So, I walked to school today because once again, the weather was gorgeous. I was walking into the bathroom when Lilla called and said that the students were waiting on me. I told her that I was just going to use the bathroom and then I was on my way. She was EXTREMELY anxious for me to get there, and I was extremely anxious to....not....
When I walked into class, some of the students seemed happy to see me! So, I started trying to talk to them about the fact that I had not seen them in weeks and I wanted to know what they had been doing and how life was going. We were able to talk about this for a minute before Lilla started telling me that they had been learning about the Constitution of the U.S. in their history class and that the teacher wanted them to talk about it English as well. So, she said, "Elyse, ask them some questions about the U.S. Constitution!!" Okay, first of all, when is the last time I even studied the Constitution?? Umm...I have no clue, and while I "know about it", I would need a few moments of research or something to get my bearings enough to ask insightful questions, and I also need to gauge WHAT they have already learned in history class. So, I tried to redirect the conversation, and was rather successful.. They told me a little bit about what they learned. Then Lilla instructed me to ask more questions, but instead I got them engaged in a conversation about politics and their recent election. We talked about why they thought people voted for Burlusconi, etc. It was a really interesting conversation with them, and it lasted about 10-15 minutes because it kept getting derailed...I was NOT happy about this! The students who don't care were behaving, and the others were talking, but it kept getting derailed = VERY FRUSTRATED AND SLIGHTLY ANGRY me! The class derailed to the point of the students doing their own thing, and me sitting at the computer. Lilla came up and wanted to plan how we could have them talk about the Constitution next week, and then she changed the subject to the first years. She wanted me to find famous American women for the first years to do reports about. She rejected my idea that Oprah Winfrey is an important woman in America. All hope was lost at that moment.
Then we went to the class of first years and it started like this, "Elyse, ask them questions about Amelia Earhart." Um...no. SO instead, I had them tell me what they knew about her. Then Lilla had them take turns reading from a biography she posted on the board, and I would stop them to check for comprehension and we would discuss ideas, despite the interruptions and occasional, "ask them about_____________." This is a great class, and they speak English really well! I really enjoy them! Despite this, I left there rather frustrated.
So, I left and went on my break.
With Francesca's class I started a lesson about the differences between Italian and American high schools. They were really engaged and interactive, and I was really proud of them!
When school was over, I headed home for lunch, blogs, lesson planning, talking to my momma, talking to APril, and of course NIck.
THe evening was mostly spent working on the lesson plan about the schools. I did go out for a walk for a while, and went to my fave tea/chocolate/wine shop, and they have Easter stuff out. They have these cake things that are called "Colomba" and also these huge egg things. Some of the eggs cost almost 200 euros....WHAAAAA?? That's just craziness!
Most of the night was spent writing blogs. I think this is the night I also went to the grocery store for a while in search of food...what to eat...I was feeling uninspired by everything and ended up with salad stuff!!
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