Pastelazo

Good evening to all! It's been a while since my last post, I've been lesson planning and grading like it's my job lately! Hmm, wait a second... it pretty much is! 

This week I started my units for all sections.  I'm exhausted already, but exhilarated at the same time. Here's how my week has gone:

Monday I started my very own creation of an AP unit (Funny that it's Frankenstein? I think yes...).  I woke up, got ready, and watched my favorite teaching-pep-talk-video on YouTube a few times (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxsOVK4syxU).   I arrived to school to prepare for the day with minimal butterflies and knots in my tummy. My kids did great at completing the homework I assigned over the weekend and seemed like they understood the readings. Most of them paid attention to my powerpoint on Gothic vs Romantic literature.  My C Block, who is usually the worst at focusing, did the best.  They were the most engaged, had the most questions, and laughed the most when I was being silly - because of this I felt the most relaxed with them. My first block, however, I was a mess.  I think I psyched myself out a little too much.  Since then, it's been all about organizing what I have/haven't done with  two of the blocks (because of course, technology and running out of time were two obstacles). I've officially taken over full time; today I started with the 10th graders. They did fantastic as well. With a new seating chart, some of the distractions of neighborly conversations were resolved.  I think The Crucible will be great challenge for them, and myself - I look forward to them acting out a few scenes in the coming weeks. :)

 

I must say, my students are just fantastic. They make this all worth while! All of the observations, field placements, pedagogy studies - it's all paying off when I have a great class with my students. They laugh at how goofy I am when I get excited about something English-y. Yes, they whine, but as soon as they're reminded it's an AP or an Honors class, they quiet down. I'm always stressing how nice I am at assigning homework, and that I'm available for extra help if they need it. They keep ask me when I'm leaving and say that December is too soon, and I need to come back for the next semester.  I received my first Facebook Friend Request from a student the other day. It's still sitting there unanswered, and it will continue to remain that way until after my unit is over and I'm about to leave the country.  I'd love to stay in contact with them after I leave, especially my seniors, but "Facebook Friends" isn't our dynamic right now. I'm a teacher, not a friend.  I have to remind the 12th graders of this fact when the girls ask me to come party with them on the weekends (18 is their drinking age).  *Sigh* They're great kids, but that's a line I shouldn't and don't want to cross. 

Here's Angela's son, Zach, drawing him and I on the whiteboard after school one day. A masterpiece, I say. :)

This past Saturday was Family Day at Colegio Menor!  It was a huge event - games, big bouncy obstacle courses, a haunted house, food from 20+ vendors, a giant slip n' slide, a stage for student and faculty music performances, and much more. It was fun to see my students outside of the classroom on a beautiful day and meet some of their family.  I had a shift at a game where kids tried to kick a soccer ball into cut out holes on a plastic sign covering a soccer net. If they made three out of their four tries, they won an ipod.  These holes were reasonably small in size, so it was next to impossible.  One kid actually won though! I don't think they were counting on more than one winner, so they had to lower the quality of prizes throughout the day.  My next shift (and yes, I volunteered) was to be pied in the face by students. Pastelazo, they call it.  It. Was. Disgusting.  I felt good showing school spirit, but I'll be staying away from this even at all future school functions. Ever. In my life and future career. They were whipping up this cake-batter-cream-egg-milk stuff, putting it on small plates, and letting students throw it at teachers sitting helpless, four feet way on a chair. I brought goggles.

Cleaning myself off afterward was useless. There's no hot water in the showers or bathroom sinks, so the cream just congealed to my hair and skin, leaving me smelling like spoiled milk until I finally went home to shower. It's probably subconscious, but I still get a whiff of the sugary cream every once in a while...

Students are giving presentations on Thursday and Friday, then it's the Dia de Disfuntos holiday break! Finally!  I have plans to go to the coast with my host brother Hugo, a few of his friends and family, and my friend Tessa is coming along.  These plans are pretty last minute, but should be a great time nonetheless! Updates next week. :) 

Love from the equator, Kaitlyn.

Llama Sweaters, EcuaPants, and the Census

This has been a crazy week, and it's only going to get more insane from here on out! I've been correcting senior's essays since Monday, so I'm just now getting to events from last weekend.

