July 23, 2003
Camp teaches English lessons
28 residents attend English Summer Camp at school
By Carol South
Herald contributing writer
Wrapping their tongues and minds around unfamiliar words, 28 area residents are learning English this summer.
All non-native English speakers, these residents enrolled in the Multigenerational English Summer Camp, held at Blair Elementary School and sponsored by the 21st Century Learning Centers grant.
An average of 21-24 students participate in the classes each session with eight staff members to help them. The goal of the course is to improve both speaking and writing skills in English for the students, who range in age from four to grandparent age.
"We're really lucky to have so many one-on-one experiences with the students and our staff members," said Susan Auer, the Community Learning Center coordinator based at Sabin Elementary School. "We are doing a variety of things with them, like games, computer games and field trips."
The four-week camp meets mornings from Monday through Thursday and will wind up this week. Each week has features a different theme, including commerce, education and community resources.
Last week's theme was health and safety and students learned the names of body parts in English, how to handle an emergency, including dialing 911, and talking with medical professionals. Students also toured an ambulance from the Blair Township Volunteer Fire Department.
A field trip to a bowling alley, voted on by the majority of the students, rounded out their week with a dash of physical fitness mixed with socializing.
"[The class] helps me with how to have a conversation," said Brenda Martinez, a native Spanish speaker.
Many family groups participate in the program and help each other with their homework. Approximately half of the students are native Spanish speakers and half are from the Ukraine; one student is from Hungary. Many of the adults and teenagers in this latter group are already fluent in both Ukraine and Russian. An additional challenge for the Ukrainian students is that they are learning not only a new language, but also a new alphabet and system of numbers.
"[The class] helps learn new words," said Vyacheslav Selvesyuk, who has been studying English for two months since he arrived in the United States.
Selvesyuk, 21, is a carpenter and hopes soon to be able to work in his field. Already bilingual in Ukraine and Russian, he is eager to learn more English.
"[I] studied very little before," he said.
High tech tools are also helping the students learn. A variety of ESL computer games are available during part of the class, with puzzles and word matching games helping expand vocabulary. In addition, students use individual Palm Pilots to store vocabulary for study at home.
"The computers have been a huge hit," noted Auer. "The computers and computer games allow them to progress at their own level."
Previous field trips included shopping at Meijer, where students learned to ask questions of staff and navigate the store. These skills, which may be taken for granted by native or skilled English speakers, can be overwhelming to new students of the language.
"We also stopped in the ethnic aisle and had students tell about some of the foods and how they use them," said Julie Hay, the Community Learning Center coordinator based at Blair Elementary School.
Another field trip will take them to the Traverse Area District Library, where students will obtain library cards. Other civics lessons in the class include modeling voting, obtaining a driver's license, discussing citizenship laws and obtaining a Social Security number.
"For some people the growth has been phenomenal," Hay said. "For others, it is great if they say their name in class because it is great that they feel comfortable to speak out."