What is happening to me?
Mondays are when I have a huge break before my first class so it gave me a lot of time to prepare for my adult class at night, which will come into play later. My first class was with Javi for Science 3B, they had a test. The kids were great all class though, quiet and content. I never realized how hard it would be to give a class a test. They are allowed to ask questions and it is so hard to not give them the answer. I know they know it because I walk around during regular classes asking them questions and discussing the chapter with them. But sometimes at test time the words aren't there, or in this exam for example, the style of the test was awkward. I did the best I could but I wanted to do more. They are all very smart, some just understand speaking more than reading. I have to find a balance between helping and giving them the answers (which i didn't do, but came close).
After lunch I had my 3A's as always. I recently realized I have them at least once a day, some days twice. I enjoy them because I know exactly what they are working on at all times. Today made my day though because as I was heading to class one of the little boys greeted me wicked enthusiastically. He put his arm on my waist (not surprisingly some of them are not much taller than me) and talked excitedly about heading to class. I was shocked because little Adrian is what I would call a trouble maker. He talks incessantly and just walks around. I usually spend class standing between him and Pablo trying to put the fear of god into them, not usually that successful. I had the impression that he thought I was a joke really because he's very good at mocking me. But today was different, he pronounced my name properly (all day long I hear "Sit Properly", it is starting to wear off) and waited for me when I had to run to the English room for something. He even wanted me to sit next to him in class. Which brings me to Beatriz, one of the smartest kids I know. Her grasp of English is impeccable and she is very pleasant. She also chose today to follow me around everywhere and do whatever I did. Actually not that annoying. The class went great; everyone listened, even Alex who at least sat silently in the back, and they learned question words. I went around the room as usual helping them, but they were all doing so great. In the first week I would check their work and they wouldn't pay attention. In the second week they would ask for my help and then after I told them it was perfect they would run to Mary and have her check it. Now they call "Teacher" (which in a Spanish accent sounds like Tea-Chair!) and Mary heads over to help, they turn her away and say "Tea-CHAIR Melanie (Melody, Melandy-take your pick). We both find it hysterical because it finally means that they understand me. They realize that I'm here to stay and not just an observer. I was really proud of their hard work today.
Following English I have Physical Education with Elena and this class. I love how excited they get heading to the gym, they can't control themselves. Beatriz was still on my heels so we waited for the two other girls to get their crap together and then went down together. When I got inside the gym they all wanted me to sit next to them in the circle. It's great to be so popular among eight year olds! The main game today had to do with hoops and they all wanted to show me how amazing they were. All I heard was my name echoing through the gym. I like how we are finally bonding as corny as that sounds. I'm going to be with this class six times a week for the next 7 months or so and I think it is important for them to actually like me. I spent most of my last 45 minutes at school laughing and I couldn't be happier.
Bus ride home was short and sweet in the great sunshine. I made it to my adult class by 5:30 so I did a little shopping. Good news/Bad news is that there is an H&M right off the metro in Nuevos Ministerios, pretty much heaven. I figured that since a certain team of mine was making me wait until April to see them I could do a little shopping therapy. The cost? A new shirt, wallet, and headband all under 20 euros. The headband is for ears that I will need for a Halloween skit Lisa, Steve and I are performing. Since my lesson plan was already done I had time to just wander about, pretty fantastic.
Class went smoothly, except that Tomas the oldest guy in the class is a class clown. I'm not bothered by it, well except for the whole Rhode Island spiel (I never knew that 'spiel' was spelled that way) that won't be repeated. They are still asking good questions so time flies and I'm home by 9:30. Maybe by December I can start talking at a normal speed again. Ah, who am I kidding, probably not.
Sidenote: I went to Alcala de Henares for the Cervantes festival on Sunday. Its in zone B3, so not that bad of a commute. Walked around the town for a while before finding the center. There was a protest of some sort for what looked the like construction of a chemical plant upwind from the town. People were none too happy. The main part of the festival was last week so all they had was a book fair. It was still nice to wander the booths and search through old books. I looked through some of the cookbooks but none of them had pictures so I figured it best to pass. Cooking in another language is hard enough, a different form of measurement even harder, but without knowing what the food was supposed to look like? Forget it!
Mulletted protesters on the top, Book Fair on the bottom. 
Negative: Having both the "grasshopper twins" in my classes today.
Positive: An amazing paper airplane present from good Alex in 3A.
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