Last Friday after school, Susan, Tessa, JP, and I left for Otavalo. We spent the night there, and went to the famous arts and crafts market the next morning. But first, a note about our amazing hostel. If you ever get to go to Otavalo, Ecuador, I highly recommend staying at La Luna. It's owned and operated by a British woman and her Latino husband. Absolutely gorgeous... you'll see what I mean!

Saturday morning we woke up and had a delicious breakfast at the hostel before heading into town for the day. For about three hours, we shopped around the market and bought gifts for people at home.  For myself, I bought the traditional tourist garb; EcuaPants and a sweater with llamas embroidered on it.  I'll post a picture of this outfit in the future - maybe this week on one of our Spirit/Dress Up Days! Pajama Day perhaps? Anyways, bargaining was one of the most entertaining parts of the experience! I definitely haggled some good deals by walking away from the vendors after they wouldn't take my price. Two seconds after I turned around I'd get a tap on my shoulder and hear, "Senorita, si, si, entonces, $4..."

After we had spent enough money on Ecuadorian souvenirs, we ate at a well-known pie shop that has been raved about by most people who visit Otavalo. They didn't lie. I had a piece of pie de pina, or pineapple. Amazing! We all ordered different flavors so we could share and try multiple kinds. All were top notch and I couldn't pick a favorite if I had to.

We then made our way back to the hostel to grab our bags and backpacks, and prepared to leave for the bus station. Before we left the hostel, we waited on this hilltop for our taxi. It was certainly an unforgettable view.

Today we were notified that next Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday the 10-12 graders are going to be excused from classes.  A selected number of teachers from these grades are required to take seminar classes during these days on how to teach our students how to distribute the census.  The government uses the older school age children to conduct the census every 10 years so they don't have to hire and pay workers. That's Ecuador for you! My concern with this change in schedule is that I was supposed to start my 12th grade unit on Thursday.  After three weeks of planning, I thought my lessons would have to be completely reconfigured.  *Insert Angela to save the day!* We decided that we will still hold class for the seniors on Wednesday (we can do this because they are an AP class, and don't have to abide by the rules of the Ministry! Que Bueno!) so they can take their unit exam, and I can still introduce my unit two syllabus and assign them readings for the extended weekend. Hallelujah! The real adventure is about to begin - I'm using this weekend to mentally prepare for my class takeovers. Updates will come!

As your mother, it is very hard for me to hear the word "coup".

What a week! I have a lot to add from the last week and a half – I hope you find it all interesting!

First, as some of you might have heard, Thursday September 30th, the police in Quito went on strike and protested throughout the city. I will say, however, that as of now everything is restored to normal. Around 11:00am the policia nacional took over the Mariscal Sucre airport, preventing any planes to land or leave the airport. This happened nationwide – in Guayaquil and other cities as well. We were notified of the protests from our school director, including some parents may want to take students out of school, and they would be monitoring the situation closely. We were only able to finish half of the school day because most of our student had left, or were running around gossiping about the state of emergency. Administration announced to teachers that they would not be providing transportation home, however, because large vehicles, like buses, can be targets during protests. Claire, Angie, Susan, and I had to catch a ride home with a fellow teacher because the administration didn’t want us taking taxis either. With the absence of police enforcement, crime was expected to, and did, rise. Although on our way back to the Gonzalez Suarez apartment, Quito seemed comparable to a desolate Sunday afternoon; businesses were closed, people were off the streets, and hardly transportation (public or private) was running. Arriving safely to the girls’ apartment, we locked, padlocked, and dead-bolted ourselves in for the night. We all sat around, ate food, and Skyped with loved ones. A funny comment from Claire's mom via Skype: "Claire, as your mother, it is very hard for me to hear the word 'coup'." We tried our best to calm her. :) But nevertheless, watching the news that night was surreal – we saw a gun fight outside of the hospital where presidente Correa had been sequestered, as well as his passionate public address from the “white house” balcony to the people (once he had been rescued by the military, that is). [The above picture is actually of the president's white house, but I took it during our city your 4 weeks ago. Correa gave his speech from this balcony, and the plaza was filled with people.]
The motive for this police strike is still being debated from all angles of Ecuadorian politics. Some say it was a misunderstanding, others say it was a conspiracy sparked by the ex-presidente Lucio, who was overthrown in 2005, to regain power. Just the other night I had a conversation with my host-brother, Hugo, about what he thought of the situation. He explained to me this way:
In Latin-American countries, about 90% of the wealth is usually controlled by about 5% of the population. This has never been conducive for the lower classes to pull themselves out of poverty, which has lead to such a large crime rate around these countries. Recently, presidente Correa has been trying to re-distribute the wealth among the police profession. The lowest grade of pay that some police receive is $300 a month (this is also why police here aren’t incredibly reliable, and can often be paid off with bribes). Middle-level police are paid around $700 a month. All police, when they are promoted, receive a bonus as well. Correa, in his attempt to even out salaries, wanted to raise the salary of the lower-paid police to $700 a month, but take away the promotion bonuses from the entire policia nacional. As you can imagine then, the police who are already getting paid the middle-wage, are losing their bonuses. These are the police who went on strike and rioted, being somewhat misinformed, and irrationally over-reacting. One aspect of this golpe de estado that was unique was that the military backed the presidente. As seen in the past, the military will side with the police or the people (who also supported Correa this time) and the presidente will be overthrown. (Cite Hugo Bolanos. haha.)

