Model class demonstration

Today, through SKYPE, I joined virtually a 3rd grade class, with Maestra Marlene. The subject of the lesson was  the digestive system.

Marlene had plugged in the computer, the projector and the screen. She showed a short educational video of the digestive system to her students. She paused the video several times to ask the students questions. At the end of the video, she projected a large colorful image of a human body, and called various students to point out to the different organs.

The children were attentive and engaged (although a little distracted by my virtual presence).

Marlene could clearly show that after few months of training and support, she had mastered connecting the equipment, searching and selecting  appropriate material, and incorporating it all to create an engaging class. It was impressive.

As a cherry on the cake, the students had practiced a “mother’s day song” that they wanted to perform. It was Karaoke style, with the words projected on the screen.

Here is a very simple one minute video of this exchange : http://www.tinfa.org/tyfyd/

Corcho del sur has created its own blog, with few pictures of the school. Take a look, and don't hesitate to live a comment.

What an amazing attitude!

This week, we have our monthly Skype training and discussion with each of the three pilot schools in the Xela region of Guatemala. We have had 2 of our 3 meetings so far.

These teachers are so willing to learn and are making such fast progress, it is really impressive!

Each of the 3 schools now has a blog, with nice pictures of their schools, and their first impression of being connected. Here they are:

• Escuela Lotificacion San Marcos : http://eormlotificacionsanmarcos.blogspot.com/
• Escuela Corcho Sur : http://escuelacorchosur.blogspot.com/
• Escuela Canton Veracruz : http://escuelacantonveracruz.blogspot.com/

Feel free to post a comment. I can insure you that the amount of gratefulness that you will receive will vastly surpass the little time you will spend on writing it. 

We are spending the first part of our interaction on a "flipped classroom training". The teachers review the first 3 lessons of  English Anyone prior to our meeting (singular/plural, exceptions, adjectives and colors). During our interaction, we practice, and I answer questions related to the lessons. I am told by the teachers that one of the challenge is pronunciation. As many of you can tell, I might not be the right person to tackle that challenge. The videos will help though.

We talk about the appropriateness of this flipped classroom and specific video training format, as the teachers work with their students.

For the second part of our interaction, we talk about the use of the equipment and specific applications. There, I have to recognize the great work of our local partner organization, FUNDAP.  The staff at FUNDAP has been able to create such a level of trust over the years with the community, that there is an enormous openness and honesty underlying the conversations with the teachers.

For example, even though we have met only through Skype, and we know very little of each other, it is possible to ask tough questions like "who is currently not using the equipment?". It is a potentially threatening question. Yet, people step forward and are willing to take a risk. One teacher raises his hand, takes the microphone and says "I have not yet".

The next major risk is that we get into a disempowering conversation, with a possible underlying attitude of passive assistance.  This is not AT ALL the case. We are having a concrete, detailed discussion, with the teachers taking full responsibility for their learning. I believe that this amazingly positive attitude has been nurtured by our local partner FUNDAP, and the amazing teachers we are working with.

So grateful. More on the content of the discussions later...

This sounds right! Talk with school Corcho Sur and Canto Veracruz

In order to participate in our skype conversation, the teachers of Canto Veracruz had to move a block outside of the school, to get a better signal. (Yes, a talk with the provider, Claro, is in order). That's why the teachers are sitting on the ground outside, rather than in a classroom.

Through sharing screen, we located the area of the school, and we learn that it would take 1,160h to walk from Veracruz to Seattle.

100% of the parents and 50% of the students at Canton Veracruz speak Mayan. We talked about the difficulty to find material that is pertinant to the language and the culture. The idea came up that it might be possible for the students, with the help of the Maya language teacher and the teacher of Expression artistica to create one or several small videos, where the students would be able to show some of their learning of their culture. This video could then be share with other schools in the region that are of Mayan ethnic and culture. Students as teachers, and creating lacking material for the students to understand their roots and culture... this sounds right!

La escuela Veracruz has already created a

blog

, and the entry of March 1st talks about TINFA. Sweet!

Tomorow they are inaugurating a new building, a classroom where they will have the technology kit.

