Eating My Weight in Food and Too Many Bathroom Pictures

If you've been following my blog since last year, you'll remember this post about the international seminar. It was one of my favorite moments from last year because I love conferences. Tuesday and Wednesday were this year's seminar. Unlike last year, this one was two days long which meant lots of food was involved. I was kind of confused on how it would work this year because my director told us it was two days, but that we would only present once.

The first day took place at the pedagogical university. I arrived pretty early, so, per usual, I told the security guards I didn't speak English and they let me in anyways. I love how people just don't want to deal with me because I don't speak Russian. I wasn't exactly sure where to go so I just headed to the auditorium we were in last year. When I got there I tried asking if anyone spoke English to make sure I was in the right place, but no one did. Luckily, I saw my schools logo and took a seat. Now, before you say, "Why didn't you just ask them in Russian?" I'll tell you that when I'm nervous all my Russian knowledge goes out the window, so I ask questions in English.

Finally, my director showed up and introduced me to Vera, one of the presenters from Moscow. We chatted a bit until the presentations started. We noted how everyone in the audience looked very young, which was surprising to me because last year everyone looked like they were in their 30s and older. Later, we found out that the seminar on Tuesday was for university students. Vera and Jeremy, my colleague at ABIC, were the first to present, and their presentations were amazing. The other two spoke in Russian, but from what everyone told me they weren't that interesting. When the first four presentations were finished we, the presenters, went to have some tea before lunch.

For lunch my director took us all to Gastro Gallery. I had been there once before but only to drink beer. I wasn't sure what to expect because I heard their steak was amazing but the rest of their food wasn't that good. Like every meal in Russia we started out with a salad. After the salad we ate soup and after the soup we had our main dish of steak and potatoes. All the while there were vegetables and bread on the table as well. We finished with tea and some kind of dessert (pictured above). I have to tell you, I am not a meat eater, but this steak was AMAZING. I don't know what they did to it but it was so gosh-darned good. The potatoes were great as well. I'm salivating just writing about it.

Right before we left I went into the bathroom and took way too many photos. It was beautiful! Did you ever think someone would say that about a bathroom?! See for yourself though. I couldn't help it.

After lunch I had to go to work for two classes. I thought we were only supposed to take Wednesday off so I told my partner teacher she didn't need to cover for me. Only a few days earlier did I learn that most of the festivities would take place on Tuesday, so I missed the tour of Ufa and the beginning of dinner. At first I wasn't that upset about missing the tour because it wasn't that great last year, but I heard it was better this year so I regretted working. Plus, our group of presenters this year was a lot more fun and we all seemed to get along very well so I wish I had spent more time with them.

I arrived to dinner an hour late, around 7 pm, but I didn't miss much. Again, there was so much food and three courses of salad, soup, and a main dish. I ate so much kiwi and caviar that I thought I was going to explode. I'm also someone who usually eats everything if it's sitting in front of me but I ate so much throughout the day that I couldn't even finish all my potatoes.

Like last year, the evening was periodically interrupted, in a good way, by different performers from the school. At one point everyone got up and started dancing with the three girls. I stayed back because I had on 6 inch heels (they were my only waterproof shoes) and after wearing them all day my feet were killing me. We had tea and we gave toasts to the seminar and to each other. Sometime after 9 we all decided it was getting late and we should go home because we had to be up in the morning.

Wednesday was the seminar for the teachers in the republic. Last year it was at the pedagogical university, but this year it was at Gymnasium #3. Wow, this school was amazing! It reminded me of some kind of elite prep school. I tried to find more pictures online because I wish you could see it for yourself, but I was unsuccessful. There were chandeliers everywhere and a large staircase that made you feel like you were on the Titanic. It was absolutely stunning. The attendees were even greeted by violinists!

The event started out with preliminary presentations, some being more interesting than others. After we went to the cafeteria for a coffee break. After the coffee break we went back to the auditorium for more presentations and then started our own master classes. Elizabeth and I were paired up together, and we did our presentation on using film in the classroom. Ours focused on how you can use film to assess speaking, writing, and grammar. Last year we only had to present once so it gave us an opportunity to go to all the other presentations. Unfortunately, this year, we had to present five times. We did split the last two so we could each visit another presentation. I really enjoy professional developments because I like to learn and get new ideas. If university education was free in the USA I don't think I'd ever stop being a student.

The seminar ended with a performance by students and a passing out of certificates to the attendees. The two days were long, but they were so much fun and we were working with a great group of people. It's kind of sad that I won't be here next year for it, but I told my director I wouldn't be mad if he paid for me to attend.

The last two photos are from Vera. The first one was just a funny one of my director and his time cards for the presenters. The day before the some of the presenters went over the allotted time, so I think he learned his lesson. Also, we had so much packed in one day that we needed to stay on a schedule so we could end on time since Vera and Kore were flying back to Moscow right after. The last picture I included to give you an idea of the amount of people attending. I think there were about 130 people in all which is great and I know they learned a lot.

