Welcome to Carla’s ESL Journey 2018-2019, my very own passion project filled with unique and engaging content. Explore my site and follow my journey as an English Language Assistant in Madrid. Perhaps Carla’s ESL Journey 2018-2019 will ignite your own passions as well.

NAME: Carla Gil Ortiz

HOMETOWN: Arecibo, Puerto Rico

Home to the biggest radio telescope in the world, and some of the island’s best surfing beaches, Arecibo is Puerto Rico’s biggest municipality. The town is located in the northern part of the island, and it is where I spent most of my childhood and teenage years.

EDUCATION: University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus (BA Art History and Humanities)

INTERESTS:   Art, Music, Literature, History, and Archaeology. My talents include singing, drawing and writing.

PROGRAM: Auxiliares de Conversación Extranjeros en España

YEARS IN THE PROGRAM: October 2014 – Today

EXPECTACTIONS FOR THE L.A. PROGRAM:  

Teaching abroad for me was at first an opportunity to live in a different country and travel as much as I could. I chose Spain because I had fallen in love with the country when I first traveled to Madrid as an exchange student. I know a lot of language assistants with the same story, but the truth is none of us came here to teach with many expectations.

It is after some years in the program that I can truly name a few expectations. As you immerse yourself in this world, you start letting go of the reasons you came here for in the beginning, and you develop great sympathy for your student’s struggles and causes. In my case, I have taught students from a lot of cultural backgrounds and as many life circumstances. Some of my most difficult experiences with these kids were also my most valuable lessons. Therefore, if there is something I expect from this program, it is to be able to help each and every one of my students be the best they can be. Be it through my lessons, or my example.

PAST SCHOOL PLACEMENTS:

I.E.S. Jorge Manrique (Tres Cantos, Madrid / 2014-2015 / 2015-2016)

My first appointment as an English Language Assistant in Spain was a highschool located north of Madrid, in the city of Tres Cantos. The I.E.S. Jorge Manrique has a well established and very active bilingual program, coordinated by the English Department, that organizes activities to promote the use and knowledge of the English language. This school is well known in the community for its engaging use of technology, and the many foreign language immersion opportunities it offers its students.

As a L.A. in I.E.S. Jorge Manrique, I was assigned to teach and assist 1st ,2nd, 3rd and 4th of ESO in a variety of courses including Music, Social Sciences, English Literature, and a Special Education course aimed at students with learning disabilities. My main job was to supplement the main core of the lessons with presentations and to generate conversation with dinamic activities about the main topics in class, the use of English, and American culture.

As part of the English immersion program, I was able to join and assist on a school trip to Chester with some of the 4th of ESO students, on June 2016. This week and a half school trip allowed the students to experience real life situations in which English was required as the main form of communication.

Some memorable activities I was involved in include the coordination of a music concert with all the groups along the Music Department, where I was in charge of all the details related to the songs and performances by the students. All songs were in English, and pronunciation and language comprehension exercises were mostly used in class to practice the lyrics.

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CEIP Plurilingüe Santa Rita, Galdo (Viveiro, Lugo / 2016-2017 / 2017-2018)

After my experience in Tres Cantos, Madrid, I was very lucky to be appointed to CEIP Plurilingüe Santa Rita in Galdo, Viveiro. Galdo is a little rural town off the coast of Lugo, Galicia. In this primary school, the words “inclusion”, “art” and “nature” are codes to live by. There, I met some of the most incredible people, teachers who would do wonders with little resources available, but an infinite amount of creativity.

I was assigned to work with 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th grade, mostly children from ages 6 to 12. I assisted the main teachers in English and Arts and Crafts, as well as in a number of extracurricular activities and field trips. CEIP Plurilingüe Santa Rita participates in the Erasmus Mundus school project, so I had the pleasure of joining my 6th-grade students on two school trips to Rumania and Poland. That experience was definitely the highlight of my first school year in this school and the preambule of many more magical experiences with them.

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CURRENT SCHOOL PLACEMENT:

CEIP Los Almendros (Rivas-Vaciamadrid, Madrid / 2018-2019)

This school year 2018-2019, I have the honor to be teaching at CEIP Los Almendros in Rivas-Vaciamadrid. And thus far, I have to say I’ve been really lucky with all my school placements. This school, in particular, has an incredible work environment, and I have been able to bond with the students quickly, thus making my work more effective. As part of my responsibilities, I get to teach 4th, 5th and 6th graders when assisting the main teachers in English, Social Sciences and Natural Sciences. I love this school, and this blog is in part dedicated to all the activities that I’ve done so far with my students here, and the ones in progress!

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HIGHLIGHTS OF MY EXPERIENCE AS A L. A. :  

I have loved each an every day that I’ve spent teaching in all three schools, but the days that I’ve smiled wide and bright have been those when I’ve felt that I’ve been able to teach the students something I know will be useful for them, and the things that they will remember forever. Those moments usually come when I get creative in class and I decide to teach in a different way, or when I’m teaching about a topic I’m passionate about and I get to show them a new perspective in life. Many students have told me that my lessons had helped them come up with solutions for real-life problems, or that I’ve helped them understand things that seemed complicated before. To me, apart from all the school trips and cool activities that I get to do with my students and the schools, to be able to make my student’s life better or more interesting, is the true highlight of my ESL experience!

CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE L.A. PROGRAM: 

As I use some of my passions and abilities to teach, I come up with ways to make lessons more fun and approachable to students. In my lessons, I love to use music, art, and storytelling in order to engage students and make them comprehend the concepts in a not so tedious way. Something that I’ve observed as a language assistant, is that my most successful classes are those in which the students are having fun and work in a relaxed environment. Through songs, games, and stories, I am not only able to teach them new vocabulary, but they also get to practice pronunciation, practice their speaking skills and develop their own creativity. Because the main teachers already have their own teaching methods in place, my contribution to the program and the school is to be my most creative self to enhance the learning experience in the classrooms.

Let us remember: One book, one pen, one child, and one teacher can change the world. – Malala Yousafzai