ETA Update- American techniques in the Spanish Classroom

Today I was thinking a lot about my school and the happenings there in little Alfara de Patriarca and about my progress... or perhaps the lack there of.

Today my angel Maria Jose was not going to be in, the director asked me to take over her classes. Now this is not so easy when its 855 am, and class starts at 9, and you want me to just magically have things for 3 classes to do. So in the end, I only took on the 1st graders.

Now, I have had extensive training in 1st grade while doing my student teaching. I can handle first grade. But only if first graders can handle themselves. These kids do not know how to sit quietly (and its not the language barrier, at a language exchange last night, teachers from all over Valencia told me that Spanish students are generally very rude and do not know how to behave properly)

So in 1st grade, we're working on pets (dog, cat, bird, fish, turtle, rabbit, mouse)  So because they already "know" the vocab, and can spell it, I decided we would play educational games today, such as Go Fish or Bingo. You know easy games every kid knows how to play. Ok, I guess every kid in America knows how to play them.... I should have known they dont know these games since no one knows who Dr. Seuss is or how to do a jumping jack.

So from my 1st grade teacher boot camp last year, I learned it is better to seat kids on the carpet, or just on the floor. This way they cant play with their desks, books, or pencil cases, and I can keep a closer eye all of them and have that get your attention with proximity thing going.

But every day it is further reiterated to me, that Spanish students are not the same as American students. But I keep thinking they can adapt, its possible. Its primary school, not brain surgery. But no, it's not. Especially when you don't share a common language and they don't know how to sit quietly for longer than 0.7 seconds.

So I try to explain "Go Fish" with the animal cards I made in the morning. I quickly throw all rules out the window, and all I want is for them to choose a classmate, say their name, ask " Do you have a turtle?" and yes/no, and maybe, just maybe "go fish". 

My dreams did not come true.

The whole "keep your cards a secret- un secreto!" bit did not work. All the kids were flashing around their cards "Tinc turtle, tinc un turtle!" and some even had two turtles, they missed the whole "turtle and turtle, put on the floor!" bit earlier. Whatever, I just want them to speak, and identify animals. I guess in the end they kind of did it. Every student was able to ask another student "do you have a..." and the students could correctly say "yes" or "no"... but it was kind of a loud mess, or maybe it was just really loud in my head trying to give every student individual attention since "group work" or "whole class" don't seem to be functional concepts in the classrooms of España and I feel like the ring leader of  a circus gone out of control.

I think that I could really do a better job teaching English to these kids, if they understood sitting quietly, and waiting for instructions. I mean, I know it takes time, especially in 1st grade, but its March now! These are things that should have been established in September, i fear its too late to change them.

On the other hand, directly after I went to work with my 6th graders on a movie we are making to send our pen pals in New York. These kids are kind of funny, yet again, they do not know how to beeee quiet. They get out of control way too quickly and like Spaniards, just say what comes to their mind at that exact moment.

So for the movie, since it is about fallas, the students insisted that we film them lighting these firecrackers. Now here I am, standing outside in a parking lot with 6 sixth graders... lighting fireworks. Is it just me? Or is that illegal in the US? At least frowned upon? Especially since myself, the only adult, was not the one lighting them? I felt like a criminal, like the policia were about to come do a doughnut into the parking lot and scoop me up and send me back to cold and snowy New York to teach me a lesson....

At least that didn't happen. And no one lost any limbs... but now I'm supposed to include this in our movie and send it to the states? The kids are going to start whining to poor Mrs. Flynn that THEY want to go outside and light firecrackers too!

I had to put an end to firecracker lighting when they wanted to stick the firecracker in a dog turd and light it.... which they said "put in theee sheeeet!!!"
Side note: is it bad i don't reprimand them for using English curse words? I mean, at least they're speaking English, no? And anyway, how would i punish them? Make them write "I will not curse in English" 100 times? I don't think so.

Until next time, I will continue to force my education of education on these little innocent spanaird children. More updates to come, along with videos of 11 year old lighting firecrackers in parking lots... out of dog turds....