Initially I was really nervous to go to Casa San Jose because I thought that I was

going to be speaking Spanish with a bunch of native speakers, who were children

nonetheless. I was afraid I would say something wrong and then it would be weird. I was

really relieved to see that this was not the case at all. I thought it was really surprising

that they wanted to talk in English. When we broke off into groups to do the Story bird

exercises they wanted to talk in English and they even wrote their stories in English. I

guess it makes sense that maybe they would rather talk in English with their friends

because that is probably what they do with their friends. I had gone into it thinking

maybe their English would not be as good as it actually was. They had no trouble

whatsoever talking in either language. I guess I was not really thinking that they would be

fluent in both but if they have been living here all their life then I should have know they

would be fluent for both languages because they are immersed with both cultures. I did

not find anything challenging about the experience because it was just really laid back. It

was a laid back situation and there was no pressure.

I never really thought about Pittsburgh actually having a Latino population until

we read the article a few weeks ago. So, just hearing that there is a place like Casa San

Jose in Pittsburgh was news to me. If I lived closer I would have loved to volunteer there.

It seems like it would be a lot of fun, especially because I like to interact with children. I

am glad to hear that they have a wonderful place like that to go. I personally do not know

this, but I would imagine that it is hard to be a minority in a population. While they are

Americans, a lot of people in the world today do not see them that way. They see them as

illegal or other bad things when they belong here just as much as we do. That makes me

sad, especially because they were all so wonderful!

 I really enjoyed the experience as a whole. It was a lot of fun to interact with the

children. I think it was good to open up with the game because it loosened everyone up

and got everyone incorporated together. I also enjoyed playing with them during the free

time because I think that gave everyone a chance to do their own thing and do what they

enjoyed or maybe what they would normally do had we not been there. It was easier to

play and interact after we played the first initial game. I think it gave everyone time to

open up and not just be shy.

Overall, I am really glad I had this opportunity and I went. Even though we just

did a simple activity, I am glad I could widen my horizons and theirs with something as

small as creating an activity. The girl that we helped write a story, G, made a comment to

Kristin and I to the effect of dont forget her when we become big doctors. I think that

was the best part of the day. It made me smile and it is making me smile again as I write

this!

1. Recomiendo que todos la gente aprendan la poblacin de hispnico en Pittsburgh.

2. Sugiero que la profesora tenga un relacin con Casa San Jos en el futuro tan los
estudiantes irn otra vez.
3. Es necesario que los nios sientan confortable con t.
4. Es probable que los nios estn mas confortable con ingles.
5. Es importante que Pittsburgh tenga una programa para los nios hispnicos a Casa San
Jos.
6. No creo que los nios gusten nos historias.
7. Es mejor que juguemos un juego a rompe el hielo al principio porque entonces los
nios se calientan.
8. Ojal que los nios tengan mucho divertido con los estudiantes de SHU.
9. Estoy contenta que conozca una nia, G.
10. Es dudoso que t no tengas divertido a Casa San Jos.