Last Meeting with Norma

Today was my last meeting with Norma. We did a vague review over everything we have learned over the past semester, and closed with a nice conversation about family and the holidays. She told me how every year it is a tradition to go to her sister's house and have a chaotic family dinner filled with laughter and unbearable loudness. I told her how Christmas dinner is always at my house and the same chaotic festivities occur. When our time was up, I meant to ask her if she wanted to continue taking classes with me, and before I could even begin talking about that subject, she flat out asked me: "Could we continue next year?" It was so nice to hear that she wanted to continue learning with me and I kindly accepted.

In today's meeting with Norma, we did more talking than working. I have really established a bond with her and its nice to talk to someone that is older and wiser. She asked me about finals and if I am stressed or not. I told her I was a bit stressed and she assured me that at the end of the day everything always works out. It was a really nice conversation, and I left the library more refreshed than ever.

Today I worked with Norma's speaking skills. We did role play excercises and I saw a huge improvement in her speaking. We began to talk about life randomly after ten minutes of working. It was such an interesting conversation and I learned so much about Norma as a person. It really opened my eyes and it was nice to hear from an adult who had gone through so much.

Norma's Huge Improvement

Today I met with Norma to catch up with the other times we had missed. We met in our usual spot at the library and began to work immediately. We worked on vowel sounds because she has trouble distinguishing between the letter "a" and "i." Today however, she had no difficulties recognizing the vowels, and it was exciting to see that progress. She explained to me that her daughter had been helping her with the worksheets I had been giving her concerning the usage of vowels. It was rewarding to see Norma's improvement.

And We Meet Again

Today I worked on vocabulary with Norma. I have noticed a huge improvement in her speaking skills. She has more confidence speaking and is more willing to try sounding out new words. In previous meetings she would get embarrassed whenever she would make a mistake but now it isn't an issue anymore; this makes me feel like I am making a difference. She clearly feels comfortable with me which is helping her learn. I sometimes had difficulty explaining a word to her as we went down the list but she brought her dictionary which really helped. After we learned a couple of words, I did some role-playing exercises with her. It is so exciting to watch her improve.

Third Meeting with Norma

Today's meeting with Norma was the most productive. After the second meeting I felt as though I was straying away from Norma's desire, which was to improve her english speaking skills. In response, I printed out a sheet online which had questions such as "Can you help me with..." and "I need more information about..." and "I would like to know..." I would do role playing excerises and have her ask me questions. This really helped her, and I saw that she appreciated my new take on our lessons. I am now going to stick with this theme and tie everything I teach her with everyday life.

Towards the end of our meeting she told me about her two daughters and how her eldest helps her with all the worksheets I give her. She told me that she is so proud that her daughter speaks perfect english but now she is loosing her ability to speak spanish. She mentioned to me how funny it is that her daughter helps her with her english while she helps her daughter with her spanish. Norma also asked me how I was doing and how school was going. I love that we have established a friendly relationship.

The Second Meeting

This time when I saw Norma, we greeted each other with a friendly hello and warm hug. She asked me how my fall break was and I briefly spoke about my road trip to Austin. With eyes wide open she listened carefully to all I had to say and after I filled her in on my eventful trip we began working. I learned from the last meeting that pictures really helped her most, so I came prepared with four pages of illustrations. I went along pointing at each image with my index finger, waiting for her to identify it in English. After she did I would right the word down and use it in a sentence. Norma learns quickly. I feel that she has already improved and we have only had one meeting! Maybe it’s just me being excited though; I am really rooting for her. After we finished our lesson, she told me a little about her eldest daughter and how she loves ballet. Norma really gets a kick out of the fact that I am a dance major; it’s really funny. She told me that she really wants to put her eldest into ballet classes and I highly encouraged this. I even told her to put her youngest in as well. She agrees.

First Meeting with Norma

I finally have met with a power plant worker for the first time! It took forever to schedule a meeting but it was definately worth the wait...

Norma was sitting on the couch in front of the cafe in the library when I first met her. I was a bit nervous confronting her but once I did everything ran smoothly. We sat on the couch and in spanish I introduced myself and asked her what she wanted to learn specifically. She said she wanted to work on her speaking skills and so I went through the whole "Hi, my name is so and so" spiel. I also printed out excersises I found online and went through them with her; pointing to pictures and asking her to identify them in english proved most helpful.

When I left the meeting that day, I felt moved by the entire experience. I couldn't help but think about how blessed I am to have an education. I couldn't help but think about the times when I would complain about small, insignificant things, and here was this middle aged woman struggling to say the word "impatient." I got so much out of this experience, and I am glad I am making a difference in someone's life.

54th Court

The friendly colors of light pink, mint green, and warm orange greet me as I reflect back to those smoldering, hot summer days playing as a child on my friendly street. My house is the corner house. It’s the first one everyone sees. Painted a tasteful pale pink, its manicured lawn and bursting flowers serve as a welcome sign for 54th Court. A canopy of trees shade the entire street making it sway like a peaceful, opaque stream. Often my brother and I are found smack in the middle of such peacefulness, screaming and chasing after one another while playing a dangerous game of tag.