ELF El Salvador

So now it's time to say goodbye....to new friends and colleagues, to beautiful places we've visited....but not to the many memories my husband and I will keep forever. Today is my last day as an ELF at Centro Cultural, so it's a sad day for me. So many hugs and farewells. I've chosen this picture as my Facebook farewell to El Salvador. Last weekend my husband and I drove to Rio Chiquito, parked the car, and hiked up to El Pital. As you can see, it was a gorgeous day, with million dollar views. It is only one of many wonderful memories. Thank you for inviting me to your country. I hope this is "adios por ahorita"! Hasta luego!

This past week I was delighted to present a workshop at the 2019 Symposium for English Language Teachers at the Instituto Centro Cultural. It was wonderful to meet educators working in a variety of public and private schools and universities in El Salvador. I was happy to see some familiar faces, and also met many new professional colleagues. Thanks to all you who attended the workshop. I only wish I wasn't leaving El Salvador in less than 3 weeks! I would have loved the opportunity to work with you further in your classrooms.

Keep up the good work!

I was delighted to receive an invitation to speak to students at the Universidad Evangelica de El Salvador. These students are preparing to become bilingual Translators and Interpreters, and we engaged in discussions and activities on the topic of Bilingualism and Global Citizenship. Meeting with these young global citizens was a high point. And speaking of high points, UEES has the MOST AMAZING view of San Salvador and surrounding mountains! Thank you for inviting me.

I love this picture! Four teachers from Centro Cultural attended Monday's TESOL Conference in Guatemala City. And here they are with Matt Mulka, the ELF in Guatemala, who presented one of the workshops. In next week's workshop here at CCSA we'll hear more about their experience. They've told me that it was a good time to reflect on their practice and their profession. We teachers are often so busy; it's nice to meet with fellow teachers, to think and talk about what works well for our students. Bienvenido a casa, colegas!

Yesterday's workshop was all fun and games. Teachers played newly-purchased board games they will use with their students (a good way to spend my remaining ELF money!) We all had lots of laughs as we learned, and adapted, the rules for these games. The games ranged from pair games like "Guess Who" and "Bananagrams", to games that can be used with groups of 6-8, as well as with the whole class: "Codenames", "The Game of Things", and "Scattergories", to name a few. One of the favorites seemed to be "Say Anything", evidenced by the smiling faces of these six teachers. Here's hoping our students have as much fun using English as their teachers did!

Yesterday I had the pleasure of attending the Commencement Ceremony for women who recently completed the English Program for Early Childhood Educators and Caregivers. This new program at Instituto Centro Cultural is expected to continue and expand, offering a professional development opportunity for those who work with El Salvador's young pre-schoolers. I really enjoyed time I spent with these educators a few weeks ago as we explored ways to use children's books as a gateway to early English learning. I was happy to accept an invitation to attend their Commencement Ceremony, and wish them all the very best.

This past weekend I joined English Access students and teachers from San Salvador and San Miguel, at their Access Camp in Sonsonate. These hardworking teachers had planned a full weekend of valuable activities for the students, including: building teamwork through each group's creation of flags and cheers, practicing communication strategies, role plays (pictured here), discussions, relay races, and a scavenger hunt, among other activities. I was overwhelmed by the time and energy the teachers devoted to provide these students with a fun and full weekend of activities related to Values. Although I attended the camp for only one session, in that short time I was so impressed by the energy and enthusiasm of teachers and students alike!

While Centro Cultural had a 6-day break, my husband and I took the bus to Antigua, Guatemala to enjoy that beautiful town, and to improve our Spanish. With one-to-one lessons in the mornings and the afternoons, we should be much better than we are! We know we need to practice, practice, practice. Time will tell!

I had a wonderful week in Curitiba, Brazil, where I met with other English Language Fellows in Latin America for our Mid Year meeting. (Wow, I can't believe my year as an ELF is already half over!) It was so interesting to learn about their experiences in Panama, Guatemala, Argentina, Brazil, Columbia and Chile. Once again, I felt very happy to be in El Salvador!

We also had the opportunity to present workshops at the Southern Cone TESOL conference, which was initially a little scary, but my workshop was attended by a wonderful group of teachers, so I relaxed and had a lot of fun! We explored ways in which colors can be used by students and teachers in various literacy and speaking/listening activities.

All in all, a rewarding week.

Yesterday English Access students at CCSA celebrated US-El Salvador friendship. Students presented information about both countries, their history, culture, famous people and places. Students came to the stage to sing bilingual songs, and to demonstrate traditional dances from each country. I was asked to talk about organizational friendships, so the students took part in activities related to the work of American Friends Service Committee and Habitat for Humanity, among others friendship organizations. For one activity, students worked in small groups to make posters answering the question: What can you do to help build peace in your communities? Their posters spelled out P-E-A-C-E. Their advice included: Accept different religions of people; Educate all children in the community; Clean the streets so you have a beautiful place to share with friends; Play soccer to avoid violence between teenagers. These young people have big challenges ahead of them, to build a more peaceful world.

On Sunday, students from the INSAFORP English program at CCSA proved how much they had learned about Juneteenth. This holiday is celebrated in many U.S. communities on June 19, in recognition of the abolition of slavery and the many contributions of African-Americans to American life and culture. Through group activities like Dictogloss, Numbered Heads, and Sentence Building, students listened to, and reconstructed, part of Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation. They worked collaboratively to explain key causes of the American Civil War, and used photos to predict current-day activities during this June holiday. Teachers did an amazing job of preparing the students for my presentation. It made my job super easy! Thanks to everyone for your participation.🤩