Camino Claro Blog

last week Hadas and I hung out in two different classes at Las Gemelas working on some garden-related activities. the kids made posters to show what they thought should go in the garden, what it should look like, and create some ideas. i had a good time, hopefully the kids were inspired a bit about gardening…but i’m not sure i’d go that far. haha. anyways, these boys escaped from class a little early and were then entertained at the window by some traditional dancing. it was pretty cool, although i think they were more likely taunting the boys that were inside dancing. haha. little hellians…ah to be young and rambunctious again. nah, i don’t think i want to go back to that.

~Jacob

“April showers bring May flowers…”

… is a famous phrase back home, however it doesn’t apply here in Pavones. It’s been just over a month since my arrival and I can see the weather beginning to change from rays to rain. As the drizzle turns to downpour I feel my connection with classes and the community becoming stronger. Already in one month I’ve begun to take so much in and have learned new things everyday. There are always many things to discover in a new place, such as how to motivate Tico kids to read several books a week with cheap prizes like pens and pencils; how attendance is affected by weather; which fruits are okay to eat when found and which ones will burn your lips; and how if you leave the cockroaches, spiders, and geckos to live with you in your house, the result is a pleasant decrease in the mosquito and ant populations. Of course, the list of newly learned life skills will continue to grow with my increased involvement in ECC and Pavones – growth that I hope will be symbiotic.

Settling in: steady progress and new projects

With time came responsibilities, and after getting situated in what I’ve likened to paradise, I now possess a full weekly schedule. Teaching English classes with Gerardo is great; we have a lot of very interested and inspired students in attendance. These adult classes have been great practice for my Spanish abilities and, while it was indeed a trial on day one, I now find myself both comfortable and more able. Helping out Lisa with her English-Spanish Immersion classes with the younger kids is good fun — a lot of the kids now recognize me as the guy from the library and recently they’ve even started using my name instead of “muchacho,” all good things.

My three computer classes are up and running smoothly. I’m very excited to begin adding lessons in documentary/photography to the children’s computer class. I’m eager to get the class proficient with cameras, photoshop, blogging, and ultimately, the creation of their own documentary covering an issue they believe is pertinent to Pavones and the world. Hopefully next month’s newsletter will have some more interesting developments on this!

At the library at Pavones’ local public grade school, Escuela Las Gemelas, things with Tatiana (the facilitator there) are fantastic and I’ve never been read to so much in my life… children’s books are such an enjoyable way to begin the day.

We are officially beginning the garden at Escuela Las Gemelas, which is big news! We’re about a week into things and have begun the construction elements of the project as well as getting kids stoked for a garden of their own. The fence is up and it’s official. The fence may cause some upset horses around town, but other than them everyone else is welcome at the garden. Hadas, who is in charge of the project, and I are taking things poco a poco like everything else, but we’re eager to see how the community embraces a common patch of educational, nutritional, and tactile property.

One of my main motivations behind my time here is a genuine peek into the realm that is the non-profitworld. With a good amount of experience working with non-profits and aspirations of building my own, I come with a lot of questions seeking answers and a set of eyes relentless in their search for discovery and enlightenment. Many of my thoughts about the difficulty in raising and running a non-profit have been anything but denied. Any small business encounters loads of hurdles, but poor little non-profits face such a fine line of making enough money while giving as much as possible away to the communities’ greater good. Even figuring out what that “greater good” is can be quite troubling. Everyone has and is entitled to there own viewpoint of what people and the places we live in need. At the moment, ECC is offering classes that seem to be somewhat irrefutably beneficial and I hope the future will continue to help.

Local fundraising

We’re currently working on a fundraiser for ECC, to be held at a local restaurant in Pavones, and hope to get things in order within the next couple weeks. If so, I’m looking forward to finally making it up to Castillo, Pavones’ own fancy restaurant in the mountainous jungle. There will definitely be more updates on the progress of this exciting development and hopefully we can find ourselves together enjoying a meal in benefit of Pavones’ community education center.

Thank you for your love and support both back home and here in Pavones, in particular. I’m gracious for the hospitality of the people here. I look forward to the future and a growing bond between both people and place.

~Jacob

Introducing Jacob Smithers and his first official post straight from the heart of the Costa Rican jungle… told you a new voice is refreshing ~Haley

I have the extreme pleasure of teaching the Adult ESL class with Gerardo, not to mention all of our wonderful students. This truly is a fine example of Escuela Camino Claro’s success! The students all come prepared and eager to learn…Gerardo keeps things interesting and enthusiastic…and last class, things even got a bit delicious.

