Spotlight On: Amity Intern Yaquelin Ortiz
Amity recently interviewed Salvadoran Intern Yaquelin Ortiz about her experience (so far) in the United States. Check out her incredibly helpful insight and advice for future interns below!
Tell us a little about yourself: Where is your hometown? My name is Yaquelin Ortíz, and my home country is El Salvador. I live in the east zone and my hometown is called San Francisco Gotera, located in Morazán. I am and Intern in a 3rd grade class at Eagle Heights Spanish Immersion School in Eden Prairie, Minnesota.
How did you find out about Amity Institute? Why did you did decide to participate in the Intern Program?
In 2018, I was taking a course at my university back home. One day, my teacher (Jimmy Torres) took some time to talk about how the Amity Program works and what the requirements were in order to receive a scholarship. This opportunity really caught my attention; I could try a new experience far away from my native country, learn new teaching strategies, put into practice the two languages that I know and also gain professional experience teaching children as students.
What is your favorite part of your internship so far? What was the biggest challenge?
One of my favorite and the biggest part of my Internship is exchanging languages. On top of this, I have three different reasons why I truly enjoy my internship, listed below.
- Being in the classroom every day: Being at the classroom every day, is something that I just love, because I can support students not only with Spanish, I can also support them through motivation when they feel they can’t do anything, when they have questions related with what they are doing in that moment and also, I can teach them about my culture. It is just amazing to hear them speaking Spanish so well; I love to make them feel comfortable when they are speaking Spanish as as second language.
- Meeting new people: meeting new people is something that I like, because I enjoy learning as much I can about people, their thoughts, culture, opinions, and random academic facts. Also, I get to hear different English accents, so that helps me to improve my speaking and listening skill.
- Going new places: Going new places can be a challenge for me; every time that I am going to visit a new place, I am very aware that I will need to use my English. By this time of the year, I am happy with my English skills; speaking is not a big barrier to me, I can go wherever I want and do whatever I want, and I can do all of that in English OR Spanish.
What have you shared about your culture?
I have had a really good time sharing Salvadoran culture with others (family, school or new friends). I have shared by cooking traditional meals or snacks such as: pupusas, pastelitos, tortillas, tacos, etc.
What has surprised you about the United States?
Transportation, expensive prices and some children’s behavior are some things that have surprised me here.
What does a typical day look for you in the United States/at school?
In phase three (where I am right now) a typical day is: checking students agendas and homework, doing morning meeting, assisting in math and language arts, then teaching social studies every day at 2:30pm. I also do the end of the day sharing with students about what was their favorite part of the day, and we practice our “green zone.”
How do you think interning with Amity will benefit you, personally and professionally?
Personally, being an Amity intern has helped me become proud of myself because now I have become stronger with my feelings and maturity, and independent by solving my own problems. Professionally, it has helped me take on a big responsibility in my position as teacher. I now work hard to understand students first and then make a decision based on them. Also, I have improved my English skills greatly. Finally, I am also able to maintain a balance of having fun, being funny, and have discipline in the classroom.
Any advice for interns who would like to come to the United States?
Dear, future Interns: I am so glad to hear that you will also have this amazing experience. Please, take with you: your best attitude, a heart full of love for many, many children who have lack of it, open your mind with everything that is around you, and be careful about your decisions. There is a community paper writer of kind and lovely people waiting to hear about you and your culture. Do not be afraid about express how you feel or ask for/about something during your stay in the USA. Most importantly, gain as much knowledge as possible and take it to your home country in order to be one of the first teachers to evolve with the newest ideas or strategies.
“But, how can he be your son if you’re not German?” – Our Amity Hosting Experience, by the Perchyshyn Family
The following essay was written by German Intern Fabian Stassek’s host family, the Perchyshyn Family of St. Paul, Minnesota. The Amity Team thanks the Perchyshyns for sharing such an intimate glimpse into your life as hosts.
“From August of 2019 to January of 2020, we had the privilege of having a 23-year old Amity Intern from Speyer, Germany become part of our family. His name is Fabian Stassek. My son, Gunther, age 13, also known as Gunny, attends a German Immersion school in St. Paul, Minnesota and Fabian worked at the German school from the end of August through the middle of January 2020.
Fabian soon showed his easy-going and fun essay writers nature by always being willing to play card games, sports and go on family trips with us. He loved anything active, new or social. His English was very good and he would speak to my husband and myself exclusively in English. However, since my son knew German, Fabian and Gunther would converse in German.
