When finding out I need to put together a blog at the start of class I was a little unsure of what that meant. I had a never worked with a blog before and the assembling of my blog was a tuff thing to get the hang of right off the bat. I must not of been paying close enough attention the first week of class when we went through what is was we would be using are blog for. The first paper we had due I went about it in the same way I would have approached any other paper I had to write witch would be to write it then print it and turn it in. It never crossed my mind that I should put it on my blog. Then my teacher sent me an email telling me I never posted the paper to my blog. I had no idea how to do that it would take me 30 min to post my first paper. But threw out the semester I have worked with my blog and I now have a better understanding of how a blog works I even uploaded a picture of myself to the blog and have all my stuff laid out in a way that is easy to read yet at the same time has a little bit of an art feel to it.
When collecting Images and working at Esuela Vieau I learned and came to understand how the Hispanic culture in Milwaukee lives. I never knew how different their lives are then mine with us both living in Milwaukee, just last week when working with them the school brought a teacher in to help teach to students how to use a computer. Growing up where I grew up I had been using computer ever since I get in to kindergarten. Most of the people I know are the same way to, but the middle age adults that I work with had never or very rarely used a computer. They even needed help getting on to Google. It was truly eye opening to see people not know how to use something that use every day because they never had the opportunity to use one. It made me thankful for all of the great opportunities I have been blessed with in my life.
When putting my final project together I chose to work with a common theme of “the land of opportunity”. How Esuela Vieau symbolizes America still being a great nation of opportunity for people struggling. Esuela work with given both the children on the south side and the adults on the self side opportunities to improve their life. From helping the adults find work and teaching those skills need to find work. The main reason for the ESL class I teach is to help them learn a skill it improve their ability to get a good job. With the ESL class and the after school programs Esuela has is truly giving their neighborhood opportunities for bigger better things.
Monday, May 10, 2010
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
journal 3
Yesterday was my last day going out to Escuela Vieau School to help teach English. It was a good feeling knowing that I was going to get my 15 hours. This day was also the birthday of the oldest person in the class, she was turning 87. Before she got to class everyone else brought some sort of food in to share with the class and celebrate her birthday. When she got to class she did not even notice all the food sitting 10 feet from her. She just sat down at the table and joined the class on the lesson for the day. Later that day we had her party. They got her balloons and a cake and she had the biggest smile on her face. This will be my most memorable memory of my time at Escuela Vieau. Later in class we went over to the computers and worked on how to use a computer. It never crossed my mind that they might not know how to use a computer or use the internet but they had no idea what to do when on it. But using the computer was just as much work for them as it was to try to learn the English language. It was eye opening to see how different two people can be that live 20 minutes from each other have very different experiences. Here’s me, a 19 year old kid that spends probably half my day using a computer for one thing or another trying to teach people in their 40’s how to speak English and use a computer. It was a complete role reversal for what my life has been like, me being taught by people older than me and now I am teaching those older than me. That has been the biggest thing with this whole experience, me trying to help those who I am not entirely comfortable with. But I will always look back at my time at Escuela and be happy about the time I spent there.
Monday, May 3, 2010
Monday, April 19, 2010
Journal #2
With my time I have been spending at Escuela Vieau School I have not been working with the kids like most the other students in our class. But rather I have been working Monday nights with the adult’s on teaching them English. This has been fun and tuff at the same time. Although working with them is rewording when they appear to be learning what it is I am trying to teach them at times when they all start speaking in Spanish and looking at me and asking me questions in Spanish it get very difficult to work with them, and I feel out of place. Last week I was working with a woman that is on staff at Escuela Vieau and she started to ask the people we were teaching about where they came from and how it is that they got to the states. Some parts of this conversation I wish I never heard it started to challenge my belief system. I went into this service learning project not wanting to know this people past wishing I could remain ignorant to the fact that many of them are illegally in the states, knowing the hole time in the back of my head that there was a good shot many of them are. That is a fact I can no longer remain ignorant too after last week. The idea of people sneaking in to the United States of America has always been a scary thought to me but I will try not to let it affect my performance at Escuela Vieau.
Friday, April 9, 2010
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