I Passed!!!

Oh herro, this is me in my teacher clothes! I taught my first observation lesson yesterday and it went really well. We have two observations in this practicum where one of our Western professors comes to class and evaluates us. We use the SIOP (Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol) teaching method, so we are evaluated with this comprehensive form with like thirty different points. So basically, it is a lot of stuff to keep in mind!

I passed, though! My teacher had some constructive criticism, of course, but she also said my lesson was one of the best practicum lessons she has ever seen in Mexico. Yay! I owe a big thanks to my wonderful students and mentor teachers. Now, of course, my professor expects me to do just as well on the second one, so that's a lot of pressure. Glad I passed, though!



This is Teresa, my host mom.

She looked so cute yesterday as she set up for her weekly girls' night. She plays cards with a group of seven other friends every Tuesday. They play at a different house every time, so when it is her turn to host(roughly every two months) it's a big deal! She spent so long cleaning and rearranging furniture, kind of like when you have a PEO meeting or ladies lunch in the States, Grandma! The setup was so cute...each table had a tray with a bowl of cheetos and gumdrops for her friends. She's a precious little abuelita! (I miss my real grandma, though!)

First 2 Days in Class

...and it´s great! The fifth graders are so sweet and cute and they know a lot of English! The main teacher, Olga, did a great job creating a welcoming environment for them on the first day. I haven´t done any teaching yet, just observing, but I am preparing for my first lesson tomorrow. I am using an article from their workbook about Miley Cyrus (yes, THAT Miley Cyrus) to teach about adjectives and other things. It should be fun!

If I weren´t working in an internet cafe with a suuuuper slow connection, I would add pictures of my first day outfit. My professor told me I looked ¨beautiful¨ haha. She also told me that my mentor teacher is one of the best, so I hope to learn a lot from her!

Other than that, not too much is going on. I have only gone out one night, because I have to get up super early. We went to some REALLY classy clubs this weekend, though. Like more luxurious than any I have been to in the U.S. or Canada. (Of course, that comes with a price...hello $10 cover and $80 bottle service! Good thing there was a big group of us to split that.) Things are also fine with my host mom. She sometimes annoys me because she is forgetful and also likes to spray insecticide a lot, but she is so sweet I can´t be mad at her. She also makes me sweet little fruit platters every morning for breakfast...guava and cantaloupe this morning :)

Well, wish me luck on my lesson! It´s preparation for my big observation next Tuesday!

P.S. I got A´s in all 4 of my other classes this summer. BOOM.

Love you all!!!

P.P.S. My lack of regular internet, plus the fact that I am consumed with my own lessons is leaving me out of the loop about all your lives and current events back home. If anyone has news to share, just drop it in the comments; I would love to read it!

Michael Larkin is a MexiCAN, not a Mexican't!

Hola everyone! Once again, I am abroad, doing what I do best: gallivanting around Latin America in the name of higher learning! Here's a little background for those who may not know:
This summer, I have been taking classes full time in the TESOL (Teaching English to speakers of other languages) program. That's my minor at school. At the end of the program, everyone has to complete a teaching practicum to show what they have learned. This practicum can be completed in the States or abroad, depending on your interests. The program at Western is great, because we had the option to go on a faculty-led trip to Querétaro, México. Thus, I am south of the border, preparing to teach a class of fifth grade Mexican students!

I am living with a host family again. Well, actually a host grandma, because it is just an older lady named Teresa who lives by herself. Her daughter and granddaughters visit often, though. There is also another student living in my house. He is a middle aged electrical engineer from California. His name is Roberto and he is studying Spanish here at Olé. That's the school where our program is based. (But not where I am teaching my practicum.)

I want to tell everyone that there is nothing to worry about here. The México portrayed on the news is completely biased and not representative of this entire, wonderful country. Querétaro in particular, is very clean, safe, and calm. It is a much bigger city than I was expecting, though. My school is located in the largely historic downtown. It's so fun to just walk around with a michelada (flavored beer) or sit in the plazas. Here's a picture of me and the other new students from Western:

Mariela, Rebecca, Emily, Me, Jessica, and Ariana @ Jardín Zanea

The past few days have been SO busy that I don't even know what to say. A few exciting things:

-Yesterday morning, the Olé coordinators took me to see my placement site. It's a private primary school called Erik Erikson. My cooperating teacher's name is Olga López. I'm going to be working with a fifth grade class. That's a little bit younger than I prefer, but I am still looking forward to it. The only downside: I have to be there at 7:45 every morning, which is really early considering it's about a half hour walk from my house. I start Monday!!!

-Friday and Saturday, the other new students (including my friend Jessica) and I spent time with "Mexican pals". Our school set us up with them so they could walk us around the city and practice Spanish with us. Today, our amigo Marco took us to a market. It was similar to the ones in Costa Rica. However, the meat section was terrifying. There were things there that looked more like live animals than steak or chicken breast. Jessica saw someone with a whole dead pig on his back. I saw a bucket full of pig heads, still intact. At least it was after I ate a delicious "gringa" (think quesadilla made from spit-roasted pork, pineapple, cheese, and cilantro...deliciosa!!!)

-We also had a welcoming party at Olé last night. We helped make the food and it was so good. Even though it was a school party, there was plenty of beer and a few bottles of tequila...and the obligatory piñata. There were also these traditional dancers. I'm one of only two guys in the program so the girl kept making me dance with her! It was kinda embarrassing, but super fun.



Okay, I feel like I just wrote a massive amount. Gonna leave the café soon so I can take a siesta and then figure out my plans for tonight. Love and miss you all! Check back this week to find out about my first few days in the classroom!