The International Seminar

On Friday my director, in coordination with my work, the Ministry of Education of Bashkortostan, and the English Office of the USA Embassy in Moscow just to name a few, organized a large seminar for English teachers in the republic I live in. When my director first told me about it I was not excited. We have to do 90 minute presentations every so often, and I dread them. I am NOT a public speaker, and I'm not entertaining to watch. This conference was a little different than the rest because it was an all-day event instead of just a few hours. Also, I was able to team up with Elizabeth, another native speaker, to do a presentation together. We also only had to present for 45 minutes, which was AMAZING! The day actually turned out so much better than I expected, and I had a lot of fun!

The day started off kind of rocky. I could not find the building. I accidentally walked into a random building my GPS told me to go to and quickly realized it wasn't right. I walked to my school which was nearby only to find that no one was there. Eventually, I called my director and was able to find the place. At 10 am we started with introductions and the three presenters from other areas of Russia (Moscow, Kazan, and Yekaterinburg) gave presentations which really really interesting. Then we had a 30 minute coffee break. While everyone else went to the university cafeteria we went into a back room where we were greeted with tons of pastries and candy.

Women's Day Celebration

The Friday before Women's Day (March 4) was a day of celebration in a lot of work places. The school I work for organized a little staff meeting where we ate dessert, drank some champagne, and received flowers and a little glass jar. I wasn't expecting to do anything in my Intermediate adult class that night, but my students had another idea.

I was waiting for everyone to arrive when they came in with a bouquet of flowers for me. It was SO sweet. I felt guilty that I hadn't planned anything for them. We started the lesson as usual, and about 30-40 minutes in they started acting weird. I was having them work on an activity that required partner work, but then all of a sudden they were all talking to each other in Russian. I heard a few words like "cafe," "tea," and "she." Then they asked if they could take their break (our class is 2.5 hours long). I said sure because I didn't care. They kept talking then we went back to the lesson but they all seemed so restless. Then at about 8:30 they told me they had a surprise. They whipped out a cake and tea and we had a celebration for all the women in the class.

Slava, being the only guy, had to give a speech to all of us which started out in English but then he switched to Russian because it was much easier. I guess it's a thing for guys to make speeches to all the women thanking them. This class was my very first class ever at this school. People came and went in the class and although it was a challenge at first I think they are one of my favorites. We spent the rest of class eating cake, drinking tea, and trying to talk in English.

I had a student from another class come and take the group pictures, but I took the rest. I realized how terrible my indoor shooting is. I guess it's something I really need to focus on!

¿Cómo Estás?

Kerry Layton

I realized that I don't really write about things other than what I make or where I go. I was writing a whole lot more when I was student teaching. That was mostly because I had something to write about. Now all I do is work and I just don't have the energy or want to blog about substitute teaching. I really dislike subbing. I don't think I'm bad at it, I just don't like it. I know it's the best way to get a teaching job.

The past few weeks I have been subbing for an ESL class. In order to find substituting jobs many school districts take advantage of a system called AESOP. Teachers can post jobs and subs, like me, can accept or decline them. One Saturday I saw a listing up for an ESL job which gave me three days in my preferred district. The teacher and students liked me so much that the teacher asked if I would like to sub for seven more days! I didn't hesitate with my response!

The kids are so amazing. The class size is small and the kids are good kids, they just can't speak English well. I've been introduced to so many new things. I learned how to say "hello" in Russian and Greek (below). I learned how to write my name in Russian. I learned how to make tacos like a Mexican (add cilantro! Why did I not think of that?). They have also played Spanish music for me. It's so cute to see them sing along to the music.

Hello in Russian

Hello in Greek

My first and last name in Russian!

They even wrote me cute notes! I feel bad because lately I have had to yell at them a few times, especially one boy because he is always distracting himself. I try to be tough not mean though, and I think it shows because they still really like me!

Te way the day works is that I start off at the high school and then I move to one of the middle schools. The kids at the high school are less talkative, and I spend less time with them, but it is still interesting to know about their cultures. They are from all parts of the globe.

I spend most of my time at the middle school. I have at least 2 classes with the kids, so I get to know them really well. There is a family of two girls and one boy from Mexico, a girl whose parents are Mexican, and another girl who is new from Peru. The girl from Peru doesn't know any English. The two girls from Mexico know very little English, but their brother came here two years before them so he knows how to speak English really well. It's so cool because I get to speak to them in Spanish! I'm not at all great at it and many times I do have to use a translator, but it makes me realize that if I were to go to a Spanish speaking country I could see myself becoming fluent because I am still able to make conversation with them using my bit of Spanish and their bit of English

I absolutely love learning about other people's cultures. So, I really enjoy being in this class. Also, I love English. I wanted to be an English teacher, but thought it would be harder to find a job as an English teacher than a Social Studies teacher (only to find out that it's the opposite). I spoke with the teacher about what I needed to do to become an ESL teacher. I would only need my ESL endorsement to teach it. She said that many universities have grants where they will pay you to get it and many school districts are desperate for ESL teachers. I am seriously considering going to get my ESL endorsement. Even if I have to pay it'll only put me back about $2000 because I only need to take about five classes. The only thing holding me back is that I really want to teach history. I have so many good books and ideas about the subject that I would hate for that to all go to waste.

Below I have some songs that the students have introduced me to. The girls have a crush on Prince Royce. Haha.

How many languages can you speak?