I’d been looking forward to this yakisoba bowl at Zen Box Izakaya all day. I’d left home for school as the sun was rising after a late night (for us), and I’d taken on an extra class, a reading group. But it was a joy to work with the adult learners, always in good spirits, always trying hard despite fitting in their classes with family and job commitments.
Category: Volunteer
Signs of the times
Spent my morning in a safe place, a classroom, where I get to practice kindness, patience, and respect. On the notice boards, instructions are posted that attempt to empower us in the face of external threats.
The irony of a Carnegie library
Worked with an adult English language learner in this beautiful Carnegie library as I do most Friday mornings. The library, located in a disadvantaged neighborhood where 38% of residents live below the poverty line, was built with funds from a benefactor who accumulated immense wealth on the backs of working people and presided over the worst labor conflict in American history.
A safe space
Worked with an English Language Learner at this workspace in Franklin Library. It’s normally very quiet, but the librarians have put my mind at ease, confirming that it’s okay to talk. We sometimes pause to smile when a group of little kids gathers for a summer program. This is a safe and welcoming space, which I consider important for my adult learner.
What native speakers miss about learning English
Today I was reminded of how much native English speakers take for granted. Take the simple past tense: with words like “seemed,” “stressed,” and “added,” the “-ed” ending is pronounced differently in each case (/d/, /t/, and /ed/ respectively). Adult English Language Learners have to explicitly learn these distinctions, all while juggling their jobs and family responsibilities.
School’s out, but plants rest for no-one
As we do on Thursdays we compared our volunteer experiences—he in the university greenhouse, I at the school. I’m cautious taking photos at the school, but Dwight went full-throttle photographing over-the-top orchids, including this one. Today was the final day of school, but I’ll be assisting with Summer School later this month. Meanwhile, the greenhouse needs constant attention.
Using AI to generate worksheets for vocabulary deduction
I’m constantly discovering new applications for AI. Tomorrow, I plan to guide an adult learner through exercises focused on deducing the meaning of challenging words from their context in both single sentences and three-sentence paragraphs. Creating two worksheets—one with 30 sentences and another with 30 paragraphs, ensuring the same difficult words appeared in both—took about two minutes.
It’s our community
Today I was back in the classroom and found a card waiting, signed by my students. It’s a two-way street; I get so much out of it. Meanwhile, Dwight was at the University greenhouse today and has recently added a gig at Hennepin County Medical Center assembling kits (needles, condoms, etc.) for people with substance use disorder. I’ve also just added a gig: tutoring an adult learner in reading comprehension.
Helping myself to help English language learners become caregivers
Tomorrow, I’ll be helping English language learners prepare for their Personal Care Assistant (PCA) certification test. So, I decided to take the online course and test today to earn my own PCA certificate. I’m grateful for the people willing to do this work. It can be challenging, and the pay isn’t ideal.
By the dawn’s early light, self-evident truths
Looked up at these simple truths as I waited this morning for the bus to a school where immigrants, regardless of their legal status, are highly motivated to learn. In my first class, I worked with learners preparing to become certified nursing assistants, addressing a critical need in Minnesota.