Hey everyone, it’s the Lider Del Dia, Seth, coming at you from Estelí Nicaragua. Today was Education Day, and it was jam packed with new experiences from the students of Colegio Maranatha Adventista, and the Fabretto Foundation. We had an early start at 5:00am, and went to the Colegio Maranatha Adventista at 6:45am. At Colegio Marantha Adventista we spent time in three different classes and experienced what an average day at a Nicaraguan high school was like. After four hours at the high school, we had some free time in order to rest from our field trip. We then prepared for our Community Action Project presentation that we have the next day. At 2:45 we had another field trip to the Fabretto Foundation, which was a school that had a Montessori curriculum. We got to play Montessori educational games with seven and eight year olds for an hour, which the entire group enjoyed. Of the day, playing with these kids was our favorite activity, even if some of us didn’t understand what the kids were saying. When we got back, we had English tutoring from 6:00 to 8:00, which was tons of fun.
Today was Education Day, and we learned a lot. At Colegio Marantha Adventista we learned what an average Nicaraguan high school day was like. By spending a day at the high school, we learned how important education is, and how most of us took it for granted. We realized that school is something that should be cherished and taken advantage of because it provides us with growth and opportunities. I was surprised most by the differences between Nicaraguan high school and US high schools. In Nicaragua, classes aren’t sealed off, so the noise from other classes creep in to other surrounding classes. Also, there were about 35 students packed into one class, which is a lot when compared to the average 25 students in US high school classes. We were most proud of meeting and befriending the students at Colegio Maranatha Adventista. Since we became such good friends, we were able to play a few friendly soccer games between us Glimpsers and the students. The most inspiring person I met today was Dona Sena, the teacher and guest speaker at the Fabretto Foundation. She was passionate about her job, and clearly loved the kids she teaching. She inspired me to be passionate about the things that I love, and to always keep my head up, no matter the obstacle. Being Lider Del Dia was rough at first, however by the end of the day I felt confident in my job. I stepped out of my comfort zone today by speaking to large groups of people speaking another language that I wasn’t confident in. Today I learned that I’m a lot better at Spanish than I originally thought. I was able to use my 3 years of Spanish to my advantage, and talk to the students at the schools, and the locals at our English tutoring lessons.
Tomorrow’s Liders Del Dia are Megan and Lina. I hope tomorrow is just as much fun as today.
Adios!
Another great day. I’m glad that the Glimpsers are fitting in so well.
How wonderful, magical and surprising it must have been to see the huge contrast between how high school in the US is run and how high school in Nicaragua is run ! As I read the blog post from today, I wondered if there are some interesting things that could be adopted from how the Nicaraguan high school is run and used in the United States. There must be so many advantages to how students in Nicaragua participate in their high school. Do parents take part in the schooling as well ?
I’m sure it must have been incredibly redeeming for all of you to participate in the education of children both young and a little older.
By the way, all of you look so grown up and professional in those wonderful outfits of yours ! Well we certainly don’t know all of you personally, Madhu and I read these blog posts every evening and enjoy the pictures and in some way, take real pride in what all of you are doing!
Warmest wishes and hugs to all of you!
T.S.
PS- for those of you who use Instagram, Facebook or WhatsApp, we miss you on our app!
Hello Jessica,
Sounds like a lot of fun without getting in trouble.
CK has been dozing away the dog days of summer, but when he heard the ups truck coming down the street today, he perked up. Then as soon as the doorbell rang he sprinted to the door and started barking up a storm. Despite my command to sit and stay, as soon as I opened the door to retrieve the package, CK ran out to chase after the ups truck. I shouted “STOP! Comeback here!” And the ups man stopped his truck, looked at me puzzled and started to walk over…
Needless to say CK got put into a timeout corner again.
Now CK is looking at me with my laptop, thinking what else are you ordering from Amazon to get me in trouble.
I had to tell him I’m just writing this blog.
xoxo, CK & D
This is Anya’s Grand ma.
You young people are doing a fantastic job of describing your activities.
Makes us feel like we are there with you and participating in all the events.
This is such a unique experience for all of you and this blog is going to generate great memories.
Be safe and have fun.
