Teaching

For those of you who don´t already know, part of the program down here is 10 weeks of volunteer work with the Guatemalans. A very rewarding experience, and one of the reasons I chose the Guatemalan program over Spain or Chile.
My volunteer work is more like a part time job than a volunteer job. I teach english to 80 6th grade children. I have 2 classes, with 40 in each class. I work with them on Monday and Wednesday mornings, from 9 to 11. They know absolutely no english. It is really like a job. I feel like a schoolteacher every morning and the night before, when I make the lesson plans and dread going to school the next day.....(Ok well its not that I DREAD it, its just that most Monday and Wednesday mornings I would rather stay in bed than go deal with 80 energetic Latino kids.)The ages of the ¨6th graders¨range from 10 to 15. Yes. I have already been asked out by my 6th grade boys, and asked if I have a sister. Hahahhahah.
Most of the time, the kids are really well-behaved. I have worked with them twice now, and the first day went flawlessly. They listened, were respectful, and only laughed at my Spanish once or twice, when I laughed at myself. The second day, however, I had more unruly kids in one class. Some of the older boys didn´t want to learn the alphabet song, (even though I clearly explained to everybody that i KNOW its a kids song, but its SO much easier to learn the alphabet and remember it with a song) so when they were busting a gut in the back of the classroom, I marched back there and asked them ¨¿que es chistozo?¨(what is so funny?) And asked them to recite the alphabet in ingles for me. When they turned red and mumbled ¨no sé señora¨ (i don´t know) I told them that they better not laugh throughout the alphabet then!
Another time when the class was getting loud, and my spanish wasn´t getting them quiet, I just started speaking loudly and rapidly in English. All I said was things like ¨If you don´t start paying attention now, you are NEVER going to learn English, and you are NEVER going to be able to understand what I am saying right now but if you DO listen EVENTUALLY you will understand every word that I am saying...¨and etc etc. Just freaked out on them in English. And when I was done? Silence. Complete, awe-filled silence. Ha. Thank you very much.
Then I continued in Spanish and asked if anybody knew what I had said....and I once again had newfound respect. Take that, little Spanish rascals...