Microfilm Project Finalists!

We made it! All the hard work has paid off. We are currently nominated in the category for "Best Original Video." My students are very excited these news and I am very proud of them. All their hard work and effort is finally being recognized.

I also want to thank the Auxiliares de Conversación and primarily Josué Fernández for their outmost dedication to the Microfilm project. Josué worked very diligently in the writing, filming, and editing in the making of this video to make this happen.

Take a look:

http://www.premiosmicrofilms.es/2011/

Enjoy!

Bea

Microfilm Project 2011

This year the Comunidad de Madrid decided to make a microfilm competition among the 5th year bilingual students in the whole Madrid Community. The choice of topic was up to each individual school and the video had to be no longer than 2 minutes. Through a lot of hours of brainstorming and practicing, we finally made our video. It took us one and a half days to film. Our video is about a news channel that receives breaking news of a school that is completely frozen and no one seems to know why this has happened. At the end of the video one of the students discovers how to make the class come back to normal.

The children had so much fun making this video and for them it was a very positive experience. I want to thank all of them for their hardwork and all the effort they put into making this video.

I am very proud of them! :)

Love,

Bea

PLEASE REMEMBER TO VOTE FOR OUR VIDEO!!! CLICK ON THE STARS!!!

Here is the link:

http://www.premiosmicrofilms.es/2011/videos/frozen-class-825.html

Canoeing at Juan Carlos I Park

The children had an opportunity to go canoeing (piragüismo). The trip was very exciting for them, since some of the students had never heard of this type of sport. One of the key factors in learning to canoe is to be very coordinated as a group in every stroke with the paddle. Group effort is very important in order to make the canoe move in the direction you want to go. The instructors at the park allowed them wander through the water reservoir to learn how to maneuver the canoe and afterwards they raced against each other. They had an amazing time and they really enjoyed themselves. See for yourself!

Love,

Bea

Atocha Renfe Train Station

This week, the students took a trip to the Atocha Renfe Train Station, where they learnt about the practical aspects of public transportation, and, hopefully, gained a measure of confidence and independence. We in Madrid are lucky to have one of the better train systems in the world, and I want the students to be able to take full advantage of it as they grow older.

Love,

Bea

St. Patrick's Day Festival

On March 18th, we had a terrific St. Patrick's Day celebration. In the morning, the children made shamrocks and decorated them with the colors of the Irish flag. After recess, an live Irish band put on a mini-concert, and we finished off the day with a gymkhana that left the children exhausted but happy. The weather was beautiful, too—it finally felt like we were heading into spring.

As you can see, our students thoroughly enjoyed themselves, and were fairly creative with the mandate to wear green (note the face paintings). Enjoy the pictures!

Love,

Bea

Festivities: 2010 Christmas Festival

Every year the school celebrates a Christmas Festival to finish the first part of the academic year and to give the students an outlet for their energy and something to look forward to before the holidays. Each grade, from preschool to sixth, had to prepare a show and present it to the rest of the school in the auditorium. The students put a lot of work and dedication into the presentations. We should all be very proud of them!

We chose the song "All I Want for Christmas Is You" from Mariah Carey and, with my help, the students created choreography for the song. I have uploaded a video of the rehearsal that we held a few days before the Festival. In the video, some of the students did the dancing, others did the singing, and the ones below the stage pretended to be the musicians.

I thought the children looked wonderful! Don't you think so?

Love,

Bea

Festivities: Peace Day 2011

Our school celebrated Peace Day on January 28th. The students read poems, sang Michael Jackson's "Heal the World" (which they had been practicing in class for some time), and made an enormous map of the world out of boxes that they had colored in class. They behaved beautifully, as always.

Love,

Bea