!

So…this morning with the sixth levels we reviewed some vocab about helping around the house and I asked questions practicing the past tense. For example, “Did you empty the rubbish bin on Saturday? Did you lay the table yesterday?” They weren’t paying attention at all (either that or they didn’t know the answer…or it could have been the Monday blues) and Marilu kept saying “I can’t believe this…can you believe this?”

Analen had 4A doing a lot of copying today, like verbs and such, so I just sat there. I asked her if I could go to the office to talk with Aurora for a bit and then I didn’t go back! I would have just sat there…

I read the three-year-olds a story about Ellie, Mouse and Duck and the importance of throwing rubbish in the bin and not just on the floor. Afterwards we reviewed the vocab “apple” “banana” and “pear”—from the story—and they had a worksheet where they stuck banana and pear stickers on the page and colored an apple.

Class at 4:30 today and FOUR WEEKS left!!!!!!!!!

Xoxo,

Court

It’s pretty cloudy and 65 this afternoon. They’re calling for rain today and tomorrow, though we haven’t seen any yet…I’m ok with that!

I reviewed shapes with five-years A after the first-thing business. There was square, circle, triangle, rectangle and rhombus/diamond…they must call it “rhombus” in the UK. I then called up kids to either draw a big or little shape of my choosing.

I read a new story to the four-year-olds. On the one hand I’m glad it’s a new story…on the other hand, I’m already sick of it and I’ve only read it twice! That’s not good, considering I’m gonna have to read it like ten more times! It was about Ellie, who “barrowed” Poppy’s hat and the search Poppy goes on to find it. Not sure why, but I just don’t like the story at all.

2A started a new unit “In the garden”, which includes fruit and vegetable vocab. Theyalready knew most of it but we repeated and practiced pronunciation a bit. Afterwards, I stuck the flashcards on the board and they had to draw and label them in their notebooks.

With 6B last hour we did the speaking activity I did with 6C on Monday. The one where I asked them questions in the past: “Were you at school yesterday? What did you drink at lunch on Monday? What time did you leave your house on Saturday?” It was good practice…for their exam tomorrow!

Happy Weekend to MEEE!!!! I have class 5:30 and 7:00…after that? RELAXATION!!!!

Xoxo,

Court

This afternoon it’s 66 and partly cloudy; it’s a bit breezy but not too bad! I thought I was gonna rain earlier because it got super overcast and kinda dark, but it didn’t…yay!

This morning in 1A I reviewed a boatload of flashcards with them and after that we did a worksheet about landscapes, like fields, forests and the like. We did the worksheet as a class because it was a bit difficult for them to do alone. They were given a picture and had to label things like road, snow, mountain, village, and so on. Then they had to check which activities you could do in/on a mountain: hike, ski, surf and climb. One kid actually said you could mountain surf…but this is also the kid who ALWAYS raises his hand and then doesn’t know the answer. It’s not that he gets it wrong but rather he just sits there silently and stares back at you…every time! Like, why do you raise your hand??

We talked more about the US with Luis Miguel’s classes. We were in the video room and watched this video entitled “The United States: A Basic Introduction for Kids”. It’s a pretty long video (like almost ten minutes) and I kept stopping it to make sure they understood and to ask questions, so we actually only got like halfway through it in both classes. So…next week we shall continue.

We went to the infantil video room with five-years B and watched a bit of Wallace and Gromit…not too much though because of course we had to leave time to breakfast.

While 4B worked on some translations I sat with Raúl and tried to get him to work on this math/color-by-numbers worksheet. Key word = try. He was up and around and interrupting and bothering…basically doing everything except that worksheet. He refused to answer me when I asked him questions and was coloring random things with an orange highlighter…ok, whatever.

No class this afternoon! Now I’m gonna watch The Biggest Loser finale, it was on last night and I’ve waited two weeks to see it!

Xoxo,

Court

¡¡¡Feliz Día del Trabajo/Labor Day!!! There shall not be any laboring for me today! Oh and Happy May Day, too! I know I’ve said this practically every month, but I can’t believe it’s May already! I have SEVENTEEN days left at school…WOW!

The new month has brought better weather along with it…Yay! It’s 58 and only partly sunny but hey, there’s no rain!

That is all. :)

Xoxo,

Court

Dear Weather,

Please make up your mind! Don’t get me wrong or anything, I’m grateful that it’s partly sunny (and 52!) momentarily but like 20 minutes ago it was completely overcast and raining…of course that had to be while I was walking home, didn’t it? At least you don’t waver on the wind, I guess; that’s forever constant these days. Seriously though, what’s up with this un-almost-May-like chill?

