Spanish is an important tool for me in life because it will help me to not only understand and respond to what people say in a Spanish speaking country but it will also help me to learn how to learn. By this I mean that I will be able to relate my other school subjects to learning a language and how I must be patient in coming to an understanding of what it takes to acquire the skills from another subject. This can help me if I ever get dropped into another country without any prior knowledge of it’s language or rituals, I will be able to make due and begin to learn the language on my first day. “As a society, becoming a bilingual nation is a big advantage. After Chinese, Spanish is the most widely spoken language in the world. Across the world, there are between 450 and 500 million Spanish speakers.” As said by Chris Cummings in Why English Is No Longer Enough. This is important to me because I would like to travel the world when I am older and being able to speak the second most spoken language in the world could come in handy.
Park elementary experience
The Park elementary experience was really unique. We first were matched with a student who is
learning English as a second language. We then took a field trip there and helped them with their English
work and just got to hang out with them. Prior to going on the trip we chose a children’s book in Spanish
and worked to understand what I t was saying.
While we were at Park it was really cool to meet Jose and find out what things we had in common. Again
it was a great experience to see Jose again on the second day we went there. Some activities we did was
work together to choose and after being blindfolded to find it again. Another thing I did with Jose was
help him with some of his math and writing in his core class. Jose and I really bonded when we found
out that we both play sports, this really helped him to understand that sports in high school won’t be
easy either.
I think that it would be difficult going to a school where I am being taught in my second language. I
personally find just learning a second language difficult, not including doing math and all of the things
that some students struggle with in their first language. I can understand why we would take our field
trip because it is as much for us as it is for them. It showed us what it means to feel uncomfortable in
our environment. One way I could try to compare to this would be everybody in my Spanish class
knowing fluent Spanish
This experience really affected on how I think about the world. It showed me life outside my little
bubble. This experience will make me more conscious of what I do in a town with Spanish speaking
students. This effort that elementary students make to be able to participate in daily life in the US has
made me realize that I should make more of an effort to learn Spanish and have the opportunity to
speak in another countries native language. It helped me to understand that the challenges I face are
generally insignificant compared to what elementary students deal with every day.
My overall experience for this project was one of amazement. It really opened my eyes to what is
important in the twenty first century. I am really glad that this project happened and can’t wait to hear
what the other class hour has to say about it.
learning English as a second language. We then took a field trip there and helped them with their English
work and just got to hang out with them. Prior to going on the trip we chose a children’s book in Spanish
and worked to understand what I t was saying.
While we were at Park it was really cool to meet Jose and find out what things we had in common. Again
it was a great experience to see Jose again on the second day we went there. Some activities we did was
work together to choose and after being blindfolded to find it again. Another thing I did with Jose was
help him with some of his math and writing in his core class. Jose and I really bonded when we found
out that we both play sports, this really helped him to understand that sports in high school won’t be
easy either.
I think that it would be difficult going to a school where I am being taught in my second language. I
personally find just learning a second language difficult, not including doing math and all of the things
that some students struggle with in their first language. I can understand why we would take our field
trip because it is as much for us as it is for them. It showed us what it means to feel uncomfortable in
our environment. One way I could try to compare to this would be everybody in my Spanish class
knowing fluent Spanish
This experience really affected on how I think about the world. It showed me life outside my little
bubble. This experience will make me more conscious of what I do in a town with Spanish speaking
students. This effort that elementary students make to be able to participate in daily life in the US has
made me realize that I should make more of an effort to learn Spanish and have the opportunity to
speak in another countries native language. It helped me to understand that the challenges I face are
generally insignificant compared to what elementary students deal with every day.
My overall experience for this project was one of amazement. It really opened my eyes to what is
important in the twenty first century. I am really glad that this project happened and can’t wait to hear
what the other class hour has to say about it.