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BajaBlanca
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Registered: 10-28-2008
Location: La Bocana, BCS
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My Success Story - teens and food 6/18 photo update
Most of you probably remember that I started teaching English officially last year here at the local high school. Many of you also may recall that one
of my classes was downright MONSTROUS. I have taught ESL for 30 years and they were giving me a definite run for my money. They yelled in class,
cheated on tests, left class without permission .... it was horrid. I have always taught in private schools and had never ever encountered any of
this.
I tried all sorts of strategies and some of them sort of worked (art - splitting the class up - making the class as varied as possible bla bla bla)
Well, the students were still not cooperative enough and I was frustrated that these kids were not learning all that they could ... so I came up with
strategy # 967,098,769 and I invited all 35 to come to our house for lunch. I would prepare everything and they would be my guests. We would learn
about the different countries and I chose those that I have arts and crafts from / photos of / knowledge about.
WEEK 1 The first meal was Indian/British with 2 different curries and rice and 5 different desserts. About 8 kids came and they loved it. Les and I
ate curry for a week and had all the neighbors over for some since I had made enough for an army. When I went into class the following Monday, there
was a slight change in attitude but not too much.
HERE IS A PIC OF THEM IN OUR ROOM - for all it was their first time at the house so they got a grand tour:
WEEK 2 was Brazilian food and I made various meat dishes and cheesebread and even served a Brazilian soft drink (guarana') that is made no where else
on Earth except Brazil. Again, it was the usual three days of preparation. I also made 5 desserts - cakes and jello and Brazilian brigadeiro. About
15 kids came, we had a blast and on Monday the class visibly felt different, but nowhere near perfect, nor near what my dream class would be.
PIC OF KIDS WITH GUARANA - TALKING TOGETHER B4 LUNCH:
WEEK 3 was Russian food. I spent 3 days preparing for this one ... we had piroshki (try making enough for 35 !!) and strogonoff and again the 5
desserts. Probably 15 kids came, with 2 being new ones.
PIC OF PIROSHKIS AND STROGONOFF:
That Russian themed lunch was last Saturday and guess what? The following class was on Wednesday and Friday due to Tuesday being Teacher's day) and
..... drumroll ..... thunder ....... all 35 kids were quiet and paid attention and wrote in their notebooks, answered correctly and for once, actually
learned English. First time. in the 6 months. that I have been teaching them. I AM SO SO SO HAPPY.
WEEK 4 's lunch was yesterday and a good friend was in town who has worked with GATE kids in the States. He said we could make Italian pasta for
ravioli with a tomato sauce and a white cheese sauce as well as biscotti, all from scratch . The kids would be divided into groups and all would
participate. Bear in mind that boys do not cook at all in Mexico (their dads do BBQs) ...well, it was a huge success and here are some of the photos
from this wonderfully productive day:
Here we have the desserts: biscotti, 2 cakes, applesauce, Brazilian creme de abacate made from avocados:
So, I feel very accomplished, folks. I took this as a challenge to be met head on. It was a tough, very long 6 months. Especially since my husband
was against my working in the first place - ummmmm we are supposed to be retired and able to travel at the drop of a hat HAHAHAHA and now everything
revolves around not only high school but also middle school !! But that story is for another day ....
[Edited on 6-17-2012 by BajaBlanca]
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Barry A.
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Mood: optimistic
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Wow, that is such a neat story--------made my day!!! Well done, Blanca!!! Great photos, too.
Barry
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acadist
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AWESOME JOB!!!!!
Dave
I moved to CO and they made me buy a little rod to make it feel like a real fish
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bbbob
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Location: stockton,ca
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Mood: wish I was there
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great story..everyday I learn something new..Thanks.
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Bajaboy
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Location: Bahia Asuncion, BCS, Mexico
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Blanca, that's awesome. Break-throughs like that are addictive.
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shari
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Mood: there is no reality except the one contained within us "Herman Hesse"
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way to go Blanca...you have found the way to their hearts AND heads!!! I am amazed at your energy and dedication and very proud of you amiga....lucky
kids!!!!!!!!!
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BajaBlanca
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Location: La Bocana, BCS
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LIKE. thanks.
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danaeb
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Brava Blanca. Brava!
Experience enables you to recognize a mistake every time you repeat it.
