I Can't Belize It's Over

I've been back in the United States for three days, and it's been an interesting adjustment. I forgot how fast-paced and serious life is here. Today I picked up my distinction cord and Office of International Programs stole, and it's pretty insane I will be graduating college in three days.

Being back, it's almost hard to believe I've been gone at all. I've got the same obligations as before. I've got to interview for jobs (I'm a real teacher now...woo!) and start my summer job (so excited!!). I have to clean my house and do laundry. I have to finish up graduation paperwork and licensure forms. Have I even been away?

I have been away, though, and it was such an amazing experience. Personally, I'm surprised how smoothly it went. This was my first time out of the country, as well as my first time really immersing myself in a new culture. I feel like I completed both successfully. I made new friends (love you girls!), taught new students (miss you guys!), and tried new things. Will I go back to Belize some day? Absolutely.

The purpose of this blog was to keep you all at home informed about what Belize is like and what I did while I was there. I also wrote weekly posts to my class in Wilmington (titled Dear Wilmington Friends, if you weren't aware) to teach them even more about Belize. It's been fun, everyone. Thanks for keeping up with my adventures. Here's the last purpose of my blog--a message to future cohorts traveling to San Pedro:

Go out of your comfort zone as much as possible. Keep your phones at a distance, and don't use the TVs in your hotel rooms. Learn how to live without technology both in the classroom and in your daily life, because that's the reality there. Listen to everyone (your students, your parents, your fellow teacher candidates), so that you can really soak up all that this experience has to offer you. You will love it!

The Only Thing

I like playing on the trampoline

I like eating ice cream

I like hearing music

I like almost everything

It makes me happy

I like puppies

I like dogs

I like chihuahuas 

I like almost everything

The only thing that I want to do,

I want to finally do a snowman

That's the only thing

-An original poem by Brisa

Diving Into My Last Week

This was the catchy post title I thought to use Monday night after the night dive (which was so awesome, by the way!). Then I came home and went to bed, and next thing I knew, it was Thursday evening.

I still want to use the title, though, so here's a recap of how I dove into my last week in Belize.

On Monday, I spent the school day doing my usual 1:1 and small group lessons, as well as distributing my American students' letters and bracelets. My Belizean students reciprocated the gesture, making their own cards and jewelry for my friends in Wilmington. Monday evening, half the group and I went night diving at Hol Chan. What a unique experience that was. We saw three eels, lots of big fish (eating smaller fish...), an octopus, two sleeping sea turtles, and many sleepy stingrays, camoflauged by the sand on the ocean floor. We saw huge crab and lobster, too.

On Tuesday, all the special education majors, Tori, Stephanie, and the professors took a trip to Belize City to visit Stella Maris and the Inspiration Center. I'm so glad I was able to make the trip--something that Megan and I had wanted to do a few weeks prior.

First we visited Stella Maris, a government-run school for students with special needs. I was a little conservative in my expectations for the school, I have to admit; full-seclusion is a sensitive and controversial topic. Based on the lack of special education services on Ambergris Caye, I wondered about the condition of the school and the services available. My first impression of the school was based on these murals and paintings around the school:

Beautiful, right? And the positivity didn't stop there. We toured each class in the school, from Infant I to Post-Primary. The instruction was functionally-based--pretty similar to what I would do in a functional academics classroom. The classes contained students with mixed abilities and disabilities, from Down syndrome to cerebral palsy, intellectual disability (which they categorized as "slower") to autism spectrum disorder. They have a special class designated for autism for the younger grades, and their teacher explained how they have created instructional programs for life skills like dressing and undressing before and after swim lessons. How functional! The school had so many extra features: a garden, a tilapia farm, a swimming pool, a ball court, a physical therapist, and a resource/library room (ran by a Stella Maris graduate):

After a quick lunch, we taxied to the Inspiration Center. I knew this was a resource center, but I didn't know much about it otherwise. It turns out the Inspiration Center has been open for about two weeks. They currently provide physical and occupational therapy, and they will soon be getting a speech and language pathologist. They also have a small clinic and a social worker. One thing I loved about the center is that the vision for the future of the center is very apparent. The center includes space for a daycare, a computer lab, a multi-purpose room (eventually to be used for an after-school program), and a reading room. Furthermore, the center was so clean and well-kept, and it was extremely accessible. Every door in the center was extra-wide, accomodating for wheelchairs, and each room had a sign outside the door in English and Braille. I am really excited to see how the center evolves in the next several years. Little fact: the Inspiration Center is maintained primarily through donations. I think it would be amazing for future UNCW cohorts to fundraise for both Stella Maris and the Inspiration Center.

On the way back to San Pedro, Dr. Kubasko and I documented our twinning style:

Also, check out this puppy we rode with on the water taxi:

On Wednesday, we were back in the schools. Mr. Z from my class in Wilmington and I coordinated a Skype session with both sets of students. I gathered my Belizean students about twenty minutes before the session to show them the video my American students and I made. We then lets the students talk to each other on a video session for about 15 minutes. It was so great to see my students again; I really miss those kids! My students here seemed to really enjoy talking with the others, too:

Today (Thursday) was our last day at Isla Bonita. Today is Belize's Labor Day, so we have school off tomorrow. I tried to pull together all the work I've done here; one of the ways I did so was by giving Nayeli's teacher a low-tech communication device--just a flip book--for Nayeli to communicate with:

I made it using cardstock and crayons, then I laminated it, hole punched the corner, and tied the pages together with a ribbon. Unfortunately, Nayeli was absent today (as were many of my students), so I couldn't explain some of the picture symbols to her. On Wednesday, I did snap this photo of the two of us:

It was also my last day doing after-school tutoring with Brisa. I'm really going to miss her and her spunky personality:

One full day left. It will be spent doing work, packing, and relaxing too!! Any questions?