I’m not gonna lie, two weeks ago when we talked about having a barbecue with the students I wasn’t sure if it’d happen or not. In Pavones, many things are talked about and only some of them are done. It’s for this reason that keeping the community interested in schools and classes can be quite challenging, and it’s for this reason that I didn’t know if we’d be grilling come Monday night – to be honest, I didn’t even know if it’d happen 15 minutes before class! But, Gerardo pulled through and before I knew it he was setting up the barbecue (which I believe was a hub-cap with a steel grate on top, haha) and bringing bags of food into the school. I was so stoked! He asked if I could cook and I humbly replied that I could. With the help of Raphel’s friend from Seattle, Jen, chicken was marinated and salsa was made fresh. While class was being taught, the grill was gettin’ warm, and as the lesson came to its end the barbecue began.

Oh, and how delicious it was!

(My emphatic reaction to the tastiness of this BBQ may have something to do with my reduction in meat consumption, but you can be the judge of that). Everyone went home with food in their bellies, even the coals took a few morsels of chicken for themselves – which was so tragic to Raphel and I, but what can I say, short of sticking my fingers in the coals you can rest assured that everything we could’ve done to save those lost men (a.k.a. chicken) was done. So this one goes out to chicken! And to Escuela Camino Claro, too, I guess! And definitely to barbecues – even if they are hub caps!

(yeah, it looks like a hub-cap) Coming soon, more from ECC on Pavones’ end… by the way I think we have a professional photographer on our hands. NICE

Saying goodbye to another great month (and to Haley)- Hello to an even better one!

March has been an incredible month with many successes, as well as a few disappointments. I look forward to April, however, as another busy month with the arrival of our Program Assistant, Jacob Smithers. We will all have a full plate due to the absence of Haley here in Pavones, who is now supporting ECC stateside while I continue to run the school in Pavones.

ECC’s Classes- an emotional roller coaster
The Ups…

After the seemingly endless schedule-rearranging and evaluation of our students’ skill levels, ECC’s Adult ESL classes are going strong.  Gerardo, the amazing, creative, spontaneous, and energy-filled teacher has 15-20 adult students. This is at least double the enrollment Haley and I ever had!! Though neither Haley nor I have taught or own classes this year, one of us served as his in-class assistant. The students really love Gerardo because he is a very well-respected local and talented teacher. The students also value having a native English speaker in the classroom to help, so together we make a great team! I find that I am constantly helping individuals with questions, thus, the students are more fulfilled because they are getting individualized  attention.

Our Bilingual I and II classes for children are also flourishing. Lisa’s upbeat attitude and diverse class activities keeps the students excited. She has a busy Pre-K/Kindergarten class with more than ten 3-5 year olds, so she has hired a Pavones local as an assistant. Wendy Eliana Mendoza is a delight to have working with ECC. She is extremely hard-working and great with the children. She is also in Gerardo’s Adult English classes, so she has been practicing her English with Lisa’s students.

…and the Downs

Even though this year has started off with a bang, there are a few setbacks that I try not to let get me down. Though the Adult ESL class is a success, we are struggling to gather enough students for two of ECC’s newest classes: Spanish for Foreigners and Colegio English, a weekend English class for local high school students. I guess with the busy schedule of the high school students here- 5:30am-4pm Monday through Friday!- they look forward to their weekends to sleep in and forget about education (as to whether or not the local high school educational system encourages them to remember most things is debatable…). I plan to do some more recruiting this week and see if we can boost class numbers so that we don’t have to cancel either of these new, promising classes.

In other unfortunate news, our high school tutoring program failed.  We could not find a dedicated tutor to facilitate the classes, plus we had to accept that this year ECC does not have enough funding to pay a tutor. Hopefully this program can develop over the next couple of years.

Just one more piece of bad news- the recycling program will have to be shut down until further developments. We have about 50 bags of recycling piling up behind the school but unfortunately the pick-up is not often enough to make it worth it for the town. Now that Pavones has a free public trash service once a week, people just throw their recycling away. The incentive to save it (and save money) is gone as Pavones’ citizens do not have to pay for their extra trash anymore. We are still investigating whether or not Pavones can build a community recycling center someday soon.  My fingers are crossed and we’re not giving up just yet!

ECC’s new program assistant has arrived!

