Teacher

If you're looking for free English Language classes then try the Literacy Council. It's free and sometimes you can even get one on one tutoring. Retired teachers,etc. volunteer their time.

My passport style photos and the passport style photos my fiance sent me looked to be two different sizes. I haven't heard anything yet...no NOA2. I'm hoping it won't be a problem. They would ask for new ones if they weren't correct wouldn't they?

Hopefully SOON my fiancée and her daughter will be coming to the US. They are from Peru(Spanish). The daughter is 3 and knows no English. I was wondering if anyone could tell me any information about programs in the US for teaching kids English. Has anyone sent their kids to school without knowing English? If someone could direct me to some websites would help. I live in Bucks County Pennsylvania.

Thank you

I am an English as a Second Language Teacher "ESL" in an elementary school. According to the "No Child Left Behind Act" she is eligible to have Limited English Proficient/Second Language Services. We have programs for three year olds here where I teach. Sometimes they are pre-school, or headstart, etc. or a summer program. She has a better chance of getting in if she's LEP. Spots fill up fast. She may qualify for migrant programs. You would need to check into that. Also, some churches offer these programs. She definitely will be able to get into Pre-K when she's four. Depending on how many immigrants you have in the area there may be a Pre-K with lots of other immigrant children. Anyway, there should be a teacher there who either pulls her out of class or pushes in to her class to help her learn English and be able to adjust. I'm glad that you are thinking about it already.

Most of my students speak English and Spanish but they know academic or school related words in English and a lot of home words in Spanish. Even when they appear bi-lingual they may not be. It's difficult to know this when you're speaking to a child and they have no accent when using English. Studies show it take a second language learner five years or more to truly catch up to their classmates.

Also, most of them speak Spanish fluently but only read and write in English. It also takes them a while to be able to go back and forth. Some of the children can speak both perfectly but can't seem to interpret back and forth. Others have this skill early on.

One major problem with young learners is: the alphabet, mostly vowels

for example: e is pronounced "ay" in Spanish and "ee" in English. i is "ee" in Spanish. One of my students had a very difficult time when his mother started helping him at home with his alphabet. We would teach him the English pronunciation and she would teach him the Spanish pronunciation. We'd like to think that he could learn both at the same time but they usually can't. Because he didn't know his sounds he then couldn't go to the next step of learning to put together English words and ended up being retained for not being able to read.

At first I thought retaining students because of this was a bad idea but after some experience and working with struggling students who are in grades 3,4, &5 it would have benefited them to be retained in one of the lower grades where they learn the alphabet (preferrably first grade). In the regular classroom, after second grade, it's all about content and vocabulary. In third grade in Virginia you're learning about ancient Greece, Rome, and Mali.

Teacher

Hey Boston. I guess it's a little of both. Mostly, right now I'm frustrated that I'm not in the classrooom helping kids because I'm pulled out so much. I believe I'm a good teacher and when kids come to me for help and then I have to send them back to their regular classrooms barely after getting started they are disappointed because they don't understand what to do and I feel I've let them down. The reason I am learning Spanish is to make myself a better teacher. I also lived and worked abroad and I have a good understanding of what it is to be an immgrant. It's a huge challenge.

I still believe that you should follow the correct procedure if at all possible even though it's sometimes painful.

You all are correct. I need to assert myself more. Teaching and helping kids is the most important thing. That's what I've been hired to do and that's what's in my contract. It should come first and everything else should come second. I will have a conversation with the principal. Everyone from the dentist to the counselor to the secretaries is pulling me out to help them. Maybe she doesn't realize just how much I'm getting pulled away from teaching.

Thanks for all your opinions. You're great. This is a great site.

Teacher

quote name='bostonparis' date='Jul 26 2007, 06:39 PM' post='1075506']

Is your frustration this: The fact that because you now understand what goes into coming to this country legally, you now get frustrated helping the people that you've been helping all along because they're here illegally (and you can now see the many challenges for anyone to come here)? Or is it that the administrators of your school system are inappropriatly utilizing you? I can see both, just wondering what's the crux of the matter.