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David K
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Winner Winner! 
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Cypress
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BajaBlanca, Thanks. I'm hungry!
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wessongroup
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Mood: Suicide Hot line ... please hold
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Thanks much, looked like a lot of fun ... great to see
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DavidE
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Location: Baja California México
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Mood: 'At home we demand facts and get them. In Mexico one subsists on rumor and never demands anything.' Charles Flandrau,
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You are a talented teacher! Two ears and a tail!
I wish it were an affliction and highly contagious 
[Edited on 5-21-2012 by DavidE]
A Lot To See And A Lot To Do
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gallesram
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It's tough enough to get a class here in the US to cooperate; what an accomplishment to pull it off down there! Very creative; and the kids are lucky
to have such a dedicated (and determined) teacher. Great job!
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CP
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I must repeat; Brava Blanca! What a fantastic idea and wonderful success. Your commitment is impresive.
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Natalie Ann
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Obviously, Blanca, you are a natural born teacher to think of this approach and have the wherewithal to carry it through. Those kids are lucky to
have you.
I would, however, be cautious about offering them guarana again. Guarana is rich in caffeine, about twice the strength of good black coffee. 
nena
Be yourself, everyone else is already taken.
.....Oscar Wilde
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BajaBlanca
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I know ! Guarana does have a lot of caffeine .... I don't have any more anyways.
thanks all for your kind words, and there are so many stories to be told ... hang in there and I will write them down, slowly but surely. and be
prepared to laugh ! these kids took me for a bumpy ride !!
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Family Guy
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Registered: 9-8-2003
Location: Bay Area
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I'm impressed! You really get to know the kids as people and they responded
nicely! Nice to see they are doing more of the cooking.
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Iflyfish
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Registered: 10-17-2006
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There are teachers, they focus on content, then there are Educators, they focus on the whole person and think about life as learning. I guess we know
which category you move in!! Lucky kids indeed! What do you know and what is the next step eh??
My brother tells me of a Masters in Education class in Mexico where the teachers were asked to split up into groups and make ice cream....what, make
ice cream???? lots of resistance.....lots of questioning.....what, we pay you to teach us how to teach, we have out notebooks open for you to tell us
and you tell us to make ice cream??!!
Well they made ice cream, had a tasting contest and then discussed what they learned from making ice cream.....mistakes, triumphs, flavors.....why did
you use ice and salt???? hmmmm chemical reaction....producing cold.....hmmm what do you know about that....formulas on the board etc. etc. etc. This
is what education looks like, kids making something and enjoying it and learning from it....what is Russia?.....who are they, where are they, how are
they like/different from us??? Can someone show us on a map where they are?? Why would they have food made out of these ingredients rather than maize?
On the discovery goes. There is a lot more learning here than is on the surface....as you say, men cooking.....but doing it in a safe
environment....smiling and learning...
Wonderful Blanca, just wonderful!!!
American Education has been degraded by this dumb focus on the 3Rs and our test results show it. No Child Left Behind was a very cynical way to focus
the entire educational system on rote learning and to not have to spend more money in the process. The result is a generation of students who have
missed out on the arts, music, shop and other classes that help the student feel part of their learning and stimulating the greatest historical
strength of America, it's creativity and generativity. When you systematically focus an entire education system on rote learning and teaching to the
test you take the joy out of learning and stifle curiosity and creativity. Have them make ice cream and talk about what they have learned. That my
friends is education!
Thanks Blanca for sharing this journey with us, you all obviously have grown from what you have gone thru.
Iflyfishinaweofeducators
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windgrrl
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You are so super cool. Thanks for the lesson and the inspiration. Hope to meet you one day,
w
When the way comes to an end, then change. Having changed, you pass through.
~ I-Ching
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Ken Bondy
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Blanca you are terrific!! What a great story!!
My daughter Coleen teaches high school English in Los Angeles. Her kids are mostly Latino. They are fluent in English but their parents, for the
most part, are not. She goes through a lot of the trials you describe but in a slightly different way. You remind me of her. She was recently
interviewed on NPR and described some of her teaching philosophies. You might like to hear the interview:
http://thestory.org/archive/the_story_050812.mp3/view
[Edited on 5-22-2012 by Ken Bondy]
carpe diem!
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