Pen Pals!

1 February 2012

I've been waiting all year for this moment.... The day in which we start writing to our pen pals in the United States!

One of the issues I've encountered at school is that there are a lot of kids who don't want to study English. I can't exactly blame them... English is HARD--especially when you are in elementary school. They'd rather be hanging out with their friends on the playground.

Other kids don't really understand why they are learning another language. The concept of other countries and languages is still a little (pardon the pun) foreign to them. These kids think that I'm from Spain--albeit a Spaniard who speaks Spanish a little funny.

This is mostly developmental. Developmental psychologist, Jean Piaget, would say that when they are a little older they will be more cognitively aware of the world outside of themselves. I've seen how this transition has occurred with my own sister. The first time I went to Spain, I'm not sure that she really understood that I was going to a foreign country where they speak another language and have a different culture. Now, she asks me all sorts of questions about Spain, what people are like here, etc.

Since I arrived in Spain, I've wanted to have my students send pen pal letters to the United States. Writing letters to REAL students in the United States gives English a real use. They aren't just studying and completing exercises in order to get good grades in school. They are using English in order to communicate with other kids--to ask questions, to share information, etc.

I'm hoping that when this year is finished my students will have developed a friendship with their pen pals in the United States and that they feel more motivated to learn English.

Today, my 6th grade classes and one of my 3rd grade classes started their letters.

I've had A LOT of different questions and reactions!

The most common being: "Are you REALLY going to send our letters to the United States?"

I'm not sure if they think I'm joking with them? And they have to write these letters, but I'm going to throw them away. That's actually pretty sad.

Or, do they think that I'm going to hand-write responses to each and every one of them?

The second most common question was: "Are they going to respond in Spanish?"

Unfortunately, I had to explain to them that most students in elementary school in the United States don't learn another language. I reminded them that they are so very smart! They know (or are learning) three languages: Spanish, Valencian, and English! They should have no problem writing these letters!

Students have also asked:

• "What if they can't read our handwriting?"
• "Why do we have to be the first to write?"
• "How long will it take to get to the United States?" 
• "Can we send a picture?"
• "And they are going to write letters back to us?"

Picture of the Day: 

My favorite place in the world: Granada, Spain