{"id":14965,"date":"2012-11-14T16:18:02","date_gmt":"2012-11-14T21:18:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/?p=14965"},"modified":"2013-05-17T11:39:05","modified_gmt":"2013-05-17T15:39:05","slug":"bilingual-grad-enlivens-elementary-spanish-classes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/2012\/bilingual-grad-enlivens-elementary-spanish-classes\/","title":{"rendered":"Bilingual Grad Enlivens Elementary Spanish Classes"},"content":{"rendered":"

Fifteen kindergarteners file into Camila Pandolfi\u2019s classroom at Waterman Elementary School in Harrisonburg, Va.<\/a>, and take seats in the illustrated rows they recognize by such names as tri\u00e1ngulo, coraz\u00f3n, estrella (triangle, heart, star).<\/p>\n

They enthusiastically repeat descriptions of storybook creatures Pandolfi displays: caballo azul (blue horse), rana verde (green frog), gato morado (purple cat).<\/p>\n

English is the second language for 48 percent of Waterman\u2019s students, says Principal Jeremy Weaver. Most of the non-native English speakers here use Spanish as their first language, but some speak Kurdish, Russian and Arabic, plus a smattering of other languages. Yet after five weeks, Pandolfi \u2013 teaching almost entirely in her native Spanish — has this entire group responding confidently.<\/p>\n

\u201cLev\u00e1ntate\u201c (stand up), she requests, turning on a recording. Children sway to the catchy drum beat, singing with the song about colors. Later, waving as the class ends, the energetic group sings \u201cAdi\u00f3s, hasta la pr\u00f3xima vez\u201d (Good-bye until next time.)<\/p>\n

Pandolfi is the school\u2019s resource teacher for its one-year-old Foreign Language in Elementary Schools program, meaning she sees every student in kindergarten through grade 3 for one hour every six days. “Parents know this is a great age to begin building language skills in their children,\u201d says Jeremy Aldrich, Harrisonburg schools\u2019 foreign language coordinator and Pandolfi\u2019s supervisor.<\/p>\n

Pandolfi named “best and brightest of Virginia’s beginning teachers” in 2012 <\/h3>\n
\"\"<\/a>
EMU teacher education graduate Camila Pandolfi<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As a student teacher prior to graduating in the spring of 2012, Pandolfi was cited as a Teacher of Promise, \u201can award given to the best and brightest of Virginia’s beginning teachers,\u201d according to Cathy Smeltzer Erb<\/a>, education department<\/a> chair at Pandolfi\u2019s alma mater, Eastern Mennonite University (EMU).<\/p>\n

Pandolfi discovered early in her college career that she had a gift for teaching, under EMU\u2019s policy of sending its education majors into local schools as early as their fourth week of classwork. Having completed practicums (involving mostly observation with some teaching) with secondary-level students beginning her freshman year, Pandolfi first worked with elementary children the summer after her junior year. Following a fall semester\u2019s study in her native Uruguay, she did her student teaching this spring at Harrisonburg\u2019s Smithland Elementary School<\/a>, with its dual-immersion program, while serving as an English as a Second Language resource person.<\/p>\n

Pandolfi calls student teaching \u2013 in which the student, supervised, undertakes full teaching duties \u2013 her most formative EMU education experience.<\/p>\n

After finishing her education degree, she was hired to work in a different Spanish-language program at another elementary school, Waterman.<\/p>\n

\"EMU<\/a>
EMU graduate Camila Pandolfi leads Spanish class at Waterman Elementary in Harrisonburg, Va.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Reflecting on her own move from Uruguay to the United States at age 12, Pandolfi says, \u201cMy English was limited to simple words and phrases. Through my experience of learning English as a foreign language, I was exposed to good and not-so-good methods of language teaching.\u201d<\/p>\n

Aldrich recalls teaching Pandolfi English in middle school. \u201cCamila is a great example of home-grown talent for Harrisonburg City Schools<\/a>,\u201d he says. \u201cI have been so pleased to see her become the poised, enthusiastic teacher she is. She is a natural with students.\u201d<\/p>\n

Though Pandolfi\u2019s teaching may look \u201cnatural,\u201d she explains she is constantly refining her work, reflecting EMU\u2019s emphasis on developing \u201creflective practitioners.\u201d<\/p>\n

Erb explains that being such a practitioner entails reflecting on the teaching experience \u201cto collect data, analyze the evidence, and plan for and implement change in teaching that will enhance student learning.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pandolfi agrees. \u201cEMU instilled that value in me. I revise my lessons constantly. It has made me want to never be \u2018at rest\u2019 and mediocre with the lessons I teach.\u201d<\/p>\n

Principal Weaver \u2013 a 1995 EMU education graduate \u2013 calls Pandolfi \u201ca phenomenal addition\u201d to his school, adding that another recent EMU grad, Maria J. Yoder (2011) teaches second grade.<\/p>\n

EMU is one of only five private colleges in Virginia to be certified by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Fifteen kindergarteners file into Camila Pandolfi\u2019s classroom at Waterman Elementary School in Harrisonburg, Va., and take seats in the illustrated rows they recognize by such names as tri\u00e1ngulo, coraz\u00f3n, estrella ... read more about Bilingual Grad Enlivens Elementary Spanish Classes<\/span><\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":112,"featured_media":14977,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4515,266,5594,5730],"tags":[14247,6634,9878,14665],"feature":[],"class_list":["post-14965","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-academics","category-alumni","category-education","category-undergraduate-programs","tag-camila-pandolfi","tag-cathy-smeltzer-erb","tag-education","tag-jeremy-weaver"],"yoast_head":"\nBilingual Grad Enlivens Elementary Spanish Classes - EMU News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/2012\/bilingual-grad-enlivens-elementary-spanish-classes\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Bilingual Grad Enlivens Elementary Spanish Classes - 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