Anyways, order seemed to be restored over the weekend, and currently, we have settled back into everyday life. I don't have any more pictures, but I think that's a good thing because I was far enough away from the action.

The day after this fiasco, I was invited to my cooperating teacher, Angela’s house in Tumbaco for the evening and to stay the night. We spent the afternoon with her two boys, Zachary (6) and Nathan (3) and had a great day! Zach had horseback riding lessons that we all went to; Nathan and I fed carrots to the other horses in the stables. Angela and her husband, Marcelo, had some friends over for a barbecue that night which was a great time. I liked meeting her other friends; they were very welcoming, asking questions about my home life and experiences thus far in Ecuador. We all had great wine, food, and conversation as the boys (a couple who came to dinner has two boys the same ages as Angela’s) wreaked havoc on the house. Below are Zach and Nathan - but this is not from the same evening I stayed at their house. It describes their demeanors perfectly :)...



I stayed the night at their home, and the next morning we had about six students over for a “coffeehouse”. We decided to hold these coffeehouses every so often for students to come and informally discuss their essays. They can get help from us teachers, as well as other students to develop their essay ideas and content. It was really successful! All the students came with great initial ideas, and we brainstormed approaches they could take to make them unique. Students are turning in rough drafts on Monday, so I’m eager to see how these topics are being developed.

Last Wednesday I had my first university supervisor observation! Nascira came and watched my lesson with the 10th grade honors group. We had a small quiz, then a discussion on the assigned reading. I was really proud of my kids – about 90% of them did their reading and participated well. Some of them, however, participated too much, too often. One of my criticisms from Nascira was to not let my students talk out of turn, and to raise their hands during discussions. This is our policy, but alas, it is not always followed by the students. SO, we have recently implemented a participation system where they are given two bookmarks with their names on them, and they are required to use those when they want to contribute to a discussion. We collect them after they’ve said their comment, and they get counted at the end of each day. It’s helpful for those who don’t participate by requiring them to talk once or twice during class, and it’s useful for those who talk too often by limiting their responses. It’s worked well so far – we’ll see how it’s going after a few weeks. The rest of the observation was successful. I was given some great compliments, and a few areas where I can improve.

Saturday night a group called Las Tres Marias played at a restaurant called El Pobre Diablo. These three women in their seventies have been singing together since they were three years old. They’ve played around the US at venues priced at $50, and I was able to see them in Ecuador for $6. I felt lucky to have heard them perform – who knows how much longer they’ll be touring? The woman on the left is 73, the woman in the middle is 76, and the woman on the right end is 79. Que bestia?!


Finally, today the seniors were given their chompas, or jackets for being in sexto curso (12th grade). The entire grade is traditionally called “the sextos”. All of our blocks couldn’t focus because of the anticipation of getting their class sweatshirts and jackets. After getting the sweatshirts, they all paraded down to the bleachers for their “entrada” or entrance. Then they put on their jackets and I snapped some pictures. They all look so cute!





These pictures are from the "bautizo" or baptism that involves the seniors and the freshmen. It's basically school-sanctioned hazing, including shaving cream pies, a mud tunnel, flouring, and a slip'n'slide. Very fun to watch!



This weekend is Otavalo - where a huge market is located. Susan, Tessa, JP, and I are leaving after school today. Updates next week!

A-A-A- Aucas!

