Day Seven at DES

Today was a wonderful day in the 4th grade classroom! I arrived at 11 am, after the fantastic 4th graders completing their second day session of science NECAP's, a very trying state issued test. I then joined them for lunch and then helped with grammar and spelling homework, along with assisting them with their Nature research projects.  There was something very, very exciting about today that made it different from all of the other days I have been spending at DES.  Though everyday is each incredible and special to me, today I taught my first French class to the 4th and 1st graders! We started off by talking about culture and what it is like to go to school as a french student in France, and then concluded with a slideshow that I created about my time spent in France this winter.  In lieu of vocabulary, I taught greetings (Bonjour and Au Revoir), and the day of the week (Mardi which is Tuesday), and the date in the way that the French write it 12 V 09.  I also talked about how French differentiates from English and how it can seem like a secret code if one doesn't know how to speak the language.  Everyone seemed very engaged, excited, and eager to learn.  I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of cooperation and effort the 1st and 4th graders put in repeating the vocabulary words I taught them, and asking questions (:  And when it was time to leave at the end of the day, they all said Au Revoir to me and their teachers, and I finally felt that little glimmer of satisfaction from having successfully taught something to a class.  It is a priceless feeling, one that cannot be recreated, but one that is able to bring repeated smiles to my face.  I went back to PA with a real sense of accomplishment and satisfaction, feeling like I had succeeded in doing something that I love, and having had the opportunity to see the reward of my students' understanding of the material.  It was an absolutely fantastic day at DES and I cannot wait to get back to see my wonderful friends!  Thank you Miss Blessing, with infinite thanks, for allowing me to take a few precious moments from your day to share my love of french with your students!  And many, many, many thanks to the wonderful Mrs. Shedd for allowing me to share my french with her fantastic 1st graders! DES ROCKS!