Shalom everyone! Sorry for not posting more blogs like I had anticipated. But I leave tomorrow and WOAH these 5 weeks were amazing. I have learned so much about Israel and its people, my patience was tested, I got to know myself a little better, I saw things that I would have never saw back in the states, I made new friends and most importantly I learned how I can improve as a teacher. I am so excited to be going home. I miss my whole family, my friends, my boyfriend. I especially miss my grandma. Thank god she is doing so much better now. I’m sure who ever is reading this already knows what has been happening. But thankfully she is at home, resisting rest, but at least she is back and I get to see her TOMORROW! 😀
Since this is my last day in Israel, I wanted to spend some time talking about my overall experience at Project Harmony and working as an Art teacher/Camp counselor to ESL students. This by far has been such a rewarding challenge for me. I wanted to fly back home numerous of times because of my own struggle of checking out when things get difficult. But I stuck it out and learned different techniques to help myself as a teacher and as a staff member. Project Harmony has created an amazing environment in that Jewish and Palestine children can come together and learn to coexistence. The challenge I faced the most is that English is their second or third or fourth language. It took me quite some time to realize that these kids acted out because of the language barrier and not knowing what is being said to you can be extremely frustrating. Also when I taught art, kids needed all aspects to be taught to them in order to feel comfortable with the task or lesson at hand. In addition to working with these two groups, I worked with people from all over the United States and from Switzerland PLUS everyone’s diverse upbringings and cultures. It is amazing how much I have gained from this whole experience in just 5 weeks. It’s safe to say that I have probably learned more in this study aboard course then I have in 3 other college courses in total.
One thing I have learned since I was little, but it really came into play when I traveled to Israel is that a smile means the same in any language. Whether it was smiling at the children so they knew my intentions or at a stranger that was dressed COMPLETELY DIFFERENT from me. Now I can’t say that I got smiles in return 50% of the time but hopefully people saw my smile and it threw them off or made them smile inside. I hope I left a good American impression and made a difference in at least one ESL student at camp.
Thank you again for everyone that supported me in coming on this trip. I can’t believe I did it and everything I learned.It was an emotional journey. A HUGE thank you to my Professor Jeanette Johns. We spent many hours, days, and weeks discussing teacher “stuff” hahaha She gave me so much confidence in my work, in myself, and has supported me 100% through this whole trip. It was amazing to see her work with the children and have her teach me all her secrets. Thank you again if you have reached the end of my blog for reading. Thank you for letting me vent throughout the summer. SHALOM and see y’all SOOON! LOVE ALEXANDRIA HAMRIC C;
Alexandria's blog 