Hello Everyone,

Ahhhh, we’ve just completed our last day of regular classes.  Today was spent working on the collaborative project, followed by a “surprise” going away party for the Riverstone students.  There was a great dance with a DJ, a live concert, volleyball, soccer, and concession tables.  It was over the top!  We had so much fun dancing, playing, and soaking up the very, very strong Colombian sunshine.  As the school day drew to close, the students starting talking about how hard it will be to leave.  Yes, they are getting very sad.  Many students took pictures throughout the day of the campus and their friends, all in an attempt to capture the wonderful experiences they’ve had.

Tomorrow, we will go on a field trip to several neighboring towns such as Sopo and Chia.  After visiting the towns, we will go to a traditional ranch for a farewell barbecue and games.  Another great day is in store for our students!  I’ll update you upon our return in the evening.

Katie

To view photos click here or here

Hello Everyone,

I will attach photos once I find the cable to my camera…In the meantime, I’d like to give you an update on all of the activities that we’ve recently been a part of.

Yesterday, the students were at school at 6:30 in the morning, ready to board busses headed to Chingaza. After 3 hours of driving through gorgeous mountains, we arrived to the paramo of Chingaza.  A paramo is an Alpine eco-system found in the tropical Andes (at least 3,000 meters or 12,000 feet elevation). There is a very special type of palm, called the fraliones found all over the area.  The students were able to receive an educational presentation about all of this before heading out for a walk through the eco-system. Additionally, a lovely lunch was provided that helped them to stay warm during the strong downpours that occurred throughout the day.  By the time the busses returned to school (just after 6:00), the kids were all very happy and exhausted.

Today, classes are in session and the CIEDI and Riverstone students are working on their collaborative projects.  As they work, it is very evident that strong friendships have been formed.  With the final days of this experience drawing near, you can see that it is going to be very difficult to say goodbye.  That is a good thing…a very good thing.

I think that’s about it for now.  Again, I will attach pictures shortly.

See you soon!
Katie

Andy’s Update:

I am sitting with Katie and the kids in Math class again.  Today is their second lesson with trigonometry.  Seems like it is going OK.  Some of the kids are having a tough time with the current problem on the board.  They are solving for two sides of a triangle using sin, cosine and tan.

Katie and I spoke with each of the kids as they arrived this morning.  They had a phenomenal time at the water park this weekend!

After math they are moving into two hours of project time.  That will be from 1000-1200 Boise time.  We are starting that project time with an azimuth check by group.  I hope to find out if the intercontinental groups actually made contact on Sunday evening or not.  At any rate, I really think we should schedule a bit of time at 1130 Boise time for a Skype for the intercontinental groups.
Andy

As Katie Litzenberger takes over form Andy Johnson in Bogota, here is Katie’s morning update…….

Well, as Andy packs to leave, I am just getting grounded here in Bogota.  The kids are really enjoying their days here.  It’s great to see all of them together, working on projects, and learning so much about the culture.  You’d be amazed at their level of Spanish after only one week.  It’s really quite impressive.

Today’s classes consisted of math (another trig. lesson), project time, and P.E.  All of the teachers are extremely enthusiastic and make the learning inclusive and fun for all.  You’ll see some attached photos, all from the computer lab. Students are on the road to completing their collaborative projects and things are definitely beginning to take shape.

Oh, one other thing to mention is the farewell lunch that was held for Andy.  All of the CIEDI students signed a lovely card and the teachers provided a little toast and cake for his goodbye. Everyone is sad to see him go.  I know he’s left a very strong and positive impression.

Well, I’ll write more tomorrow.  I’m still a bit jet lagged, so I feel like I’m trying to write through a fog. Tomorrow we are on a field trip to the mountains.  It should be beautiful and awesome.

Katie

Here are a few pictures from the first day of school here in Bogota.  One word:  wonderful.  What a great place.  The kids seem to be really comfortable and happy.

This morning Andrea and I met the kids as they got off the busses in front of the school. They flooded into the school  with  the other 500 kids.

It was very cool and fun.  We started the day with an all 8th Grade Assembly.  Andrea went over the program with all of us.  We then moved outside and worked through several excellent team building stations.  Several of which were exact replicas of teambuilding and leadership exercises we did in the Army.  After the team building exercises we did group reflections led by the American students.  Several of us, myself included, had to recite Spanish tonguetwisters.  Lots of giggling.  Following this we went to snack where the kids got something to drink and tried an new fruit which is orange, has a brittle skin and is filled with sweet small seeds similar to a pomegranate.  I loved them.  Apparently the Colombians jokingly refer to the fruit pulp as “coal miner’s snot.”  Awesome!  Afterwards we trundled off to Spanish.  I had my own chair in the middle of the class and was expected to participate as fully as all the other students.  It was a blast.  We did small group activities during which we had to develop five questions we do or might use in our daily routines.  Everybody had to be prepared to answer the questions of every other group with full sentences.  It was super.  Next we followed Laura Barrera and Andrea to Laura’s classroom and began figuring out where we were with projects.  And, if that wasn’t enough, we enjoyed an enormous lunch together and went off for a two hour block of PE.

My perspective on Colombia to date.

It is exciting and interesting.  Bogota is incredibly alive and fun.  On Sunday, I spent the day with Santiago and David driving through the mountains outside Bogota.  We saw 200 year old haciendas, tumbledown villages, super modern housing developments and a million other small details that I can’t recount here.  We met Andrea and her son Juan Manuel for some great food at Andres’s Carne de Res.  Huge amount of fun.  Following that we came out to school with David to check on some construction.  Then we plunged back into town, picked up tickets for the Iberoamericano Stage and Theater Festival and had a cup of coffee at a Juan Valdez coffee shop.  We picked up Andrea and a couple more of David’s friends and headed down to the Plaza de Toro for the final performance of the festival.  It was Cirque de Soleilish and truly amazing and entertaining.  All in all my initial impressions are incredibly positive and enthusiastic.  These feelings have been reinforced by talking with four or five other American teachers here at the school.

Andy Johnson