We are so impressed by how many of our au pairs donate their time and talents to community service work. This week’s spotlight is on Diana Nunez Robles. Diana is an au pair from Costa Rica living with her host family in Virginia and a State Winner for the 2016 Au Pair Community Service Awards. She shared the following about her volunteer work teaching English as a second language.
After being for a while here in the USA and after pursuing my TESOL (Teaching English for Students of Other Languages) certificate at a local college, I started thinking about doing something else, not only for me but also for the community. That’s when I decided to start volunteering as a teacher’s assistant.
I started volunteering in February 2015. At the beginning I was going once a week but then I started going twice a week as a teacher assistant at Pimmit Hills High School and once a week as a teacher for beginner students at Saint James Catholic School with “Hogar Immigrant Services.”
Every weekend, I sit for a couple of hours to plan my lessons and activities to engage the students and help them to learn English easily.
I have learned not only about the American culture but of some other cultures as well, since I have immigrant students from Asia, Africa, Central America and South America.
When I have the opportunity and when I find students very frustrated, I try to encourage them to keep trying, and then explain to them how hard it was for me to learn English too.
At the end of each semester we gather and share about our cultures. Everybody takes food from their own countries and explain what is it and we all sit together and share what we brought.
There is nothing more rewarding for me than helping people with their learning. And what really makes me happy is seeing how grateful the students are with my support and guidance.
Also, as a teacher you can learn a lot from your students. And it could be challenging but I realized that it is one of the things that had made me very happy since I came to the U.S.
I will highly recommend to other au pairs to get involved in their communities and feel the satisfaction after doing something for someone that really needs it.
Contact us to view profiles of au pairs like Diana and to learn how Au Pair in America can be a rewarding cultural experience and child care solution for your entire family.
