Back to school Fall 2019
Monday, September 9, 2019
Recently, I
posted a short video on YouTube about what happened last week at the onsite
school at Pan de Vida.
This
is my first attempt at using a video to provide
updates about our ministry. Starting out, my goal is to post a short and simple
video once a week.
The idea of posting videos came from two friends.
They helped me with the basics. I am
trying to figure this out as I go.
Ariadne, my
oldest child, helped me with both the recording and keeping the tripod steady.
I think she did a great job on her first day as my video assistant. She pointed
out to me when their was a problem with the recording and she was very patient
with the numerous re-dos that had to be done.
Or you can find the video by
searching on YouTube for my name, Bryan Ottoson.
Feel free
to comment on it and share with others. I am open to any input on how to
improve. Let me know what you would like to see posted.
In case you are unable to see the video
or you would like more details, you can read about the update below.
Last week was the the first week of school.
 |
| Teacher introduction |
On Monday, when most of you had the day off
for labor day, I was working. My fellow volunteer teachers and I were teaching
on the first day of the fall semester.
Like a typical first day of school, the
teachers went over rules and expectations for the class. One junior high student
was prompted to write me a letter in response to my rules. The following is
part of the letter that has been translated from Spanish into English:
Dear
Bryan,
I
appreciate it that you teach me. Thank you for your hard work as a a teacher. I
appreciate God for your life. Thank you for not laughing at my English. Please
let us go to the bathroom. Thank you for everything.
I enjoy reading written comments from my
students. They share with me things that they would never say in class, much
less with me in prívate. Also, I am able to see what kind of impact my actions
have on others, especially from those who appear to be rude or indifferent.
Regarding the laughing comment, I tell all my
students not to make fun of each other´s attempts at speaking English. I make
it clear to them that everyone makes mistakes at learning a foreign language –
they know this by hearing me speak in Spanish. I tell my students they need to
encourage each other, not tear each other down.
Regarding the comment about going to the
bathroom, I tell my students they can only go to the bathroom before or after
class. If they go to the bathroom during class, they tend to get distracted
along the way and end up arriving back to the classroom much later than normal.
Going back to what happen last week, I worked
on coordinating English classes for all the English teachers. Besides myself,
there are two other English teachers. One American woman is teaching English
classes for the students between Kindergarten and 4th grade. A Canadian man is
teaching English to the 5th graders and the basic level for junior high. I am
teaching English to the 6th graders and junior highers at the advanced level.
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| English students playing scrabble. Mitch, a fellow volunteer teacher, is playing with them |
This coming week is the start of English
clases for the High School students. They were on break last week, because they
have a different schedule from the rest of the school. It will be a challenge
to fit them in with the English schedule, especially since their hours are
currently different from the other grades.
 |
| after school waiting area |
Challenges for the fall semster:
Longer class time.
o
The teachers have to find ways to
keep students attentive and engaged.
· Conflict among some of my junior
high students.
o
In one of my English classes, I
have a first year junior student studying with third year junior high students.
The reason is because the proficeny level of the first year middle schooler is way
higher than his peers. Some of the third year students don´t get along with the
first year student. Prayer is needed.
Sincerely,
Bryan Ottoson
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/TheOptimusPrime24
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