installment one: something of students

my students.... 

are amazing! each of them have their own awesome qualities and personalities that they bring into the classroom. usually i am constantly in laughter. other days ...like the ones where they seemed to have declared it speak in Spanish during English class day... i need to remember my laughter from the day before to keep smiling. each day is a new experience with them, and i wouldnt trade it for anything. 

each class we have at SALI goes in a cycle. a cycle is about a month long, give or take. so far i am into my third cycle, and one class i have been able to teach since i first arrived in Peru. they have truly helped me to adjust to teaching English. some of my other classes have been a little more difficult, as far as connecting with students and keeping on track with lessons... speaking English instead of gossiping in Spanish. this class in particular is at the end of my teaching day, and they have been a breath of very welcomed and needed fresh air to end my day with. they laugh at my jokes, at least when they understand them.... and tell me i am strange to my face instead of keeping it in whispers amongst themselves. haha. im not shy about telling them they light up my life. they arent shy about laughing at how funny that sounds to them. we have a very well rounded relationship. it works. 

this is a student from one of my advanced classes. advanced 3. they all speak English very very well. actually, i am in awe sometimes at their skill. but sometimes fun mistakes catch up with them, and we all laugh about it. and... sometimes those laughs get recorded... 

most of our students i would say are college age. 18 to mid 20s. but every now and then there is a student much older... or much younger.. one of my students was 14. it was fun to watch her interaction ...or lack thereof... in class. and after class. she draws very well and is in love with anime. and everything japanese. and loved to draw all over her tests as such:
our weeks are split up with a different kind of test each week. a writing test. a reading test. a listening test. and oral test and a final. what do we watch during listening test week you ask me? bring in on zach morris. we are in love with your innocently cheesy 90s humor. 
the boys of my advanced class:
the girls of my advanced class, minus one:
these students blow me away with their smarts most days. not just with english, but in general. they are smart cookies. and have big dreams for their future. i admire a lot in them. i am so glad that i get to be in just a small part of their lives. to me, this is one of the best parts of teaching at SALI. i don't just teach them english, i get to be a part of their lives. and learn about them. and laugh with them. i think that we laugh just as much as we breath in our class. there is always something... from laughing at small english mistakes that sound funny... to hearing one girl say what??! you are a vegetarian?? are you sure? ...but.... the vegetarians here are ... so... skinny... (thanks i thought... thanks...haha, this turned into a big joke)... to me pronouncing one girl's name, mercedes, like the car. which is wrong.....to me making a deal to drink milk like a cat if one student passed her driving test (i drank the milk...)... to laughing at one of the guys because he loves motorcycles and talks about how safe they are but that he has had... oh 8 wrecks. haha... to laughing at the other boy for how many girlfriends he has (i dont think he does for real but we like to pick on him because he makes it funny). 

these are my students. we watch 90s sitcoms. we laugh. we learn english. they light up my life. ;-)