ESL Kickoff!

I've long since run out of fingers and toes to count our blessings on.

Our first ESL session was a blast. It did not just go well--it was actually beautiful.

There were about 10-12 students from all different countries. One man walked two miles in the rain to attend class. There were also seven tutors and helpers from Trinity Lutheran Seminary, Ohio Dominican University and the Catholic Worker.

We started off working with the students one-on-one to asses their language level. The tutors and students both jumped in eagerly, and there was much conversation and laughter in the room. At the end, Bev taught a short lesson to the whole group. She did a great job, and her lesson was fun and engaging. I learned a lot by watching Pastor Ruth and Bev, as they have considerable experience teaching English.

People got up and talked about where they were from and mentioned some points about their country of origin. Students were from the Dominican Republic, Mexico, El Salvador, Peru and Venezuela. A consistent theme is that many miss their homeland, and some came out of very tragic circumstances. They are also proud of their homelands have a rich culture to share (and hopefully recipes, too!)

We are trying to figure out the best way for tutors to be involved. We will see how it evolves. It may be best to have tutors work with students before or after class or schedule different times to get together. Students are at such different language levels. We have already scheduled some Sunday night tutoring, as weekdays are not very good for a lot of people who work late.

Students were very gracious and offered to help us in other activities. Some volunteered to help when we have an Open House after the Spanish masses. Another man offered to help us if we ever need painting or other work around the house.