Love,

Courtney

Today was pretty easy. I worked with the 6Aers on spelling and pronunciation practice. Marilu had this interactive SmartBoard program and they had to group letter sounds together and then spell random words. 6C is a little ahead and has already done that activity so instead I asked them a bunch of questions to practice time and verbs in the past. I asked questions like “What time did you speak with your mother last Friday? What time did you fly your airplane to the Unites States yesterday?” Some were hard, some were easy…those were probably the harder ones!

Analen was busy doing some science activity and she said I didn’t have to stay, so I hung out in the Sala de Profes third hour.

To the first three-year-old class I reread the story of Ellie pretending to be a police officer, a doctor and a teacher. Afterwards they did a worksheet where they had to put on stickers of a teacher and doctor. We didn’t read the story in the second class though and we did a different worksheet. This class had to put on stickers of a hat and one boot on Ellie and Max and then color Poppy’s coat.

Class at 4:30 and NO SCHOOL tomorrow for Día del Trabajo/Labor Day!!!!! Only three days this week…SWEET!!!

Exactly five weeks to go!

Xoxo,

Court

It’s been a rather chilly weekend, especially for being almost May! Right now it’s completely overcast and 46…my weather thing says it’s currently raining but it’s not. I don’t think it’s rained at all today; though it looks like it could start at any time.

I went to the bank to deposit my check on Friday morning (because now that’s it’s April they’re on summer hours and not open late Thursdays). Afterwards I went to the post office to do the Western Union business. Then it was Sherlock time with Carmen! We watched the last episode of season one and’ll start season 2 next (well, I guess technically it’s this…) week!

It was cold and dreary yesterday. It rained on and off the entire day. It was actually dry for a couple hours before mass, so I was hoping I could get out without getting poured on. Yeah, that didn’t happen. About five minutes before I left I heard it start (of course…I always happens like that!) so I grabbed my umbrella and thought “meh, no prob!” WRONG! No sooner than stepping outside it started POURING! That, together with the wind, made the walk suck…BAD! By the time I got to church I was soaked through and through! So mass was a very wet and cold experience last night. And interestingly enough it was all clear blue skies when I left the church. Really?! I was pretty happy to get home and change…

It’s supposed to be rainy and chilly tomorrow as well…like, what the heck? Where is this warm spring weather we should be having hiding!?!?

Xoxo,

Court

It’s still windy these days, but at least it’s nicer—70 today!

After the day/week/month/weather jazz in five-years A, I read them a story about Mouse, who goes for a walk in the country and encounters several animals along the way. Later on, we finished watching Wallace and Gromit, which Ana had started showing yesterday. And she gave out very few stickers too…they were quite antsy this morning!

I read four-years B the story of the Monkey Family Picnic, hopefully for the last time! Then they did a worksheet in which they had to color in six sandwiches (food from the story), cross out four of them and lastly decorate the number six on the page.

We went to the video room with 2A and we watched the CD/DVD video of their story “Ruby and the Cake Competition”. I also asked them questions about the story and we talked about means of transportation, too.

Four-years A did this little “worksheet” where they had to cut and fold certain lines to create this guessing game using fruit vocab—apple, banana, cake, sandwich. It’s so simple, but they loved it! I started playing with one little girl and then they all bombarded me and interrupted each other so I’d play with them!

We talked about Earth Day in 6c. I basically showed them the videos and everything I had from Rocío’s search.

Class with Javi at 5:30 today and later at 7:30 with Ana and Marina. Oh and I got paid today too…WOOT!!!

Xoxo,

Court

It’s partly cloudy and 73 today…though with the wind it doesn’t feel as warm as that.

In 1A we reviewed/talked about the three water forms (forms or states? I don’t know…). I read them a little description from their books and then they had to describe a solid, liquid and steam (that’s the word it uses in their books, but to me that just sounds weird…guess I’m used to gas or water vapor) and give examples of each.

Luis Miguel brought his classes to the video room and we continued our discussion of the United States: we listened to The Star Spangled Banner–the first video didn’t have Spanish subtitles, but the second did, or else they would have been totally lost—and then watched a video about the “greatest” US cities, which I think had a lot to do with population, too.

