MEANINGFUL EXPERIENCES 2019

Meaningful Experiences 2019

What is a meaningful experience?

There are still many teachers who do a wonderful job in their class, but never share it with the world. There are teachers who reflect daily on their practice and implement several strategies to help their students read, write, listen and speak in the foreign language. There are those teachers who learn about games, who struggle to keep up with all the technological advances to introduce them in their classes. There are those teachers who find in songs a way to connect with students and help them deal with social problems while they practice the foreign language. There are those teachers who cooperate with other teachers in the same school, or in other countries; they find a way to overthrow the walls and show students the richness and complexity of the world around them.

All those experiences and many more are worth to tell. Those stories nourish us and give us hope to believe that everything can improve, that we can be even better... to exceed our own expectations.

This year, Cali's Foreign Languages Teachers Network invite you to join us in a wonderful free event on September 25th and 26th from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. to share with teachers and future teachers magnificent experiences and discuss about all those things that thrill us, that move us, that concern us: teaching a foreign language.

Some words from one of the members of the committee entrusted of such a wonderful event:

La Red de Docentes de Lenguas Extranjeras de Cali, en cooperación con la Universidad del Valle y la Secretaría de Educación Municipal, organiza para el próximo 25 y 26 de septiembre El 5° Encuentro de Experiencias Significativas en el auditorio de la facultad de Salud (enfermería) en la Universidad del Valle sede San Fernando. El evento reúne a los docentes alrededor de la exposición y reflexión acerca de sus prácticas de investigación y ejercicio pedagógico en el idioma inglés. Este evento se constituye en un ejemplo para la ciudad porque da a conocer las experiencias significativas en las instituciones educativas oficiales desde el salón de clases, en la habilidad en el uso y promoción de la lengua inglesa. El tema inspirador en esta oportunidad es la importancia del rol del docente y la comunidad educativa en la construcción de las competencias siglo XXI y la ciudadanía global, como base para responder a las exigencias del mundo actual. Es por ello que la conferencia de apertura está a cargo de la doctora Rosario Gutiérrez Becquett, directora nacional de AFC programas interculturales Colombia, entidad sin ánimo de lucro de carácter voluntario con presencia en más de 80 países y gran trayectoria en educación e interculturalidad que la distinguen como miembro consultivo de UNESCO.

María Eunelcy Estupiñan

Looking forward to meet you all 👌

Talent show

It's been almost two weeks since we had the opportunity to participate in the Talent show this year. These memories will be in our hearts forever. That's why we would like to share the words of two committed teachers who made this event possible with the help of a whole crew.

On September 11 2019 SEM, Univalle and English Teachers Network carried out the 7th version of the Talent Show in Centro Cultural de Cali; 26 public schools participated with about 160 students who sang, played a musical instrument, acted in a play or said a poem. Some students dared to sing in a language different from English.

There were 26 performances in the morning and 25 in the afternoon and the auditorium was full both shifts; most of the artists were accompanied by their teachers and their classmates who supported them through applauses, cheers and posters.

It is remarkable the quality of the performances, some students did a really professional job. The Talent Show is an opportunity to evidence that teachers are not only teaching some contents, they are motivating students to do authentic actions using the foreign language. Congratulations teachers and students because you are making the difference!

Gloria J. Montoya

The talent show was a great event, promoted by Cali's Foreign languages teachers network in association with the Municipal Secretary of Education and Univalle, inviting teachers from public schools to motivate their students to participe with songs,plays and poems. The registration was made through a link... Many Public institutions of Cali participated, with their plays and monologues, songs in English and Italian, solists, duos, trios and groups made their entrance; there was also Caribbean poetry, and dances on stage. The opening was made by Luz Stella Figueroa, representing the SEM-Cali, and Gloria Judith Montoya as a coordinator of the Talent Show. The attendance was great 350 people among students, parents and organizers in the morning; and 300people in the afternoon. At the end of the day the pictures were taken and videos were made; awards were given to each participant enrolled in the event. They received a money belt and a nice bottle with a bag, and of course the certificate of participation. 

The work of the Comitee Members from the network and Univalle's crew under the coordination of Yuri Gonzalez,   made possible to fulfill all expectations and accomplished the objetives; scenary, logistics,refreshments and awards of the participants were great. It is worth highlighting the performance of the Teacher Elizabeth Valencia as a Singer with her musical group of the Educational Intitution Pichinde, and the presenters Vivian and Soraya, congratulations for the acts presented, and the whole group of teachers whose support  made this event possible: Group of talent show teachers Alejandra, Viviana, Nelly, Soraya, Elida Stella and Sara, Congratulations again and again!

 Lic. Elida Stella Molano Arbeláez.

What's coming is up to you all! So we invite you to start 2020 preparing your shows and enjoy this wonderful world of foreign languages and talent all year around 😏

C-D-E-F-G-L-B

💥Yeah, you may be thinking that we lost out mind, but we actually have a divergent thinking and 🎤music, poetry and 📺drama are on the air.