After talking to all 3 schools, it feels like we have a nice way forward.  We are going to use the vocabulary and grammar of lessons 1 to 3 of

EnglishAnyone

to practice. Yes, yes, it is right. We are talking about flipped classrooms, where the teachers will watch and study, and we will use the "class"/skype time to practice. This sounds right too! 

English resources for schools in Guatemala

This week, I am talking to the teachers of each of the 3 schools we are working with in Guatemala.

Many students come to the school with a maternal language that is not Spanish. In the area of San
Marco, it is usually QueTche. The school district, FUNDAP and the teachers welcome this maternal language to the schol, and teach the younger grades in this language, as it is both part of the heritage of the child, it makes school more welcoming for the student and also for the parent.
As part of the curriculum, Students are also introduced to a 2nd language. That language is usually Spanish. It can also be English.
The teachers however, do not have much material, nor foundation on English. So the purpose of this week's conversation is to find the right material to support hte teachers i.

 The resources we are looking for need to have the following caracteristiques:

• Level of Basic to Intermediate English
• Suitable for Elementary school students
• Free
• Downloadable
• The same material for the teacher to learn than for the student to learn (aka: no ESL).

The best resource I have found so far is EnglishAnyone. It is simple, but clear, 2 to 8 min videos that cover some of the fundamentals of the English language. It can be downloaded. It is not specfically targetted to 3rd to 6th graders though. If you know of other resources, I am interested. 

At the end of the discussion, the teachers informed me that they had composed a song, related to the computers (2) and virtual connection that they now have thanks to TINFA. 

 Such gratefulness is amazing, almost overwhelming. 

www.tinfa.org 

Visit to Juan de la Barrera in Mexico

This week, families of the John Stanford International school in Seattle, were visiting their sister school in the outskirt of Puerto Vallarta: Escuela Primaria Juan de la Barrera.

The American kids (about 15 students) joined their counterparts in classes in the morning, while the parents did some work for the school. This year, it was a mural depicting the exchange in between the 2 schools (the symbols of Puerto Vallarta on one side, and the symbols of Seattle on the other).

The feedback from the teachers attending the computer training facilitated by TINFA was very positive. Not only did it benefit the teachers of JdlB, but also one Elementary schools teacher from each of the Elementary schools of the district. Thank you to our partner Principal, Juan Montero, for your leadership on this!  

The proud teachers!

We had some good discussions with the teachers related to continuing virtual exchanges  in between the 2 schools. At least 2 to 3 teachers are willing and ready to start on the Mexico side!

I also visited several other schools in the area. (3 primary and 2 middle) and had good discussions with their administration and some of their teachers. There are great potential for additional TINFA partners, as well as additional virtual exchanges with other schools in Seattle.







www.tinfa.org

Virtual Exchange No 2 : Juan de la Barrera (Mexico) and John Stanford International (USA)

Yesterday, we had another virtual exchange in between 4th grade class of Juan de la Barrera Elementary in Jalisco - Mexico and 4th grade class of John Stanford International School in Seattle, USA.

This is the second in a series of four exchanges that these two classes will do together this year. Both classrooms were on Skype, and thanks to the projector that JSIS donated to JdlB, the entire classes on both sides were able to participate. 

The module that we explored this time is "Comparacion de la gente nativa de nuestra region" (presentation and comparison of the native people of our region). This is a culminating activity for JSIS of a 2 month study of the native people of the Northwest, and a module that the school in Mexico has also been studying.

The exchange was entirely in Spanish on both side. 

During this exchange, the students were able to present some of their research on the type of habitat, clothing and food that the native people of their region were using, and compare it to the ones of the natives of the other location (on the same coast line, but over 2,500 miles from each other). 

The exchange lasted approximately 45min. Here are few of the comments the students at JSIS.

"they were talking very fast. It was hard to understand". One of the student said, "i wish I got to know more of the students in the other school". This, we are hoping will happen,  little by little, with these quarterly interactions.

Thank you to Maestra Priscilla and Maestro Everardo for your work on this module. Thank you Michelle , for the technical assistance!

The next module, in April will focus on nutrition.  Stay tuned!

www.tinfa.org