Ben - TP #16

I just got back from my final tutoring session with Glenda, and my final session for TEFL class!!! For this last time with Glenda I decided that it might be nice to share a bit of New Orleans culture with her, so we took a walk around Audubon Park (a beautiful park in Uptown New Orleans). As we walked around the park I simply asked Glenda to describe to me anything that she saw in as much detail as she could manage. For example, if there was a person riding a red bicycle around the park and the person had brown hair and it was a girl and she was going very fast I would have Glenda tell me as much of that as she possibly could. I thought this was a great exercise, especially for our last session together because it allowed Glenda to work on her speaking skills and it was also a nice time to spend together outside.
Glenda actually did very well in describing her surroundings in great detail. She mentioned all of the colors that she could see, what people were doing, what animals she could observe and what their actions were like. The idea behind the exercise was that it was supposed to help Glenda feel more comfortable describing the world around her in English. I was quite happy with it actually. I think it is important to have lessons where the student (tutee, etc.) has the opportunity to freely express themselves without the pressure of getting something right or being tested on something. Outside, in the park, Glenda actually spoke better English than in any of our previous sessions. I definitely plan on using what I learned today about this type of learning environment in my future experiences teaching English. Perhaps a fun field trip is in order, or at the very least a small trip outside the classroom.
Overall, teaching Glenda has been a pleasure. We actually discussed the possibility of continuing the tutoring sessions. I felt blessed to have another student who worked hard and really showed a desire to learn more about the English language. All three of my tutees: Fumie, Jason, and Glenda were a joy to get to know and I feel very blessed to have had the opportunity to teach them.