Monday morning, I started school! At ten after eight in the morning, I joined my host mom, brother, and sister in walking to school. The parents in the neighborhood have developed the "pedibus" which consists of ten kids with rolly backpacks and two parents walking to school. The minute I walked through the front gate of the school, I was greeted by the saucer-sized eyes of the children who have been expecting me! They all practiced their English by saying "Hi, Brooke!" After I was introduced to the English teacher (the teacher I am working with), I was introduced to the kids in my third grade class. They each came up to the teacher's desk and were given a name tag. The teacher made them say "Hi, my name is.... It's nice to meet you." I could tell that they had been practicing and working very hard on this phrase. Once that was finished, the teacher had the students ask me questions such as "Do you like...(insert sport, food, game, etc)" or "Do you have...(a car, a house, any sibling, etc)." I had to speak very slowly and with very simple sentences otherwise they could not understand me. Sometimes they had trouble because they learn British English, which is very different from American English.
I'm the only American at my school. Apparently, the teachers passed around a picture of me and the whole school was looking forward to my arrival! They made me this banner that hangs in the main entry of the school.
Two girls in my class, Emma and Elisa (who are seriously the most adorable children on the planet) made these notebooks for me!
Around 10:30, the students get a break for snack and then recess outside. All of the little girls flocked to me, each fighting for a chance to hold my hand. At one point, I'm pretty sure I had five or six little girls trying to hold my two hands. They tried to teach me words in Italian, especially words they knew the corresponding English word to (butterfly, flower, hair, etc). Sometimes they would ask me what the english word was for certain objects. They tried to have conversations with me in Italian, but of course, I had no clue what they were saying. One girl kept telling them that by saying "Non capisco, non capisco!" She's a fiery little girl.
The girls all picked me flowers on the first day during break!
After break, we came back inside and I sat back and watched the teacher teach. This part was especially insightful for me because now, I feel like I can understand how it feels to be at a new school where nobody speaks your language. This is the case for many ELL (English Language Learners) students. What made me feel better and less timid toward the situation was when the little girls came and wanted to play with me. They made me feel like I mattered and that they cared enough to make me feel welcome. When I become a teacher, I am going to go out of my way to make the ELL student in my school feel less scared and intimidated because they cannot communicate. It may require google translator on an iPad or the smartboard or the computer, but I will find a way to communicate with these children and make sure that they are included as often as possible.
Well my friends, the rest of my week was pretty much the same. I went to school, meetings (with my American friends and another with the third and fourth grade english teachers), spent time with my family, and even went to Bologna on Thursday afternoon (More on that later). But for now, I have to go to bed. I have to be up early for my trip to Florence tomorrow!
Ciao!
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