Since he liked sports, we took him to a minor league baseball game at Saints Field, to see one of Minnesota’s favorite teams; The Saint Paul Saints. We also invited another Amity Intern to join us and he did. His name was Fabriz Abeln.
It was a beautiful summer night, a great night to watch baseball. Fabriz, Fabian and Gunther were sitting close to my husband and myself, but a few rows away. We didn’t know this, but they spent the evening speaking in German. My husband and I took a break from the game to get a snack. We overheard a couple people talking about the “Germans” who were sitting by them. I didn’t think much of this until those same people talking about the Germans were seated behind us. They were talking about our group.
I turned around and asked the lady if she was talking about that group. I pointed to Fabriz, Fabian and Gunther. She said that indeed, she was. I told her that one of them was my son. She was shocked. “Really?” she asked. “Are you German?”
I told her I wasn’t, at least not more than 10 percent. She wondered how my son knew German and I explained that he went to a German Immersion school. She said, “Well, it’s working. I thought he was German too.”
Fabian and Gunther spoke German almost exclusively while he was here. Fabian was able to practice his English with us and our son got to practice his German with Fabian. They had a great time playing baseball, basketball, skating in the winter, skiing at Afton Alps and sightseeing all over Minnesota. It felt like we had a bigger family and a more active one. We have two adult daughters who live in the area and Fabian got to spend time with them and all of us, especially on holidays like Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year.
We had a wonderful experience with Fabian and feel like our family grew in so many ways. He learned English and American culture and we learned German and more about the culture of Germany. My son learned to be more self-sufficient, by watching Fabian and seeing how he did homework, cleaned up after himself and made meals. Fabian liked the food here, except the bread! He was not a picky eater at all, but American bread does not compare to German bread.
Perhaps the best part of all is that we have a new family member in Germany now and our world got bigger, especially for my son. He’ll be traveling to Germany in May with his classmates and teachers and he may have a chance to reconnect with Fabian. We hope to travel there next summer and visiting Fabian would be a top priority. It’s a magical thing to have the world get smaller while your family gets bigger. The learning is incidental.
Thank you AMITY for being part of the educational landscape at my son’s school.”
Spotlight On: Amity Intern Francisco González
Amity recently interviewed Salvadoran Intern Francisco González. Here’s what he shared about his time in the USA and a U.S. classroom. Thank you, Francisco, for your time and your great advice for incoming participants!
Tell us a little about yourself: Where is your hometown?
Hello, my name is Francisco González. I am from El Salvador. I currently live with the Anderson family in Shakopee (a suburb in Minnesota). I am doing my internship at La ola del Lago Spanish immersion school.
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How did you find out about Amity Institute? Why did you did decide to participate in the Intern Program?
The way how I found out about Amity Institute was through my professors at my university in El Salvador. I decided to participate in the Amity Intern Program because I wanted to experience a new environment and practice my English skills and also, I wanted to get to know the American culture, since I have just been reading about American culture before coming to the States but never had a chance to live in the actual environment with native speakers as well. By sharing and engaging with a different culture, it really changes the way I can see life in different perspectives.
What is your favorite part of your internship so far? What was the biggest challenge?
My favorite part of my internship so far is the treatment my host family has given to me since the first time I came to Minnesota. Besides that, all the places I have visited are really amazing. My biggest challenge was deciding what the food or groceries I needed for the week, and putting them on the shopping list that my host family has in the fridge. I was not used to this!
What have you shared about your culture? What do you think surprises people about your home country?
What I have shared about my culture is the traditional pupusas, enchiladas and other things like folk songs and handicrafts I brought from home for my students and school community. What surprises people about my home country is the places we have such as, beaches, mountains and volcanoes. The most surprising thing is the lake that turns into a different color every year.
What has surprised you about the United States?
What has surprised me the most is the museums and the fossils of dinosaurs I’ve seen there! Moreover, all the history in the Science Museum is really awesome.
What does a typical day look for you in the United States/at school?
A typical day at school looks interesting for me, since classes start at 9:20 a.m., and it ends at 3:45 p.m. In my home country, most of the schools start at 7:00 a.m., and it ends at 12:00 p.m. Experiencing a typical day at school in the States is interesting because students have different activities during a school day for example, students from La ola del Lago, they have arts, gym and other activities while being at school, so they learn and develop different skills.
How do you think interning with Amity will benefit you, personally and professionally?
I think interning with Amity will benefit me by developing more teaching skills and also, getting to know people that will become a part of my family. My internship has helped me to build strong relationships and has allowed me to experience different cultures than I could ever imagine. Moreover, my resume has benefited greatly from this professional time in the USA, and will help when applying for a job.
