My Wonderful School

I should start by stating that I am fortunate enough to be working at what could possibly be one of the greatest schools in Andalucia (you’ll notice my bias right off). The school itself is bright, clean, and an incredibly positive environment for not only the students, but staff as well. I’ve come to the conclusion that job satisfaction must be quite high here in Andalucia, as the primary teachers work an invigorating schedule of 9-2. Yep, almost five brutal hours of work a day. It’s a rough life. Mine is made even more difficult in that I am required to be there a whole 12 hours a week. During my 12 hours at school, I am swarmed with smiling students shouting, “teacher, teacher!” and rewarded with not only thousands of abrazos y besos (kisses and hugs), but also with fine works of art with profound statements like, “la major seño de Estados Unidos”. Perhaps you’re beginning to understand the temptation of returning?
I teach English classes to students ranging from 5 years to 11 years old. With the older students, I typically ask questions regarding stories we’ve read, explain the workbook assignments, and carry on conversation practices (or practises if you’re from England. By the way…I quickly learned that trousers = pants, rubbers = erasers, lorries? = semis, and have got = have…just a couple of the quirks, that and the British feel the need to add a “u” to quite a few words like: favourite, colour, mum, and honour). I also get to teach units on special themes like: Halloween, Thanksgiving, Children’s Rights Day, International Day of Peace to name a few. For the latter I made a big poster and had all my students (and actually all the students in primary school) read a story I wrote about accepting differences in others, and then, after learning about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., we made a “dream chain” that held all of our dreams for a peaceful happy world. We also all made “peace” bracelets to wear for the assembly.
With the younger students I have actually taken on the role as the sole teacher. This requires me to be a little more on top of my game (imagine being five years old and listening to words you’re not sure that you understand for an hour: ADD much???). Needless to say, we play lots of games and every day I find myself being a train, a lion, a monkey, a hungry crocodile, or a human tagging machine. Did I mention I smile a lot in my job? All my students keep me laughing, smiling, and definitely on my toes.
Last week was the carnaval celebration. It was during this parade that I again took note and time to be thankful for how wonderful and special my school is. Everyone took on the theme of “inventions” for their costumes. We had robots, calculators, cell phones, ovens, washing machines, scientists, clocks, currency, and yours truly came as a cyclist (no surprise there -in all honesty I was trying to squeeze in a ride before the parade and had no time to change clothes). But who would have thought that the students would go crazy at seeing their “seño” in a costume for carnaval? Due to my not so serious attitude in the classroom and my ability to constantly make a fool of myself in front of the students, I feel like they’ve come to accept me as one of them. My 5th grade girls are constantly asking me about music and t.v. programs while busting out their MP3s so we can sing Rhianna together, and the boys think it’s so cool that I actually touched the saltamontes (grasshopper). The teachers are beginning to joke that I am more famous than Madonna.
If there is one sentiment that I am constantly reminded of here, it is that life in Spain is very different. There seems to be less stress and more smiles (not to mention louder, more animated conversations and rowdy kids). Perhaps it’s the sunshine, perhaps it’s because there is time to spend with family, perhaps it’s the social healthcare system or any number of possibilities. It could even be the aceite (olive oil), vino tinto, y jamon. Whatever the reason may be, Spain definitely leaves one feel thankful and encouraging one to always “enjoy the life”.