My Adventures in Chile: I'm a teacher?

Yep, I’m a teacher. I have a big girl job. It’s kind of weird.

I’m teaching four basic English classes and one intermediate class. Next week I’ll have a class of fellow teachers as well.

Classes meet twice a week for an hour and a half each class. One weird thing is that the classes don’t meet at the same time or in the same room for the second class in the week. For example, I have one class that meets on Mondays at 1:45 and Fridays at 8:30 in the morning. I think the way Witt does it is a bit easier.

Three of my basic classes have 18 students each (18 is the maximum students allowed in the class). The other basic class and the intermediate class have only about 7 students each. It’s nice having both bigger classes and smaller classes. It’s easier to do activities with the bigger classes, but I can give more attention to the students in the smaller classes.

Tuesdays and Thursdays are my long days. I have a class at 11:30 and another one at 7pm. I don’t go home because my commute is about 25 minutes long and 600 pesos each way, so I just hang out in the teacher’s lounge. It helps there’s a mall right next to the school and a grocery store right there too.

Students are still enrolling so they’re getting their books this week finally. I’ve been making up my own activities and lesson plans for class. In my basic classes, we’ve covered greetings, basic phrases, the present tense, etc. I think I’ve realized that English makes no sense and it’s not that easy to teach it. There are always exceptions to the rules on our language. Oh well, it’ll be done!

Some of my students have had English before…others know absolutely nothing. I was surprised the first day of teaching because my intermediate class, who have taken a whole year of English, don’t know hardly anything it seems. I’ve spoken mostly in English in class, but sometimes I have to speak a little Spanish. Guess I have to give it time. Most of them seem like that want to learn so hopefully that continues!

I think that's everything about school.....ask me if not!