Our country manager in Belize, Ed, has sent this report on how the group are doing and what they are up to...
On Saturday all of the Trekkers will arrive back in Belize after a month of very intensive Spanish. The school that Trekforce uses has been fantastic and have been incredibly kind and welcoming. Each of the Trekkers has had one-to-one tuition, which at times can be very hard work, but it has paid dividends and everyone that has put the effort in has improved lots.
During this time everyone has been living in pairs or threes in small houses hosted by local families. Everyone loved this even though at first there were a few awkward silences as the families don’t speak a word of English. The families have been brilliant this year and have put up with some appalling Spanglish!
The language school has also laid on lots of extracurricular activities such as soap-making and local dancing – which have been very entertaining to take part in.
As the lessons only happen for half the day – everyone has had the chance to relax by the beautiful Lake Peten and enjoy the amazing sunshine that we have had for our entire stay.
Weekends have been exciting too and everyone has been free to travel independently in Guatemala. Most of the Trekkers went to Tikal, the Mayan ruins that were filmed in “Star Wars”, and sat on the temples to watch the sunset. Most too ventured south this weekend to see Antigua, an attractive small town in the south of Guatemala that is surrounded by active volcanoes.
After a farewell meal and a few drinks the whole group will be picked up on Saturday morning to start the next phase of the Trekforce experience – either diving or teaching in small schools in Belize…
Teacher Training
Those that are teaching are about to start a 4-day course in how to teach. This covers everything from how to project your voice and get the attention of the class, to how to plan lessons. During this time we have guest speakers coming in to talk to the Trekkers including the Deputy Minister for Education in Belize.
On Saturday all of the Trekkers will arrive back in Belize after a month of very intensive Spanish. The school that Trekforce uses has been fantastic and have been incredibly kind and welcoming. Each of the Trekkers has had one-to-one tuition, which at times can be very hard work, but it has paid dividends and everyone that has put the effort in has improved lots.
During this time everyone has been living in pairs or threes in small houses hosted by local families. Everyone loved this even though at first there were a few awkward silences as the families don’t speak a word of English. The families have been brilliant this year and have put up with some appalling Spanglish!
The language school has also laid on lots of extracurricular activities such as soap-making and local dancing – which have been very entertaining to take part in.
As the lessons only happen for half the day – everyone has had the chance to relax by the beautiful Lake Peten and enjoy the amazing sunshine that we have had for our entire stay.
Weekends have been exciting too and everyone has been free to travel independently in Guatemala. Most of the Trekkers went to Tikal, the Mayan ruins that were filmed in “Star Wars”, and sat on the temples to watch the sunset. Most too ventured south this weekend to see Antigua, an attractive small town in the south of Guatemala that is surrounded by active volcanoes.
After a farewell meal and a few drinks the whole group will be picked up on Saturday morning to start the next phase of the Trekforce experience – either diving or teaching in small schools in Belize…
Teacher Training
Those that are teaching are about to start a 4-day course in how to teach. This covers everything from how to project your voice and get the attention of the class, to how to plan lessons. During this time we have guest speakers coming in to talk to the Trekkers including the Deputy Minister for Education in Belize.
Diving
Those with less of an appetite for teaching are heading to the islands for a week of scuba diving on the Mesoamerican barrier reef. It’s a very Caribbean feeling island and a difficult place to get stressed. They will be diving with Belize Diving Services, which is run very professionally by an American couple.
Updates on the teaching phase will appear as soon as the UK office receive the next report....
