School in Spain

Wednesday finally arrived - the one day that we would go to classes with our Spanish students due to our short time here. Instead of gathering in the library and preparing for one of our daily trips, everyone hovered separately waiting for classes to start and wondering how different they would be.

For my first class, my Spanish student handed me off to a friend and walked away, leaving me in a room full of strangers. Though I was nervous, we quickly started trading questions and answers about our school, giving me idea of the similarities and differences between the two countries. Class started. By now there were more of my American peers, and we condensed in the back of the room as 5 of the students began a presentation of the Aztecs for their English class that ended with an attempt at a traditional dance as a whole class. We were all impressed at their extensive vocabulary and familiarity with grammar. My next class was "economía," where we compared and contrasted the economies of the United States and Spain. It surprised me that I actually understood the majority of what they said and was able to easily take part in the conversation. Afterwards, I went to another English class with a similar presentation, but this time with one student and more class discussion.

After a brief outdoor snack break, there were two more classes where I learned that there are still strict teachers in Spain. These last classes, math and biology, were remarkably similar to the ones I left behind last week. Around 3:00, we adventured into the cold outdoors for some free time during lunch. I met more of my host girl's friends, and they excitedly asked me in a Spanglish mixture about my life in America. The mixed-language conversation continued into the cafeteria, where we ate a yummy lunch.

Instead of going to afternoon classes, we had a "surprise" (which the students had already told us about) of watching the school musical- Grease! The entire play was in Spanish, even the songs. Afterwards, our Spanish students involved in the play sheepishly emerged from backstage, and we met them with enthusiastic applause. We parted ways when our hosts' final class ended, around 5:10. As I hopped in their parents' car, the family asked me what I thought about the school. I think my classmates would agree that it was surprisingly similar to our school in the United States.