To end on a positive note, ECC’s first volunteer Program Assistant arrived in Pavones on April 1st! We mentioned his arrival in our previous newsletters and blogs (which you can check out HERE) but now he is here in the flesh! Jacob has immediately taken to the pura vida lifestyle and I have no doubt that his time here will be very special for the community. He has already started working at the public school library this week, where he loves working with the children and practicing his Spanish while they practice their English. He will start Computer Literacy classes next week and I have already filled all the spaces in the class.

I am very much looking forward to what the following months bring. Our next ECC newsletter and blog posts will be by Jacob, so stay tuned to hear about his first month with ECC in Pavones! Jacob’s blog, a personal account of discovering what life is like in Pavones, is also worth checking out in the meantime.

Thank you to all of our supporters; I am SO grateful to everyone that has made it possible for ECC to continue to thrive.

Pura Vida!

- Raphel

That would be Jacob, the new Program Assistant, who as of April 1st, is safe and sound in his new home of Escuela Camino Claro. Literally- IN Escuela Camino Claro- second door on the left across from the kitchen, not hard to find. Much to my delight, he is a talented blogger and photographer (and fisherman, clearly), in addition to being, well, an excellent Program Assistant.

Jacob has his own personal blog called Paz y Playa in Pavones, which is worth checking out if you want some interesting and entertaining insights as what life is like in Pavones, Costa Rica for a rookie. Jacob will be contributing to ECC’s blog as much as he wants to from now on, so keep checking in for a new ECC voice… ahh, so refreshing!

Here’s some of his words to start you off…

Karaw! Karaw!

sounds like a bird, no? WRONG. well, right, but it also sounds like the infamous Tico call so often heard ‘round town here in Pavones. KARAW!

right now i’m a complete novice at so many things. i’m eating rice and beans everyday, but metaphorically, i snack on humble pie every few hours. between spanish, surfing, and fishing i’m quite the freshman. but i’d like to think i’m a cool freshman, ya know? like the one that had the popular older brother or something, cuz people cut me a lot of slack around here and that sure helps.

More to come soon
~Haley

Gerardo Mendoza Barrantes

Gerardo, born and raised in Pavones, is an excellent addition to Escuela Camino Claro’s team. He is an enthusiastic, talented, and experienced teacher who has already proven to be a valuable asset to our community education center. He is also well-respected in the community and active in local politics: basically, he’s a busy guy so we’re lucky to have swooped him up! Gerardo is teaching a variety of levels of ECC’s adult English classes, which have been a great success so far. In addition, he is planning on beginning weekend English classes for high school students, as well as Spanish classes for foreigners in the near future.

Folks, this is Gerardo!

Gerardo attended the area’s local schools and, upon graduating from Colegio Comte, enrolled in the Universidad Latina de Costa Rica in Paso Canoas. He finished his bachelor degree for teaching English and is currently obtaining his Licenciatura, or Masters Degree. Gerardo’s teaching experience is expansive, with three years working in the local public schools and teaching his practicum at Colegio Comte. He has also worked directly in Pavones and its surrounding communities by offering private courses in English and Spanish. Gerardo’s interest in traveling was inspired by his 8-month trip to the United States in 2006 to study the culture. In the future, he says, he hopes to learn more languages, continue teaching, and work in educational administration.

Keep up the good work, my friend!

Dear Raphel ,

Happy 26th birthday!

I hope you had a feliz día , even though I made you get out of the water for your “surprise cake party.” I hope you forgive me.

Sincerely, and with LOTS of love,

Haley

It’s 7:30 on a Monday night and I’m sitting in Escuela Camino Claro waiting for the last class of the day to wind down. Gerardo is in the next room leading his adult English class in basic dialogues (“Hello, how are you? I’m fine, thank you, and you?”), so I thought I would take a moment to reflect on a few things that have happened during the first week of classes.

ECC started its 2010 school year on Monday, March 8th.  It feels amazing to see the tangible results of weeks of hard work and organization. Arranging class schedules, recruiting students, and integrating new teachers for the past month and a half was like putting together a tedious puzzle, but now that ECC is back in action, Raphel and I can unwind for a moment and enjoy being in the role of administrators. At several points last week I smiled and said proudly to myself “It’s working!” There are dozens of students of all ages learning under ECC’s roof!

A few highlights from week one:

1) Gerardo’s evening adult English class overflowed our limited teaching space when 20 students, some returning but mosty new, arrived last Monday night! We barely had enough chairs to go around, but a few people didn’t mind sitting in the kiddie chairs and everyone was able to squeeze in. Raphel and Gerardo’s bike recruit around town the week before definitely paid off! The challenge will be to keep all those students coming every week.

