change in the routine

I now have a new teacher to work with in replace of the teacher that broke his leg in a motorcycle accident. Her name is Toni. Upon our first meeting she basically just observed me as I taught the class on my own. It was a disaster. The kids would not listen to me and I had to keep attempting to raise my voice to keep control of the classroom. I wanted to help the kids one on one and make sure they were comprehending the new material but i couldn't be in two places at once. I tried to get Toni to help me out by making her teach a small part of the worksheet but she was no better at getting them to listen and reinforcing discipline. I miss Gregorio. At the end of the class i told her that normally i don't talk this much, that she's the one that should introduce the material and reinforce comprehension using Spanish when necessary. I did this in hope that she would understand her position in the class as the head teacher and mine as the assistant.

Well the next class was no better. Once again she stepped aside and I had to basically run the class. Half way through i made her teach the topic so that i could assist Angela, the girl that needs a lot of one on one attention, and the other kids that I know also need some personal attention. Instead of taking the initiative to help other kids Toni would kind of follow me and help the kid that i was already working with. It was extremely counter-productive and a bit annoying. If this is how the class is going to go for now on it will soon become my least favorite class of the week. Without the authoritative assertiveness that Gregorio brought to the class i now have "trouble maker" kids. This one kid, Guille, who use to be one of the smartest kids in the class has now turned into the most disruptive. He refuses to stay in his seat and he's always talking to his neighbors. I've tried to control him by threatening to move his desk away from everyone and then i did it and yet he still won't listen. I'll give it another week but if things don't change I'm going to have to ask Pocho for help in that class.

It's kind of funny but i have the complete opposite experience with Rocio's class. She is a VERY authoritative teacher and controls her class like a dictator. I almost think she's too unforgiving when a kid says something out of turn. I don't really do much in her class besides help them learn the vocabulary in the beginning and then maybe help a kid one on one who's fallen a bit behind. I barely talk and my presence isn't really needed when it comes to it. But i can't complain when i think about the other class in comparison.

So last week out of all the places in the world, Valverde was the host to the Motorcross World Cup. How crazy is that? Last weekend our tiny town was full of foreigners. At dinner we met people from France, Italy, and Germany. I could not get over the fact that our town was the host. Where there is normally the Saturday flee market instead was tent after tent full of motorcross sponsors and advertisers. The rows of tents went on for three blocks. There were four different tracks all within the area from Valverde but you had to drive to them. However there was this test track that i could see the people riding around in a circle from the outdoor terrace in Corrie and Kate's house so I did end up seeing some of the event. It was televised and advertised all week long in our town. It definitely spiced up our weekend.

The arrival of spring has also brought the arrival of "Paella Season", as i like to call it. It's the time of year where people prepare homemade paella in their backyards (or patios) using these ENORMOUS paella skillets. Elisa told me yesterday that she wants to make paella relatively soon so I'm patiently awaiting that glorious day. I've also been invited to try Pocho's paella. Paella is rather a touristic thing to eat in the major cities of Spain and most of the time it isn't very good, but homemade paella is a whole other story. That is the good stuff and the reason why Spanish restaurants in America serve it. I can't wait to write a blog about my paella experience hehe.

Tomorrow I head to Seville after school and then on Friday take an early flight to Barcelona to meet up with my parents. After a weekend in Barcelona they return with me to Valverde for two days and then venture on their own throughout Andalucia. I can't wait to show them Valverde so they can finally put an image to the place that I've ragged on and complained about for over seven months hehe.

Pictures of Roma are on the way i promise. you can blame the slow internet for the delay.