I'm Back..

I am in Quito and I am starting to get settled!!! Sometimes I think I am on a long vacation and I have to remind myself I will be here for a while! The first week here was spent on a farm 45 minutes outside of Quito in a town called Nono. Anthropologie needs to take their next photoshoot there.....it is pretty cool. I fell in love with the farm house....big old wooden floors covered with cow hyde rugs and vintage wall paper that was covered with black and white photos of the different generations....so cool. The first three days were a blast! we roasted marshmallows, rode the horse, and played soccer. I went on a really long walk one day and got some great pictures, which I will post later. After day three I was ready to go though....I learned that I can do many things, but taking a cold shower is not one of them. I also learned my stomach really does not like cauliflower soup.....yes, I was ready to go.

So here I am in Quito with a warm shower and feeling normal! This week I have been going to the school to plan for next week when the kids come....I will be teaching 8th grade! All of the teachers are wonderful, and have been so helpful to me.....listening to 8 hours of instructions in spanish requires a lot of skill, many of the words I do not know but It is a great way for me to become fluent for sure!! I am so excited about helping these kids, I have been thinking of creative ways to help them and I want to be a fun teacher....I want to give them a taste of American culture as I think that will inspire them to want more.

NEEDS FOR THE SCHOOL:

-English books!!!!! for all ages, they have none and reading is a very important part of learning a language. They also have a new Library but no books to fill it.

-English CD's- ranging from american music to educational.

-Teacher supplies- the teachers are so gracious and do not get payed much, having decorations for the classrooms and other items to help them would be great! (Posters, Foam letters, exc..)

I am going to put all the information for where to send things up as soon as I get it, but wanted to post these now for you all. The school wants to make English their priority, they believe English is the key for these kids to have better lives.