Third, with five-years B, we sang a little bit and then we played memory…so predictable! While they were “breakfasting” Ana had me look at her PowerPoint she’d prepared for her and Marina’s class in Tomelloso tonight. Her topic is the differences between men and women and it’s really good, like funny!

Analen had 4B make a timetable/schedule of their school day to practice times and subjects. It took practically the whole hour, so I sat there and looked at one of her teacher magazines.

No class today = Naptime!!!!!!!!

Xoxo,

Court

Today it’s a partly cloudy, windy 55.

With Rocío’s classes we continued talking about Earth Day and revisited MJ’s “Earth Song”. We also watched a couple of videos I have from the BBC about the earth (short, like 5 minute clips), about nature, wild animals and things like that. They had also done an Earth Day crossword and she had me say and repeat the words.

In 1B Marina gave them picture flashcards of the members of the family and they had to write the words on the back. I guess they have an exam coming up and they’re supposed to take them home and study and “play” with mom/dad/brother/sister/whoever. She then gave them Parts of the Body flashcards to do the same.

We played Chinese Whispers/Telephone in 2B. Why they call it “Chinese Whispers” I have no idea, and I was like “What?!” when Analen told me that. Afterwards, since her computer wasn’t working (she said it’s full of viruses…that’s not good…) I read them a story instead of listening to it on CD.

Marina’s fifth started the new unit “My Country” today, so I read and pronounced the words for them (lake, jungle, ocean…). They did a workbook page and I also did a dictation with them.

Class at 4:30 and that’s it! Marina has to go to Albacete this afternoon, so we changed their Tuesday class to Thursday.

Xoxo,

Court

This afternoon it’s 64 and kind of cloudy. It’s still windy though…when will it let up?!?!

With the six levels (A/C) we played the question/answer game we played with B a couple of weeks ago—the one where they held up cards with answers such as “Yes, she can. No, it didn’t. No we aren’t…” after I would ask a corresponding question. Marilu said she had made up questions to ask so it’d go a little faster but she forgot them…again (she didn’t have them for 6B, either). I was just like (to myself) “Why don’t we play this on a day when you have the questions?” I wasted a little time thinking about some.

When I got to 4A they were copying down questions from the board. I’m not sure what they were for, because they weren’t really Englishy or sciencey (though they were in English) but they were questions about Spain; how many providences, autonomous communities there are, etc. Later they wrote a description of a famous person (physical characteristics) and I’m thinking play “Guess Who” tomorrow or sometime.

To the little three-year-olds I reread the story of Ellie’s Hat. Summary: She tries on a blue coat = too small, she tries on red boots = too small, she tries on a yellow hat = too big! Following the story there was a worksheet in which they had to color a hat and coat…yep, blue and yellow!

I’ve got class at 4:30 and then I’m not sure if Carmen and I are going to finish our episode of Sherlock or not…she hasn’t told me anything yet.

SIX WEEKS from today I will be going home…WOOT!!!!!!!

Xoxo,

Court

HAPPY EARTH DAY!!!

Today it’s mostly cloudy and 61…it’s not too bad; at least the wind’s not being a crazy monster!

I’m hanging out, looking for future employment. We’ll see what’s out there…I don’t want to be pessimistic, but, well, I’m not feeling very optimistic at the moment! Gotta have faith and hope, I guess!

I did some laundry too. With the (sometimes) nicer spring weather things only take about a day to dry now, so yay for that! That’s about it…there shall be more to tell tomorrow!

Xoxo,

Court

It’s 57 degrees this afternoon; though again, it’s windy so it seems much cooler than that.

This morning Carmen picked me up and I mailed my huge box home (well, technically to Grammy, but it’s all the same!) It actually took a while: We couldn’t find a place to park near the post office, so we parked at her house (super close to the PO, prolly like a 3 minute walk, but when you’re carrying 40 pounds…it’s a bit more difficult!) and walked. It didn’t dawn on us until later that it would’ve been smart to drop me off with the bags and then have her go park! Oh hindsight, why are you always 20/20?

So we carry the bags and box to the office (whilst everyone stared at us…at felt like an alien) and the guy’s like “That’s a huge box. We weigh by volume and not just by the goods, so a smaller box would be better/cheaper (the box was, like, freaking ginormous). At that, Carmen ran to get her car, picked me up with the bags/box and we went to her husband’s family’s store to look for a smaller one.

The same guy as before helped us; super nice! He actually opened a newly shipped box of napkins and transferred them to another box, just so I could have the perfect size! He then taped it all up (which I wasn’t expecting) ridiculously well and carried the box out to Carmen’s car for us!