Any advice for interns who would like to come to the United States?
I would like to advice interns who would like to visit to the United States so that they can also have a good experience.
First, be open to a new environment. Second, do not try to spend much time in winter outside. It is better to take precautions against the cold! Also don’t spend too much time alone… people would like to spend time with you and get to know you better. Third, be assertive, it will help you personally and professionally. Fourth, always be on time and try to make your own schedule because American people are very organized people. Finally, enjoy every moment with your host families and be a good ambassador for your home country. Just be yourself and enjoy life!
10 Reasons Why You Should Commit to a Full Year of Cultural Exchange
When deciding to participate in a cultural exchange program, many people find themselves struggling to decide the appropriate length of stay as an Amity Intern. While both a semester and a full school year exchange have their immense benefits, here are the top reasons why a full school year is the best option.
- You’ll gain fluency and self-confidence in your language skills. The longer you are immersed in U.S. culture, the more you will practice your English language skills, which will dramatically improve your ability to speak and understand the language. Developing fluency in English will open the door for many professional opportunities.
- You’ll have more time to adjust and find what works for YOU. Adapting to a new culture takes time. It can take a while to really settle into a new place and develop a good routine. By committing to a longer exchange, you won’t find yourself packing up to fly home as soon as you begin to feel comfortable.
- You’ll truly immerse in local life, understanding the ins and outs of the culture. The longer you stay, the more of a “local” you will become. You’ll be able to pick your favorite coffee shop and restaurant, learn the ins and out of the public transit system, and find your favorite little nooks in your neighborhood.
- You’ll experience a full calendar of culture. Throughout the duration of a school year and the changes of the seasons, there are different holidays, celebrations, and traditions. Not only do you get to learn about these special moments, but you are able to personally experience each of them within your host community.
- You’ll share more of your native culture and traditions. Just as you will be learning about U.S. culture, you will also be teaching U.S. citizens all about yours. An extended stay allows much more opportunity to teach about your culture, dispel any stereotypes, help others to learn your native language, and really embrace your role as a cultural ambassador in your host community.
- You’ll develop independence while navigating a completely different way of life. Living abroad involves a lot of trial and error, and a lot of going outside of your comfort zone. Maybe you feel uncomfortable asking for directions in English, or perhaps the way the local metro system work really confuses you at first. Over time, you will develop these skills, and in the process, you will gain confidence while living in this new world.
- You’ll develop relationships that extend far beyond your time in the United States. It can take time to form meaningful connections. How unfortunate it is to have to leave just as you are truly connecting with people. By staying in the United States for a full year, your hosts and other friends from the local community will likely transition into a second family.
- You’ll have more time to develop your educational skills in a global classroom. It will take some time to adapt to a foreign classroom. Throughout the course of a year, you will really get to understand your host school, its mission and philosophies, and U.S. teaching methodologies. Also, direct classroom experience is where teachers in training gain the most applicable knowledge to help them adapt to their role as an educator. The more time, the better.
- You’ll have the opportunity get involved in the local community. A year in the USA will allow you to start and see through opportunities such as volunteering to host a language club, coach a team, or serve food at a local soup kitchen.
- You’ll have more time to explore. The more time for weekend and holiday adventures, the better! Maybe you have a list of multiple places you’d like to see. With more time in the USA, you can enjoy more getaways and road trips, and have ample opportunity to explore all the neighborhoods in your local community.
Not convinced yet? A few of our former participants share why they are happy that they committed to a full school year.
Professionally speaking, staying in the USA the whole school year provides the opportunity to fully learn and assimilate to the American curriculum, which could have similarities but also differences from the one in your home country. Being fully immersed at the school for a year also changes you a lot as a teacher, since your sharing, learning, and practicing skills daily. Personally speaking, I found very useful to have a long stay, because you meet so many more people, visit so many more places, and try lots of new activities. I can certainly assure you will grow exponentially if you are open to living the experience to the fullest.So first off, a simple job from apapers.com you are not relishing right now can turn into literal veritable torture for those who don’t receive your essays written. Therefore the urge to cover someone to write your essays for you is very clear for anybody who’s fought in the past to finish even the easiest assignment. In addition, another reason to cover article writing is you can make sure the result is great.
-Former Intern Josselin Romero
– Former Intern Denis Gonzalez
A year long stay made me appreciate how everything changed from one season to the next. Since we don’t have these many seasons in our country, I could see how people and society moves on from one transition to another. Moreover, personally, I got used to different accents since I had the chance to travel and visit more places in the USA. In addition, the relationships between families improve and strengthen a lot, and at the end, you don’t want to leave!