The Magic of the English Club!

Hola chicos!

Today I got to experience the magic of the English Club. Remember when I was talking about how Senegalese students don't really get to practice speaking as much during their English class times? Well, it turns out that some (not all) students DO get to practice their English speaking skills in something called the ENGLISH CLUB! The English club is mostly

run by the students. When this club first started out it was run mostly by teacher advisors but now it is run almost entirely by students. The students get to sing songs, learn dances, practice conversations, compete in debates, and all in all just have fun in the language of English. The students love it and say they have become a family. They greeted us with a song and it was so beautiful I had to hold back my tears. I also got to witness a competition amongst many English Clubs from around the area called "Whose The Best?" During this competition students worked in teams on different activities ranging from a form of spelling bee, to a grammar Kahoot, to a debate about child kidnapping. It was incredible and I was so impressed with what the students were able to do. One of my favorite moments was when a high school student stood up and said as part of his debate that "We are the children of the world. We are the future of the world. We are the doctors and teachers. We will be educated. We will make the world a better place together."

This was spoken by a young, Muslim, male student so eloquently and passionately. With all of the hatred and racism that is going on in today's day and age, I really wish every leader and member of this Earth could have heard those words coming from this young boy. THESE are the leaders and future of the world. AFRICAN people, and AMERICANS, and CANADIANS, and the children of all other countries. They are ALL future leaders. They can ALL make the world a better place. They must ALL work together to do so. Culturally, linguistically, theologically, ALL of these children will need to accept, respect, and thrive together in order to make our WORLD better. I see it happening here. I would like to do my part in making sure I pass this message on to my students, friends, and family so that it happens around the world.

That being said, from my experience participating in the Senegalese English Club, I have decided that Canton needs a Spanish club! I would like to start one at CIS or CMS. I would love to practice singing and dancing in Spanish. We can do more speaking activities and communicate in greater depth than we are able to do in class. We can Skype Spanish speakers from around the world and practice in our own community. I think our first field trip should be to ABC Pizza in Canton to practice ordering in Spanish! Would anyone be interested in joining the Spanish club? I am only going to take around 10 students to start. Comment on this blog if you are interested and I will see what we can do!

Hasta luego!

Senora Traub