The End.

Almost a fortnight has passed since I boarded the puddle jumper back to Belize City and I still have thoughts of San Pedro on a daily basis. I have attempted to deal with my crushing burrito withdrawal by looking back over my time in Belize, realizing how truly impactful the experience was. It helped shape my views as a teacher and also allowed me to reach my full potential for consuming debilitating amounts of rice and beans.

As far as the actual teaching goes, one of the major affects this trip had on me was my view of inclusive education. In Belize, there is no real identification process for students with special needs. Instead, the children who would receive modifications or additional support were they to be educated in the States are swept aside in their Belizean classrooms. It made me realize that creating even slight modifications for students with disabilities can make a huge difference in that student’s education. For example, allowing a student who had previously sat in the corner without any interaction to pass out papers or help the teacher collect assignments is a drastic improvement over their prior experience. A child should first and foremost feel comfortable in their classroom, and it is especially important to realize this with students who have special needs. By interacting with these Belizean students, I have gained insight and confidence to teach students with disabilities back in the US.

The reality of this field experience being over is finally starting to sink in. I really hope that someday I’ll be able to return to San Pedro and if not relive the experience, at least create a new one with equally wonderful memories. But for now, I’m off to get ready for graduation in t-minus six hours. I hope I don’t trip. 

The Final Days

While I’m now physically back in America, for the duration of this blog post (and those to follow) we’ll just say I’m mentally still in Belize so you can read about the teaching, packing, and Star Wars that took place. A fair warning: this is another long one.  

First, the teaching: our last two days at Isla Bonita occurred sans local teachers. While the Belizean educators made their way to a professional development workshop in Belize City, the gringos were left in charge. Luckily for me, Ms. Yvette had been away on personal matters prior to this, so subbing for Standard Tree was nothing new. Thursday was filled with grammar lessons, fraction practice, and enough intermittent rain showers to cause pandemonium during lunch hour. While the majority of students thought they were melting, a brave few risked turning the playground into an inadvertent slip-n-slide, causing the teachers to have mental flashes of broken bones and revoked visas. Happily, lunch ended with no physical injuries and the learning continued. Friday brought sun, spelling tests, and a school-wide celebration. The morning was spent in the usual routine of lessons, but at noon the students went home for lunch to get ready for the beach party that was to take place when they got back. While the children went off to don bathing suits and swim pants (it’s apparently laughable to refer to boys’ bathing garments as “suits”) the student teachers sat down to a feast. We were brought perfectly seasoned beef tacos, onion soup, taquitos, and an amazing fried coconut cake (shout out to Mollpeeps). When the bell rang to signal the end of lunch, I waddled up to the classroom to get the students ready for the beach party. However, instead of the usual cacophony coming from behind the door I heard only silence, leading me to the only logical conclusion that they had all been running around the room, smashed heads, and were simultaneously knocked unconscious.  When I opened the door, however, I was greeted with a boisterous “surprise!” and found myself in the midst of my going-away party (much better than the comatose pile of children I was expecting). I was amazed at the class’ party planning ability; they had put together the entire thing at the suggestion of Ms. Yvette, who had been absent for the past 4 days. The students brought snacks, music, and enough coca-cola to stock three vending machines. So instead of going to the beach, the 10 kiddos and I spent the afternoon in the classroom blasting Lady Gaga and eating way too much cake. They even brought me presents, including key chains, magnets, a mug, and a photo album—all the things the tacky tourist in me wanted but couldn’t justify buying for myself. There were a few moments during the party when I started to get overly emotional, realizing how much I was going to miss these kids and San Pedro. However, at the end of the day the children deemed me braver than the last teacher since I didn’t actually cry. Really, I attribute this to the snacks; I don’t see how anyone could cry while dipping Doritos into cream cheese (thank you, Standard Three, for introducing me to such magic). After sad goodbyes and hopeful “I’ll try to come back and visit”s it was back to Pedro’s to pack.

Second, the packing: You don’t really care about that, do you?

Third, the Star Wars: As a way to celebrate our final night, Pedro’s decided to throw a Star Wars costume party. This was great for me as it forced me (heh, force) to wear something other than the bathing suit cover-up I had been living in for the past 5 weeks. Frustration arose, however, when I tore threw my suitcase and realized I did not have a full-size Chewbacca costume that I might have just forgotten about. Luckily, my many trips to the grocery store had paid off, and on my floor were two bags—one red, one black. After a bit of cutting and some sharpie work, I put the plastic bags over my head and walked down to the party as Darth Maul. Apparently it is not just my own mother who is concerned about asphyxiation; I had quite a few partygoers question my wardrobe choice. However, I made it back alive. Dark Side don’t need no oxygen.