My Experience Volunteering Abroad

 Welcome back to Maren's Abroadventures!

           For my final blog, I will be discussing my time volunteering at the local elementary school, Escola de les Aigües. Each Tuesday, I went to this school and assisted my assigned teacher with two first-grade classes, while helping them learn the English language.

          This opportunity has been so rewarding since I have gotten to meet so many locals and even make a connection with the students. While it was only a short period of time, I have become much more confident in being able to communicate with others despite the language barrier. Learning how to interact through hand motions and actions has been highly beneficial, making it much easier for me to assist the students in any way I can. 

          During my time volunteering, I read them many books covering a variety of topics, such as parts of the body and Christmas stories. I discussed Halloween with them and even learned how they celebrate it. I discovered that the first graders love the song "We wish you a Merry Christmas" and can sing it in almost perfect English from hearing it so many times. We also went over numbers in English, drew monsters, and did many more arts and crafts to keep the students entertained.

           Volunteering at this school has brought back many memories for me from when I was studying abroad at an elementary school in Madrid. In comparison to schools in the United States, I like the way Spain runs their schools much better. There is a clear difference between how much freedom they have, as well as the opportunities offered to the students, and they consistently have much better playgrounds, which is a bonus. 

           This experience through SAI is something I will continue to carry with me throughout my life and apply the skills I have learned from it in my everyday life, as well as future career.

Thanks for tuning in for my fall semester abroad through SAI!

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