Tomorrow we will have our Talent Show and we want the world to know about it! Talent is something to be shared with everybody, and with this event we want our students to widen their horizonts while having fun. 👱👳💁

So please, for all you who want to share your experience this coming day upload your photos with the hashtags
💬
 #TalentShow2019Cali
#ForeignLanguagesTeachersNetworkCali
#SEMCALI

TALENT SHOW 2019

As the saying goes "A promise made is a debt unpaid", but be sure we pay!

A group of teachers from the Foreign LanguagesTeachers' Network in Cali and Univalle are committed to make of this year an espectacular event and we all hope to count on you 😏

As many of you know, the Cali’s Foreign Languages Network promotes the participation of teachers and students of Public institutions in a series of cultural and academic events. This year won’t be different, you’re all invited to motivate and register your talented students to perform at the Talent Show 2019. Singing, drama, and poetry in English and other foreign languages are the categories of this very year. 

The following is the link for participants to register: 


https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSckKfLfscdbvnGSG-R5-MpKSkd-VzF03AJB1V16W4hlYamejA/viewform

Please keep in mind the following important information: 

• Registrations go until August 23 (or when 40 presentations are booked even before the deadline). 
• Each institution can register only once for each category (for example, one institution cannot have two acts of poetry).
• Categories are: 

1. Singing (It could be solo, duets or groups)
2. Poetry
3. Theater
4. Free (In another foreign language like French, Italian or Japanese)

The Event will be held on September 11th all day at Centro Cultural Comfandi (8th street).

Note: Presentations will be organized in the morning or the afternoon taking into account students' schedule.

If you have any questions please contact us.

We hope to see you all there to enjoy the talent of our students!

What's going on?

These couple of weeks we have been receiving information about different workshops and conferences related to our interest: languages.

Therefore, here you will find some useful information. 

👀Remember, these are not activities related to the Foreign Languages Teachers Network in Cali.👀

For more useful information you can also visit our facebook page 
https://m.facebook.com/groups/121685791270182

Fancy a dance?

Teachers are one breed of amazing creative beings, so it's not hard to believe that a Tango night was possible 😀

 












But as you can expect, it was more than just a tango night. It was an opportunity to learn about this dance and practice English.

The first part was developed by our dear teacher Elida Stella and a nice presentation about tango, followed by the insightful Gloria Nancy Cañon and the presentation of a video about the history and evolution of tango. Teacher Olga Grueso, backstage, was committed to make all things possible with the technical arrangements.

On the left, Elida Stella, in the middle, Olga Grueso, and on the right, Gloria Nancy.

Excitement was on the air and teachers and guests were ready to dance, but first, some important tips: What to wear when tango calls? 


The man wears:

• Full formal dress,  
• A shirt usually silk, 
• Tie, suspenders , vest,
• Pants with straight cut trousers and gardeliano hat. 
• Black and white shine shoes,or several colors. Sometimes these have hooks to adapt the floor.

 The woman usually wears:

• An elegant black dress or maybe another color.
• Perhaps a blouse and skirt with straps and opening pikes. 
• Sometimes she uses Gloves and scarf.
• Stocking or panty hose and elegant
• High shoes with back protection for the ankle, usually with shiny leather.
• Her hair goes up fixed with gum or gel or a feather diadem. 

Teacher Oscar Efren Orjuela created a minicoreography and with the help of teacher Eunelcy the class started:
 

 

Needless to say, the class was as attentive as any teacher would love; but as the saying goes, an image is worth a thousand words...

 

 

The girls followed Eunelcy:
 

 

The boys followed Oscar:

And as any Colombia party, celebration without food isn't a celebrations at all.

Smiles and laughter were the symptoms of a perfect class 😅

It's been two years since that practice and we'd love to have another memorable experience, perhaps Cumbia, Currulado, Joropo or Salsa. So many options!

Keep connected, because another dance class is to be appointed. 😋 

Who says me? 🙋

Who said PICNIC?

 
Pretty sure many of you had thought, "A picnic? What a great idea!". It is indeed.

A group of teachers from the network decided to do this activity on 2017. They bought some food and prepared some games. The result? A wonderful time with other teachers, their relatives, friends and people who were just curious and decided to join. The appointment was at one of the most popular and cool places in Cali: San Antonio. This place known for being the meeting point for story tellers, poets, theater, painting artists and more, became the perfect spot to a fun, culturally enriching and relaxing activity.

As our dear teacher Elida Stella says, "The night invited to listen to music and sing and clap ourselves for our English practice. It was a good exercise and another form to have a picnic night."

People could say it was the wine, but truth to be told, English naturally flowed while people forgot about chores and worries; laughter replaced stress and sharing food and experiences was the order for the night.

It was wonderful to be in the company of some Fellows. You probably wonder what it refers to. Well, that year some public schools had the opportunity to receive young people from different parts of the world who brought support and developed different projects with students and teachers. This activity was engraved in their hearts and their big smiles were evidence enough to say, "we did it!"

This was also an opportunity to know how talented teachers are! 

We can't wait to have another picnic, and we want you there. So please, keep reading our blog because a picnic is on its way.

Finally, some recommendations from teacher Elida Stella,

We recommend to bring a snack for a picnic, for example, a wine. No-one really wants to have their picnic in the middle of a rubbish dump and yet many leave all their litter for the next people to find. So we recommend our friends in the Picnic to eat and drink, and avoid littering.