2) Stellar success for Lisa’s Pre-K, or Bilingual I class. Lisa also wasn’t expecting such a great turnout- thirteen 3½  to 5 year olds in one class- so she’s already hired a local high school student to be her assistant. These smallest students get the award for being the most excited to be in school. 

3) Never thought it would be such a joy to be a teacher’s assistant again! No lesson planning and less preparation time, but I still get to hang out and participate in the education. It’s great. I love my job, especially when there are good people working with us.

4) By taking on this new role as “supervisor”, and not “head teacher,” I’ve been able to realize how much teaching experience I’ve gained over the past years and that I have useful insight for the new teachers (who are actually, in many ways, much more qualified than me). Though we may be good teachers, I know Raphel and I can agree that our lack of business experience has made us not so savvy in this arena, but we learn as we go along and make it work somehow.

Up and coming

This week, as the teachers and students settle into the schedule, Gerardo will start his Spanish for Gringos class and Raphel and I will continue to help out, meanwhile getting other activities organized. Computer classes are in the mix (again, high speed internet, yippee), as well as developing community improvement projects for our intern Jacob to help coordinate.

Like I said, off to a great start!
Cheers, Haley

Sunday was the last minute teachers meeting to fine-tune a few things before Escuela Camino Claro’s classes started the next day- and they’re in session as we speak! In the past, of course, the prep work has been done by Raphel and me, but with Gerardo and Lisa as part of the team now, this meeting was actually worthy of documenting. Just take this post as a “practice” for me to jump back into blog-world (meaning, more tantalizing posts to come, so don’t worry).

At our “kickoff potluck” we cleaned, organized, and set up (and went a little staple gun-happy!) until we all felt that we were ready for this week to begin. It’s amazing how a little goes a long way: with the few resources we have here at ECC, as well as all the creative minds working together, the building continues to transform into a positive learning environment for an increasing number of students.

Also worth noting is ECC now has broadband high speed Internet that is working beautifully! A couple years ago no one here even had phones, so imagine the cyber madness that’s now taking place. This town is small enough that everyone is practically already at shouting distance, but when people discover Facebook, they really don’t have to leave the house. Pictured here are Raphel and Gerardo joyfully watching a YouTube video.

In the next room, the students from the Bilingual II class are doing an art project involving cutting out the days of the week in English and Spanish, must go take pictures!

Blog readers, allow me to introduce you to one of Escuela Camino Claro’s new additions this year:

Jacob Smithers, intern and volunteer teacher

Raphel and I are ecstatic to finally find ourselves able to open ECC’s doors to other individuals and expand the school’s reach into the community. We were connected with Jacob, who arrives in Pavones in April, as alumni of Seattle University. With his non-profit experience and enthusiasm (he has the travel bug too, much like Raphel and I did when we came to Costa Rica almost four years ago!), he is an excellent candidate for helping out at the school. During his six-month commitment, ECC will keep him busy while volunteering with our head ESL teacher, Gerardo Mendoza, as well as teaching one or more ESL classes of his own. In addition, he will be running the computer lab, tutoring home school, AND doing several projects at the public school’s library. Jake, we’re anticipating your arrival!

Let’s hear from Jake:

I was born and raised around Seattle, Washington. I graduated from Seattle University with a passion for understanding and building communities, which has increasingly become extended internationally. After my studies at SU, I found that the concern for our world’s environment went beyond an awareness of the human-nature relationship and is strongly seated in a need for communities that work together for justice both socially and ecologically. During and after my studies, I have been involved in many non-profit organizations, most of which concentrate on youth education. I have volunteered as a teacher and a documentary photographer for Seattle Tilth, the Seattle Arboretum, Bridges to Understanding, and Helping Link. I also worked with Divertigranja, a sustainable animal farm in Oaxaca, Mexico, for several months and spent a month working with Tram Chim National Park in Vietnam. After my time in Vietnam, I was a Fulbright scholarship finalist, intending to return to Tram Chim to work with the youth environmental education programs. I am currently studying Spanish and teaching English at the Seattle Refugee Women’s Alliance. My travels through the South Pacific, Southeast Asia, and Latin America have been invaluable and I’m excited to work with the community of Pavones — sure that my eyes will be opened and my mind expanded by the thoughts and views of the people there. I spend my free time with family, friends, and fútbol!
Indeed, we are excited to have you working with ECC!
Stay tuned for more posts as classes start next week…