8:15am: Take a crazy colored (and very packed) bus to work. It costs 1.5 Bolivianos which is the equivalent of a 17 cents! (Or something very close to that.) Usually I am sandwiched inbetween women with plastic bags full of raw chicken and little kids on their backs (ready to begin their day at the outdoor market called the Cancha) and young kids on their way to school.
8:30 am: Classes begin at CERECO. I sign the teacher log book and begin helping Marisol (in the photo below) tutor kids that have been selected to be a part of Proyecto Inclusion Escolare (PIE). We tutor the kids in reading and math, getting them ready to be mainstreamed into the public school system here in Bolivia. Occasionally, Marisol and I visit the classroom of one of the 6 students who have left CERECO to attend public school, giving them some in-class academic support and guidance to ensure their continued success as special education students in a regular education setting. The kids that we work with all have mild academic disabilities. The range of disabilities at CERECO ranges from mild to severe on both the Intellectual Disability and Physical Disability ends of special education.
Before 12:00 am: There are 2 15 minute "recreos" (recesses) that I pretty much monitor in my own while the rest of the teachers at CERECO have teacher meetings. This is probably my least favorite part of the day even though I like being able to interact with the kids in a less-formal setting. It is a crazy 15 minutes because all the kids (grades kinder through high school are on the "playground " at the same time and many of them don't understand how to properly behave their temperaments and aggressions. There are a coupl of swings and a slide, but other than that the "plaground" is just a concrete slab where everyone runs around. Below are a couple kindergarteners sharing a snack during recreo. CERECO also has a "panderia" or bakery where some of the older students make and sell breads and goodies. After 12:
12:00pm-2:00pm: At noon, I go back to my house near La Laguna and make lunch. Lunch is the biggest meal of the day here and kids and professionals all have a 2 hour lunch break nestled in between their day. Most of the kids actually do not go back to school after lunch, they simply stay at home with their families. (That means that a typical school day lasts from 8:30am to 12:00pm daily.) I used to have a big, ling meal with my host family complete with soup, some sort of salad, a main dish (always meat and either rice or potatoes) and fruit for desert, but now living on my own I usually just make macaroni and cheese (yes, I found that at a "gringo" supermarket....gringo means "foreigner") or something quick like that. I usually have time to wash some clothes (yes, by hand) or make some phone calls too.
2:30pm-5:30pm: At 2:30pm or so I head back to CERECO. In the afternoons a different teacher, Teresa, and I help small groups of kids with homework help and additional support in math, reading and life skills. The kids are grouped by ability and we see each group once a week. Below is Teresa with the Monday group of students:
5:30pm: At this hour the afternoon kids go home and I head back to my house to unwind, make dinner and sometimes watch a movie on my computer. I am usually very tired and don't stay up too late! This is a picture of the house where I am living with a Maryknoll Missioner, Jason Obergfell who is a civil engineer and works on a clean water advocacy project in a rural neighborhood (el campo) further south of his house:
1 comment:
These are very cool posts. I stumbled upon this page after looking for more info on CERECO (my sister was a volunteer there a few years ago). Ever go back to visit?
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