Vivian, you packed so much but somehow I don’t recognize some of the clothes u wear. Did we not packed the right stuff? Haha. Are these bunch of kids very different from the group of kids you tutor in the US? I hope u can understand them a little bit. Looks like they can teach you more than u can teach them. Whichever way, it is amazing that you gets to cross path with them and cherish the memories of them for the rest of your life. Chance of a life time to see, understand, and compare the differences between the high school systems and students from different part of the world. Even though I miss you dearly, I am glad that you are there.
Love you so much.
Mommy, Daddy, Vicky, Hailey
Thanks Seth for the wonderful description of yesterday and the appreciation and realization that how people in different countries are different than us and those children, kids and adults make the most out of their lives and how happy and content they are.
Resha – Hope you are doing well. The last couple of days we are in Cuzco and we have been out. Today morning we are going to Machu Picchu and will be back late. Very excited for our day today but missing you a lot. Not sure if you called us yesterday on your free day but our phones don’t have network here.
Take care and have fun!
Mama
Nice write up Seth! Great detail and pics!
Tejas , I am sure you met some inspiring folks on your education day , can’t wait to hear from you!
Great job everyone! Live, Learn , Giveback !! Looking forward to hear about your COmmunity project.. best of luck !!
Love you all,
Gayatri
Alison, it sounds like you’re having such an amazing and rewarding experience! It’s so neat being able to see what you’re up to each day by reading the blog. I’m so sorry I missed your call from a few days ago, thanks for leaving a message! I miss you so much and can’t wait for you to be able to tell me all about the trip. Looking forward to when it’s your day to post!
Love, Amanda
Hi Alison! It’s Gina. It’s so boring without you here. What a once in a life time experience your having there. I miss braiding your hair and can’t wait to hear all about it when you come back!
Hi Zach,
Glad to hear about all the things you are learning. It sounds like everyone had a good time at school. How are you doing with your Spanish? How different is it from your classroom practice? Friendly soccer games sound like a good way to interact & make new friends. Good luck with your tutoring tomorrow. Have fun!
Love you!
Hi Alison!!
It’s so awesome to be able to read up on your experiences in Nicaragua and see such cool pictures too. Seems like yesterday we were playing pretend teachers and now you’re actually teaching English. That’s amazing and so rewarding!! I can’t wait to read your blog post. Day nine!!! Love and miss you tons.
Taylor
Owa!! What a experience. Learning in different education system and get know the new friend in different languages. Good luck for the rest of the days and enjoy.
Hey Carmen!
How are you doing?? We all miss you so much back at home! But I am so happy for you, I’m so glad that you’re able to experience this great opportunity, and I know you’re going grow into a stronger young lady with this opportunity! I remember you talking about how excited you were to travel to Nicaragua and you’re finally here. It’s so exciting seeing you enjoying yourself(: I really hope you learn a lot and come back with crazy stories with us! Love you lots!!! Hehe see you soon, buddy!<3
Sounds like everyone had a great, action packed day at the high school. Love seeing the pictures! Everyone looks so professional in their uniform 🙂
Kenna, are you feeling more confident in your Spanish? That’s awesome to hear you’re able to work with the younger Montessori kids and the high-school kids. Hope you had a great day!
Looking forward to reading about your next adventure.
Hi everyone it’s Makenna’s dad. Great job Seth on the description. I’m glad that everyone is engaged in the activities. All those years of Spanish comes down to these crucial moments, lol. It must have been fun to play with all the kids at the school. I hope everyone is taking it in and becoming more humble as you see how simple the natives live over there. As I look at the pictures on the blog everyone looks great especially all you girls without make-up. We all miss you over here Makenna. You little sis is asking for you. I’m showing Aaliyah all the pictures from the blog and explaining to her the activities that your involved in. Looking forward to seeing the next upcoming days. Take care everyone and I’ll talk to you soon Makenna, love you!?
Great account of exchange students spending a day at the Fabretto Foundation and the Colegio Maranatha Adventista on Education Day, Got to learn a lot about an average day in a Nicaraguan high school. They seem to be so similar, yet quite different from an American high school. Keep more such articles coming!