This weekend on Sunday, Claire, Angie, Susan, and I went to a soccer game in south Quito. The Aucas are an equivalent to a division two league that our friend Darwin plays on. He arranged to have a cab pick us up and have someone waiting at the entrance with our tickets to escort us in. We felt like VIP! It was so fun to watch, especially with the enthusiastic die-hard fans all around us (They won 2-0!). This coming weekend they have a game in Ibarra, a town 2 hours from Quito. The four of us are going to travel to watch this game - apparently it's an important match that qualifies them for the next round of whatever cup/tournament this is. (I'm such a good fan ;) ) This team they play is supposed to be incredibly good, so it should be fun to watch! Que viva Aucas!





Saturday during the day, I went to my host-brother Hugo's birthday party. It was different from the last birthday I went to, but still very fun. It was less formal; outside at a private park area in a complex where a lot of my host-family's relatives live. There was food all day long, and pick-up soccer matches that Hugo and all of his friends played. Hugo and his girlfriend have their birthdays one day apart, so it was a celebration for her as well. I had fun talking with Gabby, the daughter of Andres from the last party, and caught up with her about school and my time in Quito since then. I could tell my Spanish was flowing easier, and she commented on it too. That night, Andres junior and took me out with him to a bar with his friends that's more Ecuadorian than Americano. We met up with David, his cousin whom I've met a few times before, and their friends. It was fun! I learned some more salsa, and Andres corrected me without being too critical. I'll be taking my gringa friends there sometime soon so we can get out of the Mariscal area for a bit.

Today I have my first university supervisor observation! Nascira will be coming to CMSFQ at 2:00pm for the last block of the day. I'll be facilitating a discussion with my 10th graders on the reading they had due for today. I'm not incredibly nervous, but I'm anxious to hear feedback from Nascira. Updates will come as soon as I hear back from her!

Vamos a Baños

The second week of school is completed, and we are well into the third. All sections are about to start their first full units that will last about four to five weeks. The tenth graders are beginning to read Speak by Laurie Halse Andersen on Wednesday, and the twelfth graders are starting The Scarlet Letter a week from today. I’m anxious to see the student’s responses to these works that I’ve already read. I’m reading The Scarlet Letter along with the seniors, though for me it will be revisited. I will definitely be taking reflective notes on my outlook of the novel this time around and in this context. Other than the progression of the units, the kids are getting into the groove of the year and leaving behind the laxidasical attitude of the summer. We start college essays this week with the AP seniors; it’s easy to see the pressure of this task in their attitudes. I should also mention a loss that the Colegio Menor community suffered this past week. Alegria Peña, who worked in the human resources department and close with us new teachers, passed away on Tuesday morning. I was fortunate to have known her, and attended her funeral that day with a large amount of people whom she had touched. She will definitely be missed here at school and we are still mourning, but celebrating her life.

Thursday evening, Claire, Susan, and I decided that we would venture to Baños for the weekend. The town, which is named after the Agua Santa de Baños (holy water baths) and not "bathrooms", is situated in the mountains about a four hour bus ride from Quito. It had been a long week, and a weekend away from Quito sounded healing. The three of us left straight from school to the Terminal Terrestre in south Quito to catch a bus to Baños. We passed this beautiful mountain/volcano – I’m pretty sure it was either Cotopaxi or Cayambe. Not entirely sure which. On our way we heard from Athena who decided to meet us in Baños, and arrived about two hours after us!


The bus ride was long; we stopped often to pick up and drop off travelers who hailed down the bus. This added about an hour to our ride, and we were cranky about this frequent stoppage. After finally getting to Baños, we ate, met up with Athena, and searched up and down the streets for accommodations that were appropriately priced. We ended up finding a great hostel close to the popular bars and restaurants for an awesome price - $7.50/person per night with our own bathroom. A fantastic find! The four of us freshened up and went out to a local bar called The Leprechaun. Interesting for South America, no? Nevertheless, it was full of people and good music. We were some of the only gringas in this bar, and met a lot of people from around Ecuador. Baños is one of the most popular tourist towns for Ecuadorians themselves, so most people were passing through for the weekend as well. There was an outdoor patio/bar area with a bonfire in the middle – the fire made me feel home. We danced a little salsa among the American hits they blasted throughout the night. Afterward, a recommended hamburger stand was open for after-bar patrons, and we shared a few burgers between the four of us. Unfortunately, this was the moment in the night where my cell phone was stolen. A man we met, Dario, works for an outdoor adventure tour company in town and he danced with me during a salsa song or two. He was nice, but we didn’t want to hangout with him outside of the bar and bid him and his group goodnight after getting food. As we get back to the hostel, Athena’s phone rings, and it’s my number calling her. I look in my wristlet, and sure enough, my phone is gone. My wristlet had been open while I paid for my food, and he distracted me for a split second during this moment. He wanted us to come back down to the street, so we went down the four flights of stairs and to the hamburger stand. Dario was no where in sight, and from my phone he texted Athena saying they were already to the next town, saying we should meet him there. Since we all have common sense, we said no way, that was absolutely not happening – so goodbye phone. It was a damper to the weekend, but I felt, and still feel, incredibly fortunate that the phone was the only item he took from me. Money, my identification, and my camera were all possibilities he could have taken, and the phone is probably the easiest to replace out of everything. So all we could do was progress onward with our weekend getaway and adventures!

