Transitions

I apologize for the lack of posts; this summer has been a time of transition for me. Starting next week, I will be working full time at the MLC Learning Center - Lake Street in South Minneapolis as an ESL Teacher and Evening Coordinator. Due to this new venture, I had to leave my volunteering position at Metro North but now am daily in the classroom with my own class of pre-literate learners. It has been wonderful to document my volunteering experience; this blog will be continued by staff and other volunteers, so keep checking back!

Guest Blog Post: Elaine Zimmer, tutor at MLC Learning Center - Northeast

Thanks to Elaine Zimmer, tutor at MLC Learning Center - Northeast, for sharing her wisdom in today's guest blog post!

When I retired 11 years ago, I knew that I wanted to tutor as a volunteer.  I’m a teacher at heart, love social interaction and have always enjoyed learning and sharing knowledge. After my MLC training, I chose to work at the Sumner Library location in North Minneapolis where I got hooked.  I have been at Trinity in Northeast Minneapolis for about five years.

I think teaching English as a volunteer with MLC has staying power for me.  What makes me stay? The students have chosen to come and are motivated to learn, even though most have very hectic and difficult schedules. They leave with a smile on their face. I try to make learning fun. I’m also a thespian at heart. I make myself available to students before class, during the break, and after class if they have questions, which many do.  I have helped a couple of them with love letters, so I know they feel connected to me. I remind myself often that my contact with the student needs to give them a caring and positive feeling.

'English Only' City Ordinance

A recent article about the proposed "English-only" ordinance in Lino Lakes by Ruben Rosario: 'English-only' proponent might try comprehending facts only

How would this ordinance impact immigrant/refugee communities living in Lino Lakes and the surrounding areas?

Guest Blog Post: Curt Cameron, tutor at the Hubbs Center

Thanks to Curt Cameron, tutor at the Hubbs Center, for sharing his story in today's guest blog post!

The first day I walked into the Hubbs Center, I thought, “Am I going to be of any use to these people? Am I going to know what to do or enjoy this? Is this going to be challenging?” After I sat down with a learner and started working with them, it got easier and now I look forward to it.

I’ve been doing this for about two and a half years, since I retired from the business world.  I didn’t have an education background, so there were a lot of things that… well, you forget things over the decades, so there was quite a learning curve for me in some areas.

The very first day I was there, someone came in and wanting help with algebra. It had been a couple of years since I’d figured out the slope of a line. The first thing I did after class was go to a bookstore and buy a book about grammar and one on algebra. That was my first investment in this whole thing. 

Feedback

One question during our writing activity today was particularly illuminating. We write and talk a lot about what students enjoy about English classes and how they are helpful in their lives. After talking about the multitude of reasons students like English classes, we asked what they didn't like about English classes. Here were some of their answers:

• Testing
• Coming to class late
• Sharing a paper with my partner while reading because I can't see 
• Speaking 
• Computers
• Waking up early in the morning

Testing was by far the most popular answer. Many students said that they felt like an hour was not enough time to complete it. Others said they didn't think the tests accurately reflected their level. This provided a nice venue for my teacher to have a candid conversation with the class about the importance of testing as related to school funding and answer questions students had. I'm sure all students are told this when they enter school, but from their reactions, the light bulb went on for some learners as she spoke.

Guest Blog Post: Pat Strandness, tutor at MLC Learning Center - North Side

Recruiting volunteers for the Minnesota Literacy Council has allowed me to meet and hear the stories of numerous literacy volunteers throughout Minnesota. It is fascinating for me note the similarities and difference to my own volunteering experience. Thanks to Pat Strandness, tutor at MLC Learning Center - North Side, for sharing her story in today's guest blog post!

I have been teaching since 2000. That’s when I left a career of a few decades of teaching high school English. It was a nice round number, easy to remember. I also remember one morning that I taught, the morning of 9/11, which was fairly early in my volunteer teaching career. I’ll always remember that day – drawing that picture of the buildings and the airplane and trying to explain what was happening.

I’ve taught at a few different sites, I taught at MLC Northeast and at Pillsbury House, but Sumner’s been my home. For me one of the rewards of teaching is the inspiration I draw from my students. I sometimes feel that I get more out of it than they do; the corrective perspective it offers on my own life. My own small grievances are brought into perspective when I know more about their lives and their resilience.

Giving Directions

Last Tuesday night, the Neighborhood House intermediate ESL class I teach worked on giving directions. We did a variety of activities, including a map information gap, role plays giving directions to a partner and writing about the various places in and around learners' hometowns. It was interesting to note what landmarks and surrounding cities they chose to feature in their paragraphs.

My favorite thing we tried was this puzzle activity from MLC's Reading for Life - it's on pages 10 - 11; sorry about the huge document! I enjoyed this creative way to get learners thinking about directions (north, south, east and west) while employing critical / analytical skills. All sixteen learners were absorbed in solving the puzzle. It was a good reminder that adults enjoy brainteasers as much as children.