Back to School

July 5 – July 11

     And, we’re back at school. I’m finally starting to plan groups and projects with counterparts in high school and, hopefully, we’ll soon have a women’s empowerment group, Samigas, and an environmental awareness and action group, Verde Mi Ciudad, going at the school. English classes were interesting this week, too – 1^st grade listened to Old MacDonald to learn about animals and 5^th grade read a short story, The Magic Backpack, to learn school supplies. I think everyone feels refreshed after the break, so hopefully, now we’ll really start to get stuff done!

- One of the most effective ways to encourage students to join out-of-school or during-school groups is by going to each classroom and presenting the group and its purpose to the students. This is a thousand times easier with a counterpart, since even if you do speak Spanish, your counterpart speaks Spanish that the students will understand and react to, making people more likely to join your group. Having a counterpart also make the project sustainable, so they can continue meeting after you return to the United States.

- And even before you present your idea in classes, you’ll need to write a proposal to the school’s principal. Fortunately, official-looking documents aren’t the norm here, so if your proposal is well thought out, well written, and looks professional, you likely won’t have much trouble getting approval.

- If you’re in town, La Pizzería Italiana Gourmet is an excellent pizza place in the Centro. It’s not the cheapest, but the pizzas are big and delicious. We went there to celebrate a volunteer’s birthday and had a wonderful time visiting and enjoying great food.

- “Espero que sí, creo que no.” I hope so, but I think not.