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Right after returning from Italy, the spring semester started at Buffalo State. We had a quick turn-around to prepare for classes (and for some student teaching) that it's hard to believe a week ago I was in Florence. I already miss all of the amazing places that we visited, and all of the people we met along the way.
I have really enjoyed sharing my experiences in Italy with my family and friends (and basically anyone who will listen). I'm still working on putting all of my pictures together and am excited to share them soon. I've loved getting the opportunity to explain the trip to my professors and fellow students in my education classes, since not many students have had the chance to study abroad like I did. I really hope that by sharing my experiences that they too will look into teaching opportunities that come with IPDS study abroad trips.
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On Monday we said goodbye to all of the students at the Elementary school, since it was our last day in Torremaggiore. We started our day working on a research project and putting on a singing/dancing program for the 5th graders. They loved learning the dance moves to the Cha Cha Slide and singing songs like Happy, Shake it Off and Let it Go.
Before we left, all of the students and teachers put together a goodbye parade where all the students stood in the hallway waving pom poms, paper hand wands and asked us to sign autographs while we walked through. They were all so sad to see us go. It was very emotional to see how much these kids cared about us, and how much of an impact we made in the short time we were there. We had to say goodbye to all of the sweet people we met while we were here. I already miss Torremaggiore and I hope to return back there soon! This week I taught a lesson about a book that I created about Baseball. It is a bilingual book, so the text is written in English and Italian. This is to help students build their understanding of the English using their primary language for support. Students learned about the components of baseball including the equipment used, positions, and how to play the game. They all really enjoyed "practicing" being baseball players by pretending to be the different players (throwing a pretend ball, swinging a bat, catching a ball etc.) This helped them comprehend the vocabulary in the book.
After reading, we did a vocabulary game where the vocabulary words were taped onto the board and two students would race to find the word. Whoever found the word first would win a point for their team. These students really love playing games so this was a hit for them. After the activity, I played a video of the song "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" and used the lyrics on the screen to teach them the song. We practiced it several times and seemed to get it pretty well by the end. I think they really enjoyed learning about a culture that is new to them. Today I was able to present a lesson to Elizabeth's fourth grade class at San Giovanni Bosco Elementary school. The students were enthusiastic to work with me because for most students it is their first opportunity to communicate with a person whose primary language is English. They were eager to ask me "What is your name?" "What is your favorite color?" "Where do you live?" all in English. For them, this is rather difficult since they primarily speak Italian, and only get English instruction a few times a week. The students gathered at the front of the classroom while I read a story about Marco Polo that had the text both in English and Italian. First, a student would read the text in Italian, and then I would read the text in English to the students. They were so excited to hear the English and Italian that they would crowd around and get up close; I had to keep reminding them to sit so everyone could see the pictures. I was so happy to get my first chance to teach a lesson and read to the students. The teacher was also very thankful to have me come and work with her students. I had a vocabulary activity planned to go with the book, but we ran out of time before we could do it. I'm hoping to be able to go back and do the activity with the class. - "Ciao" is meant to be said only to friends and people you know. To say hello to a stranger you say "Buongiorno" "Buon pomeriggio" or "Buonasera" depending on the time of day.
- Even though the streets are small and narrow, people drive rather recklessly - There are several large stray dogs here in Torrimaggiore - Shop and store owners close their shops at 1:30 until 5 for a mid-day break - School goes from 8:30 am - 1:30 pm Monday through Saturday - People are not use to foreigners here in Torrimaggiore, therefore they openly stare at anyone who is clearly not Italian - The roads are made of a peach-colored cobble stone that looks more like kitchen floor tiles - In Rome, there are several street vendors that try to sell items such as selfie sticks and scarves. They will try to make a sale by getting up close and following people around - The children at the elementary school in Torrimaggiore wear a mint blue uniform that looks like a nightgown made of nurse scrubs material - Families here eat dinner rather late. It is common to eat around 8-9:00pm - After dinner, people go for walks around the town. They even block off the main street so that people can walk without cars being in the way Today I got the opportunity to observe Dr. Ceprano and the English teacher co teaching a read-aloud session using a bilingual story. The children each got a copy (or shared with a partner) of the story. They read each page first in Italian then Dr. Ceprano would read the page in English and the children repeated. They all seemed to really enjoy the book.
Next, we all observed the English teacher in a 5th grade class teaching action verbs such as running, sleeping, jumping etc. I was able to work with two students with learning disabilities and helped them modify the lesson so that it was understandable to them. It's hard enough trying to teach with the language barrier but adding a disability to the mix and it became even more challenging. We could see that they were initially very bored and frustrated because the teacher did not give us any materials or instruction that was at their ability level. Cindy and I decided to teach the two students the verbs without the action suffix 'ing' such as run instead of running, sleep instead of sleeping etc. I would write the word on the student's paper and she would write the same word underneath my word. I then spelled out the word and pronounced it to her and she repeated it back to me. By the last few words she was able to pronounce it before I gave it to her. Next she drew a picture of each word and pronounced each word again. I think she was proud of herself by the end. Today made me very grateful for the exceptional education guidelines and expectations in the United States. It made me sad to see some of these students left aside, and not given the opportunity to learn at their level (I hope what I saw today was just a fluke). Hopefully with us being there we can give them additional support that they may not be getting otherwise. We had a fun day exploring Rome today. We were able to take a tour bus that took us all over the city. We spent most of our day at the Basilica and Vatican museum which were incredible! I loved seeing all of the architecture of the Chapel and of course seeing the Michelangelo's paintings at the Sistine Chapel. You could spend hours just looking at all of the works that Michelangelo painted in the Sistine Chapel. That was by far the most amazing piece of art I have ever seen. After the Vatican, we had lunch at this small cafe across the street where I had my first slice of authentic Italian pizza. I have to say, it was pretty good! The pepperoni were very fresh which gave a whole new taste to the pizza. Next we walked back to the tour bus and we rode around for several hours observing all the different sites of Rome. We saw the Castle of Saint Angelo, also known as the Castle of holy angels. It was beautiful! Near the Castle of Saint Angelo was the Palatine hill which is one of the oldest buildings in Rome (built in BC time period). I loved seeing the Christmas lights decorated all over the city and down the streets, especially all of the Christmas trees! We had dinner tonight at a restaurant next to the hotel around 9:30pm (Italians typically eat dinner late at night so this is not uncommon). I had a delicious plate of linguine with 4 cheese sauce and I loved every bite! I also got creme brulee which was also very good! They made it a little different than what I am use to, they had a fruit topping rather than heated sugar. However, I prefer it this way. Tomorrow we will be heading to the Trevi fountain and we will be exploring the inside of the Colosseum. I can't WAIT! |
AuthorAshley Gandt is a junior Exceptional Education student at Buffalo State College. This is her first trip to Europe, and she is very excited for the opportunity to learn from the people of Italy. ArchivesCategories |