The day in the life of...

Who dares to teach must never cease to learn.  ~John Cotton Dana

Sunsets in Lisbon, truly one of a kind

This past month has not been filled with exotic places, but rather the life of a gal living and working in Lisbon.


WORK!
My University Fulbright teaching schedule has kept me quite busy-- preparing and giving lessons, workshops, presentations... It is incredible the amount of time it takes to create curriculum from scratch-- especially if it is content I don't specialize in. Researching topics, curriculum, creating lesson plans, informational handouts and worksheets, PowerPoint presentations...I insist on being well-prepared. The highlight are my students! Working with adults is a refreshing change from my younger munchkins in the U.S. 

I am teaching a weekly class to the International Relations Staff and other staff members on English reading, writing, and speaking skills. Last week I did a lesson on the American tradition of Thanksgiving--  a little surprised they knew nothing about except for the "gobble gobble turkey". We looked at literature from two perspectives- the traditional story we are told as we grow up about the 'pilgrims and Indians working and feasting together', to the perspective of the Native Americans, who often consider it a "National Day of Mourning."


Also included in my teaching load are weekly workshops for the Professors on their "Technical Writing" skills-- to be used for articles they write about their research to be published in English. Each module focuses on a different aspect of the research article: Abstract, Introduction, Methodology, Results, and Discussion/Conclusion. I am using a book to help guide my teaching called, "Science Research Writing for Non-Native Speakers of English" which has been helpful. The aim of this course is to provide them with the information, vocabulary and phrases, concrete examples, structure, and hands-on writing to improve their skills. 

International Education Day

On International Education Day this month, another Fulbrighter and I gave a presentation open to all students at Universities in Lisbon applying to grad school in the U.S who were interested in honing in their English writing, specifically their application essays. We had a good time! 


 LEARN!

Learning Portuguese has been coming slooowwwllyyy. I am a bit disappointed because of the lack of oral practice and progress I am making. It seems that most young people in Lisbon speak English, so the minute they can tell you aren't a native speaker they begin to speak to you in English. And since most people want to practice their English, they want to speak to you in it instead of Portuguese. I am taking an Erasmus Portuguese course at the University, so I feel my comprehension, writing and vocabulary is improving at least. Hopefully the oral skills will begin feeling more comfortable soon!

RUN!

Ponte 25 de Abril Bridge

After work I have found to keep my sanity and feel the endorphins I have been exercising my normal running gig. The river Tejo has a nice bike path I run down to sometimes which goes beneath the Ponte 25 de Abril Bridge-- eerily looking like the Golden Gate. I also have found a "forest" in the middle of Lisbon, a patch of protected land called "Monsanto" where I can get my fill of trail running... It doesn't feel like I'm in the middle of a big urban city while rocking the trails there. I'll be joining in the race spirit here in Lisbon this weekend to compete in the Maratona de Lisboa!

Casa Vinyasa, my studio in Lisbon

Yogi! 

I have also found a rad "ashtanga" yoga studio I love for my recovery days! It is a MySore style studio which are very rare to find. The closest studio similar is in San Francisco back at home. There are some differences in this method from the modern way in which yoga is usually taught: 

1.the class is not "led" as a whole but rather all instruction is one-on-one within the group  

2.students practice their own portion of the Ashtanga sequence of asanas at their own instruction

3.the teacher assists each student individually by giving physical adjustments & verbal instruction

I am enjoying this style because it really forces you to be present and active in the process, not just "following" the commands of an instructor-- thus the practice really becomes your own.

___

More to come soon.

Much love. Beijinhos! xoxo