learn a little English, get a little faith

the more i use these new ESL books we bought for makarios' use, the more i like them. we're still in level one, but each chapter has at least a proverb, if not a full Bible story. yet they are all presented in such a way that they can be used in closed countries with few problems. here is how they have been effective in the DR.

Evelyn is one of my students in Chichigua. she has four sons who are also involved in camille's classes. it is evident that one of the things she enjoys most in each chapter is the portion from the Bible. though she does not read the Bible on her own, she has portions of it to study as she also learns English.

Damarys is one of my students in Pancho Mateo. she has a 3 year old son, Jerry, who also attends Camille's classes. as we were studying the proverbs in our chapter this week i reminded the students that they can find them in the Bible if they want to read it in Spanish. under her breath Damarys said, "yo quierro una biblia.'' i want a Bible. i plan to take one to her next week.

a new family moved in next to the little school house in pancho mateo. the kids are all very well behaved and respectful and so it is evident that their mother keeps them in line very well. the youngest kids have been attending camille's classes, while the oldest daughter (probably around 20) has been coming to my English classes. i don't know how much exposure this family has had to the Bible previous to moving to pancho mateo, but now the youngest kids hear a Bible story twice a week, and the oldest daughter (who has a child of her own with missing father) is hearing proverbs and Bible stories through the ESL curriculum, as well as having the wonderful opportunity to build a relationship with Crisitina (camille's AMAZING teacher aid who is also coming to this class).

in addition to all of this, my students also had the opportunity to see a bunch of crazy UT students act out the story of The Good Samaritan during the spring break trip. we are preparing other such fun, Bible based activities for the summer groups. we're hoping (and praying) these activities will draw in more English students and provide more stories of how learning English can make you more than just bilingual.