We drove back to the post office and actually found a spot across the street (Thank you, Lord!) and we carried it in together. I had to fill out this form and that was pretty much it! I think in all it was about 19 kilos/42 pounds. After some insurance it came out to be $217 and some change. I’d saved up close to 300, so I was happy with that!

Because the post office thing took a lot longer than either of us thought (like an hour and a half in all) we didn’t have time to watch a whole episode of Sherlock (with school getting out at two). We watched maybe half of it and are gonna watch the rest on Monday. I had never heard of it but it’s a really good series! I was getting really into it and can’t wait for Monday now! Carmen said I could find them online if I didn’t want to, but it’s more fun to watch with someone else!

I have class with Laura at 4:30; I kinda wanted to take a nap but she’ll be here in half an hour, so there’s no time!

Xoxo,

Court

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MATTHEW!!!!!

It’s ridiculously windy this Thursday afternoon! It’s chilly too, 56, so that’s a bad combination; my least favorite :/.

        The majority of the day was spent with Ana in infantil, like every Thursday. First hour, with five-years A, after the usual day and weather talk, we reviewed/learned the seasons. Ana said they knew spring and autumn but not winter and summer (not really sure how or why) so we learned those and practiced pronunciation. Then we played the much loved memory game with food vocab flashcards.

To the morning four-year-olds I reread the story about The Monkey Family’s picnic, where Ellie comes in and eats everything. Afterwards we did a worksheet in which they had to color all the flowers red, color the number six in the middle page whatever they wanted and put on three stickers of sheep. I played memory with the afternoon class, whilst Ana finished cutting out food items for an activity. She had this poster of a plate and they had to come up and put on the plate what they’d like to eat for lunch—sandwiches, apples, bananas, pears or cupcakes!

Ana said she wanted to go to the video room with 2A so I went on ahead to set everything up and she brought the class in like ten minutes later. They’re learning about plants in science, so we watched this interactive story called The Lucky Seed. The seed grows up to be a…wait for it…tree (imagine that!)

Last hour with 6B we corrected some activities. We did it a little differently, though, Mari had them write the sentences on the board and in order to get their points they had to explain their reasoning. I got to play devil’s advocate and would say things like “so why is it “had” and not “haved”?” That was fun! For me, at least…bahahaha!

Happy Weekend to Me! I’ve got class at 4:30 and then it’s relaxation time! Also, Carmen’s picking me up tomorrow to take me to the post office to send my 40 POUND box of clothes home…yeah, I can’t wait to see how much that’s gonna set me back. After that we’re going back to her house to watch an episode of Sherlock, the British series. She told me when we met on Monday that she’s OBSESSED with it! It’s true, too; she rewatches an episode everyday and can pretty much quote the episodes word for word!!!

Xoxo,

Court

This afternoon it’s 57 and mostly cloudy, though with the wind it seems cooler than that.

We reviewed quite a bit in 1A: parts of the body, a hodgepodge of flashcards and months of the year. Afterwards they did a worksheet, but I don’t remember what it was about! Not because I was disengaged, but rather because first hour was a long time ago!

Second and last hours we talked only a little bit about the US! I’d prepared a bunch of things, as Luis Miguel requested, and then we spent a lot of time reviewing what we talked about last week (reasons to visit Spain)! The highlight for me though was getting a bunch of recipes of tortilla and paella—last week I was talking about Spanish food and said that I love both of those and apparently LM had one class write down recipes of tortilla and the other class paella. OH HECK YES!

Ana was trying to get some things graded for 2A, so before “breakfast” she put on a Disney video for five-years B about Mickey, Donald and Goofy.

We corrected an activity in 4B and then we played BINGO with school subjects and means of transportation. I was getting really annoyed with them because every time I said a word, they were like “what?” and then someone would pronounce it the Spanish way and “correct” me. I went off on them and was like “Don’t correct me! You think you know better than me, a native? I don’t think so…you’re wrong.” They stopped after that!

I’ve got class with a new girl, Laura, in like half an hour. She’s Elena’s sister, a girl in 6C, is in high school and has some important exam next week. I think we’re just meeting this and next week, but I’m not totally sure.

Xoxo,

Court

It’s mostly sunny and 55 this afternoon. Lately the wind and rain have been taking turns in making themselves known…today it was the wind’s turn.