OMG Boo-Yah! Guess what some of the teachers are doing this summer? Buying paint with their own money and painting bookshelves! LOL

This, I refused.

PS It is only a matter of time before teachers are forced to paint their own rooms and build their own classroom furniture. I am sure sooner or later there will be no money in the budget for that.

It's like, "No ###### fools when illegal immigrants are paying little to no taxes yet utilizing tax paper funded services for free.."

I am a May filer. Our NOA1 was on May 7th. No touches at all.

I hope this is the right forum. I'm new to this.

I am becoming more and more frustrated. I am an English as a Second Language Teacher. I really enjoyed doing this in the beginning because I love children and wanted to help new immigrants in this country. Over the past year or so things have been getting tough. Since the government passed the "No Child Left Behind Act" schools are forced to send home everything, absolutely everything in the home language and not in English. Whatever the language may be. If we are caught not doing this we are chastised and penalized financially, etc.

Since I speak some Spanish and the school can't afford an interpreter I am forced to spend much less time teaching English and much more time translating report cards, field trip forms, making phone calls, going to the dental clinic outside the school, and every single thing that goes home in a school of about 500 students I must translate. Not to mention making and taking phone calls which are interrupting class with my students and I must attend all meetings that involve a parent who speaks another language.

Most of the parents of my children are great but some of them have been here for 10 years or more and refuse to speak or learn English even when they are offered free English classes. Even some that do speak English refuse to do it because they want it all done for them in Spanish. One of these actually had the nerve to go to my principal and point out that I had made a minor gramattical error in a translation that made no difference to the content or information whatsover. I am an English teacher for crying out loud. I never get to teach anymore.

I am so very frustrated lately because I am petitioning for my fiance legally and I work with children whose parents are here illegally and so obviously taking advantage of me on a daily basis. Never would I ever blame the students, my kids. They are wonderful beautiful children.

As I've said I love these students. My heart is in teaching and helping others to get a better life but honestly I have become so very dissillusioned that I am looking to leave the profession.

Is anyone else in this position?

Thanks for listening.

Teacher

Did I post this correctly? I'm new. The quote button didn't seem to work for me. How do I do that?

I think most democtratic politicians are pro-amnesty because they are afraid of losing the minority vote of Mexican- Americans. Hillary Clinton has suggested that she does not want English to be the official language because she wants to keep Spanish on the ballots.

i doubt is it passes..and if so, bush veto it

Vetos can be overridden.

nah, not by the dems..they will not support it.........

Dems are pro-amnesty?

Hi Capt. Ewok, I'm new to this so forgive me for asking answered questions. I'm not sure where to find the answers. Having trouble updating my timeline. Need to add a couple of dates but I don't see where I can actually edit it.

This is a great website. I haven't seen another like it. At least I can have company in my misery waiting for my sweetie.

Also, I wasn't sure how to send this to you directly without posting it! Sorry.

Hi everyone, what a great site!

did u read what John Lennon said about the

INS when he was dealing with them:

in "The U.S. Versus John Lennon." After John finally

received his Green Card following the whole

deportation scandal, a reporter asked if he held any

sort of grudge against the immigration service. "No,"

John replied, "I think that time wounds all heels."

maybe you know a good woman who wants to marry.

Please email me:

xxxssw22@yahoo.co.uk

take care!

-- I am normal-

whatever that means.

TROLL..................

Maybe I should move it to a very unused are of the boards...... haha

Also what does "touch" mean?

Is that when the USCIS peeps look at your petition n stuff or something?

Cheers

basically yea, it means that your case has been updated online...once you get your case # you can check this on the uscis website...if the 'last updated' date has been changed since the last time you viewed it, that means that you have been 'touched' and someone has done something with your petition

btw im 22 and my fiance is 23 (will be 24 next week)...i definitely do not think it is an issue as far as this visa is concerned