We slept in a little the next morning before getting breakfast at a great café in town. Our plan was to rent bikes and ride Puyo where a well-known waterfall, Pailon del Diablo, is located. Geotours rented out mediocre bikes for $5 a day, and $10 for the nicer, newer models. We economized with the five-dollar line (but don’t worry; they supply clients with a “restoration” kit with a new inner tube, patch kit, and air pump incase of any mishaps. Really? Like we would be able to actually fix a something if it broke. Anyways…) and we took off for the waterfalls.

This “path” to waterfalls is primarily along the main highway that all traffic uses to get in and out of Baños to the west. We feared for our lives only a few times – usually when we had to go through narrow tunnels with fast-approaching buses. We came upon a few waterfalls on our way to Puyo; a few had cable cars attached to each side of the valley that you could take for a scenic view. The four of us took one during a rest break.
The other girls weren’t happy about it once we started moving and freaked out slightly, and I ended up being the rational calm one. Interesting, no? This is an accurate portrayal of Susan’s feelings of the cable car and the overall environment of the entire ride across. It started raining on our way to the other side so that upped the level of anxiety about the cable car. But of course, we survived, and had to wait for about twenty minutes for the rain to calm down before we were able to continue our ride.



The scenery was breathtaking and absolutely unforgettable. It's hard to describe what feelings come over you as you're biking through the Andean mountains with your friends, surrounded by waterfalls and beautiful forestry. The landscapes seemed more dream-like than my reality in that moment.







We made it to Puyo and started the decent to the waterfall we had set out to see. Twenty minutes down through the trees and we were at the Basin of the Devil, or Pailon del Diablo. We took photos and admired the sheer intensity of this waterfall. It’s neat to think of this waterfall always pumping this much water, and how it has been for centuries.





The hike back up was less than pleasant since we were hungry by now and needed energy. We ate in Puyo, and took a camioneta (or pickup truck) back to Baños.
Of course, as we are just a block away from returning our bikes, I tried and get up on the sidewalk, failed, and tipped my bike right over. My leggings ripped, knees bruised, and I laughed away while sprawled out on the sidewalk in my exhaustion. Truly a memorable end to an extraordinary adventure.

Next on our list was to get massages. Baños is known for its thermal pools and spas, so we went in search of cheap massages and facials. We found a business that gave us $5 off every service, so my package of facial and massage was $20. It was an interesting experience, and it was nice to relax a bit after our long day of biking; although if you ever want a massage, save your money while in Baños and I’m sure your best friend can give you about the same quality at home as you’ll get there.

Our group ate at a small restaurant after our massages and went back to the hostel. We weren’t in the mood for going out to the bars again, so we opted to stay in. Before we turned in for the night, we did do a lap around The Leprechaun in search of Dario the Robber, but he wasn’t in sight. Alas, it was worth the try.

After getting packed up the next morning, we ate breakfast at a small bakery and bought pastries for the ride home. We shopped around the artists shops and watched them make the taffy that Baños can be known for. This is Patricio and his brother; we watched them in awe for quite a few minutes, then realized what time it was and caught our bus just in time.



I plan on staying in Quito this weekend, and possibly taking the TeleferiQo (cable car/gondola lift) up to the top of the Pichincha volcano. There are restaurants and stores up at the top of the cable, and tourists are able to hike higher to the very top of the mountain/volcano. Hopefully we'll get a clear day to see an entire view of the city. If it's hazy or foggy, the trip can be somewhat wasted. Now on to more reading and lesson planning... aka - the glamorous life of a student teacher!