With Rocío’s classes today we talked, or rather started talking about, Earth Day. I played MJ’s “Earth Song” for them and Rocío made me stop it like every other line so they could repeat the lyrics after me. It’s a pretty long song too, six-ish minutes, so needless to say that look forever. I also have some videos about nature that she’d wanted, but we didn’t get to those…so the discussion will continue next week. Oh and Marina’s class had an exam, so I sat there and chillaxed.

1B started a new unit about food, but they already know all the vocab from science (in English) so we just kinda reviewed it. Words like apple, orange, yogurt, cake and sandwich are included in this unit. They then had to follow directions and color a workbook page of a table with food.

I don’t remember what 2B did because I just sat there, and when that happens usually I don’t remember things. Analen yelled as usual and when someone asked her a question she was like “For the hundredth time, blah blah, blah…my throat hurts from all the re-explaining I always have to do!” I just smiled to myself and thought “Really? Are you sure it’s not because you yell needlessly all the time?”

Class at 4:30 and then at 6:30 with Ana and Marina.

Xoxo,

Court

Today it’s 52 and mostly clear; still a bit on the cool side for the middle of April I think, but Mother Nature always has her way!

I didn’t go to school today. I wasn’t planning on going in until 11 because sixth level was gone on a field trip and then my stomach started feeling really iffy. Not to go into too much detail, but let’s just say me and the bathroom were besties this morning! The feeling’s passed though, so that’s good!

Even though I was feeling off, I was able to get my box of clothes together to spend home. Praise Jesus for Space Saver bags! Without the box itself, the bags weighed 37.4 pounds…that’s a TON! The limit to send through the post office is 20 kilos or 44 pounds, so once I throw the box in there, it’s gonna be pretty darn close…to bad I don’t have another option…

Class at 4:30 and then, I don’t know what…

Xoxo,

Court

It’s been a bit of a rainy and dreary weekend! It’s 52 and mostly cloudy at the moment but it was raining earlier. It also rained yesterday and Friday. Along with the rain has come chillier weather…it’s been in the 50s the past several days and appears it will continue in the foreseeable future.

The big news since Thursday is that I booked my ticket home! I’m USA bound on June 4!!! Can’t wait! Also, there has been a slight change in plans, in that mom and dad aren’t coming to visit, but that’s ok. With the new house and everything it’s just not going to be feasible. The main thing is though that they’ll be in Lincoln when I get back! Super excited for the new house!

Today I’ve been looking for activities and materials for both Rocío and Luis Miguel’s classes. Rocío wants to talk about Earth Day this week, (I didn’t know Earth Day activities existed) which is next Sunday, the 22^nd, and Luis Miguel wants to discuss reasons to visit the US and a Nebraska song…I also threw in The Star Spangled Banner, for good measure!

Xoxo,

Court

It’s a bit chillier at 54 today and it rained earlier too. It’s still super cloudy now.

The little helper (they write the date, we count all the students, they say what the weather’s like and then we sing about the weather and days of the week) in five years A, Héctor, was really slow so the usual starting activities took forever! We had like 15 minutes left after he finished, so I was only able to play a memory game with them and afterwards Ana stamped their hands.

To the four-year-old classes I read a story about Ellie, who eats all the Monkey Family’s food on their picnic, so Max has to swoop in and magic up some more. The morning class later did a worksheet in which they had to put on stickers of cakes and sandwiches and also color an apple and banana. With less time in the afternoon class, we played a memory game with the food vocab from the story.

2A started a new unit about Free Time and I introduced the vocab—listen to music, dance, watch TV, play football, etc. we practiced pronunciation several times, then I stuck the cards on the board and we played a memory game (I’m all memory gamed out today!) Lastly, I called up students to stick the correct vocab word by the photo.

I got to hang with the big kids (6B) last hour and we played this “game” where I asked questions and in groups of three they had to hold up the correct response. They had cards like “No, we aren’t. Yes, she can. Yes, I am. No, you don’t.” I was amused because it got really serious; they started covering up their answers whilst holding them up and tattling on those who cheated off other groups!

HAPPY WEEKEND TO ME!!!

Xoxo,

Court

It’s a warm 59 today; it’s still windy too, but not nearly as yesterday.

After our normal review with 1A we started a new unit about water—bodies of water, snow, rain and things like that. I read them a little paragraph from their books and then they had to color an ocean and river blue and later check photos if they were made up of water or not.

