santa teresa

Ávila, a great excursion from Madrid

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If you are Catholic, you probably know Ávila from Saint Teresa. Otherwise, you might know this city because of its history, Medieval wall, or its sweets. Avila is a UNESCO World Heritage site and it is less than two hours North of Madrid, and a great and recommended visit.

It had been a long time since I visited this city, but I recently had a getaway with Celia. We took the train from Madrid, which was an adventure, having to change trains in El Escorial. We hit the city running, visiting El Real Monasterio de Santo Tomás straight from the train station. Sto. Tomas has one of the purest Gothic churches in Spain with an altarpiece by Berruguete, possibly the most famous Spanish artisan in this field, it also houses the tomb of the Infante Juan, Ferdinand and Isabella’s teenage son, three beautiful cloisters, etc.

We had the traditional steak for lunch and explored Saint Teresa’s home, now turned into a chapel -although they have kept her original room! We toured the Medieval wall, one of the finest in Europe, the Gothic cathedral, St. Teresa’s convent, all the beautiful little streets, sweet shops, and many palazzos, and squares. Since the visit was during Christmas, we got to see a few amazing Nativity scenes as well.

So, although Toledo and Segovia are better known day trips from Madrid, Ávila is in a remarkably close third position.

Teaching outside the classroom (Part 2)

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Discussing mystical literature in Starbucks!

The first part of Teaching outside the classroom was about coaching soccer, about teaching values, and teamwork, and all those “soft” skills which the classroom is not the ideal venue for. (You can read about it here)

Basically a classroom is just a room, four walls, nowadays likely packed with technology, in which your students and you meet. It is easy, you build a building, make lots of these rooms and you have a school! But we now know that these places are not the best, and not the most conducive to learning. So whenever we can, we get out of there!

Sometimes we just step outside to the garden or the dining room, steps away from the classroom. But if the course has few students and the content for the day’s class is propitious, we go to our local coffee shop (which unfortunately in our case is a Starbucks, but hey even that is better than the sterile walls of a classroom).

Outside the classroom the students seem to think “better,” more fluidly, they engage differently with the subject. I do not have the science to prove it, but those classes seem more enriching for the students.

We recently had a lesson on the great mystic Santa Teresa de Jesús and her poetry. This lesson, with only four students in the class (Advanced Spanish Language and Culture) was worth taking to the coffee shop. It worked out great, so much so that a week later I took my other section!

So if you have a small class and can do it, get out of the classroom! You are welcome.