Luis Miguel thought I had something prepared for 3A and B but I didn’t. We’d already talked about everything I had and I didn’t realize he expected me to have more…we didn’t talk about me preparing anything else! So we talked about Spain, the places I’ve been and we asked the students if they’d been there. Next week though I’m to look for a song about Nebraska and come up with reasons why to visit the US (more like why wouldn’t you want to visit the US…:D)

I usually get to five-years B late now because Luis Miguel likes to go over the hour, I’ve discovered, plus I have to walk all the way to the other end of school. When I got there Ana was playing a memory game with food vocab and shortly thereafter it was breakfast time.

I actually didn’t hate 4B today! It was…dare I say, almost enjoyable? I told them a story, like I do occasionally and their behavior was pretty good; we even had several laughs! Never thought I’d see the day…glad I did, though!

Xoxo,

Court

Holy Sweet Mother of Wind, Batman! It’s 65 and sunny today, and thankfully it’s not a cold wind but still…I had to walk against it coming home and WOW!!

I got a package from Mom and Dad yesterday…thanks guys!!!!! :) I was running out of vitamins, so I got more of those! Also some good toothpaste, Easter candy (must have self control!) and PEANUT BUTTER!!!! I was not expecting that so I was and still am super psyched! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

So we are back to the daily school grind, although now that it’s April the end seems so close! The classes weren’t too bad today (I’d kinda expected them to be a little restless, not having being in school for so long, but it was fine!) With Rocío’s fifths we talked about their new unit, My Country—the vocab includes, lake, river, mountain, waterfall, ocean, jungle, etc. She also reminded me that Earth day is the 22^nd, so I have to start preparing for that…I must say one thing about Rocío is I’ve never had to sit idly in her class!

Marina’s 1A was finishing up science when I arrived and later on I reviewed the parts of the body and then they finished with an Easter worksheet there wasn’t time for before break. They had to color eggs a certain color and then match that egg to the correct color (word). In her fifth, the two of us read a dialogue for the class and then they came up in pairs to read it and later did a worksheet but I don’t remember what it was about.

I read 2B a story about Ruby and a cake competition at school. All of her friends were busy, so she ended up making a chocolate cake on her own and winning first prize! Afterwards they did a listening activity, followed by a worksheet in which they had to match the correct word to the picture of the job…I guess they’re still on that unit.

Back to classes this afternoon—4:30 with Javi and 6:00 with Ana and Marina…woot for making money!!!

Xoxo,

Court

HAPPY EASTER!!!! ¡¡¡¡¡ALELUYA…ESTÁ VIVO!!!!!

This evening it is a cloudless 63 degrees! I haven’t been outside, but it looks nice!

I’ve been catching up my sleep for the past week, as I’d said I’d wanted to, so I can check that off my list of things to accomplish over break! That was basically the only thing; I didn’t really have a list…I’ve also made some extra money, giving classes to Lorena, so that’s been nice too! I’ve put all of it towards my “Sending a Box Home” fund.

We get one more day off tomorrow and then it’s back to school on Tuesday. It’s been long enough though…I’m ready to go back!

Xoxo,

Court

It’s a little on the poopy side today—52 with occasional rain showers. It rained a bit yesterday and it looks to be steady over the next few days. It’s not the best weather for processions, events and everything that’s going on this week, but I’d gladly take it over a humid 100 degrees.

Yesterday I had my first class with Lorena and we’ll be meeting everyday this week at four; I think she even wants to meet Saturday, too. She has an interview with the airline Vueling next Tuesday so we’re practicing for that. She said half the interview will be in English, so she’s a bit nervous!

I’ve been trying to acquire a big box to send some clothes home in (unfortunately not everything will fit in my suitcases :/) the last couple of weeks, and in the past 18 hours I’ve acquired four! Marina brought me three last night (all different sizes) from her dad’s store and then Carmen texted me this morning and said she could take me to her husband’s family’s store to look for some (I’d been trying to arrange a meeting with her for like the past three weeks and it just happened to work out the day after Marina stopped by. But, I still went because I figured it wouldn’t hurt to see what was out there. I’m glad I went too, because I got this super ginormous one that even my huge Columbia coat can lay comfortably flat in! Although now I just have to decide if I want to ship something that big…because I’m sure I could get everything to fit in (granted things wouldn’t lay flat) one of Marina’s.

I think I’m going to wait at least another week before I send it in order to earn as much money as possible—I’m really nervous about and dreading the cost… :(

Xoxo,

Court