Although teaching itself has always come naturally to me, the actual journey to becoming a teacher has presented many unexpected twists and turns.
~ words from Isaias that keep us thinking and wondering ~
Not hers. Not yours. People are always more than the chapters anyone could share. Hold what is here gently. Approach with curiosity, before judgment.
Notice what you notice. Wonder what you wonder. There is no quiz, no right way. Read until something stays.
this film has no words. notice what you notice. notice what you wonder. wonder out loud. and don't forget to notice what you feel, too.
Teacher Trials
Although teaching itself has always come naturally to me, the actual journey to becoming a teacher has presented many unexpected twists and turns. After I finished school in the nearby city of Sololá, Guatemala, I returned to my small hometown of Santiago in search of work. As a brand new teacher with no experience, finding a job proved to be rather difficult. However, one day I learned that a small school in town needed a jardinería1 – and I was in desperate need of a job. So, although it wasn’t teaching, I said yes. Little did I know where my job as a jardinería would take me.
Working as a jardinería was very hard on my body being out in the sun each day. The sun is much stronger here in Santiago since we are at a high elevation, 5,105 feet. Santiago is situated between two volcanoes, both of which have an even higher elevation! Volcan San Pedro reaches 9,337 ft and Volcan Toliman reaches 10,315 ft. If I were to travel ¾ of the way to the top of each volcano, how high would I be?
Soon enough one day, about halfway through the year, the director of the school approached me and asked if I could help him organize some paperwork in the office. He had lots of questions for me, and he apparently needed quite a bit of help. After this project was done, he said that he was impressed by my abilities and wanted me to help out more in the office. So I did – although I was making the same amount of money, with about twice the amount of work. But it felt like a step in the right direction, and I was very grateful to have the opportunity.
Even though I wasn’t getting paid more, I was excited to be able to help out inside the school. If it would take me 1 ¾ hours to organize the paperwork for each classroom, and I worked for 5 hours, how many classrooms did I complete? Can you provide the answer in both fraction and decimal form? If I were working at the same pace, how long would it take me to finish ⅔ of a classroom?
One day, the director came to tell me that one of the administrators needed to take a leave of illness for three months. He wanted me to fill the role. “An administrative position?!” I thought. Wow. What an exciting opportunity. When I first began working, many of the other office employees were unsure of my capabilities. But they eventually became so appreciative, and were always coming to me for help. Their perspectives on me had changed as I proved myself, and I felt very grateful for that. After the three months were over, the director promised that he would call me in two weeks with work for the next year. I waited two weeks, but I heard nothing. Then three weeks rolled by, and I began to think I was out of luck. “Maybe it is time for me to really look for another job,” I thought. Then one day, the phone rang. It was the director. He said, “I have good news, and I have bad news. The bad news is, we don’t have any jobs open at the school for you this year – we are all full. The good news is, you are going to work at the municipality.” “Really? The municipality?” I wondered, completely shocked. The municipality is the government office here where the mayor of the town works. This isn’t a place I ever imagined I would be working. “Yes, the municipality,” said the director. “I spoke well of you. You are going to work for the mayor. You start tomorrow.” And that was it; off I went the next day to begin my new job at the municipality.
I began to worry when I didn’t hear back from the director for so long.
Has there ever been a time when you worried that something you were excited for wasn’t going to happen?
What was it?
How did you feel while you were waiting?
I was so relieved once I finally got a call from the director, even though it wasn’t the news I was expecting.
What other feelings do you think I may have had?
The next day, I learned that I was the new Youth Coordinator of the municipality. The mayor told me I needed to schedule a meeting the following week with the leaders of local organizations to devise a plan for how we could collectively support the youth in our community in the year to come.
Unfortunately, the mayor whom I worked for prioritized construction over helping the youth of our community.
He said that he had no funding for my department, which made things very tough.
This is something many of the municipalities struggle with here in Guatemala – the governments that only want to make money, without helping their people.
Corruption is a big issue.
What does it mean for a government to be considered “corrupt”?
Do all governments make money?
What do you think I could have done to learn more about the government’s perspective?
Does your government – local or national – help you directly in any way?
What about indirectly, such as through your community?
How do you think they could improve?
It was about a year later when I saw an announcement on TV one night, advertising a position for a teacher of a traveling library. “Traveling Library?” I thought. “How incredible would that be!” I went to the school the next day, only to find there was a long line of people already there waiting to interview for the same position. When it was my turn and I walked in, I saw the director of the school and realized that she was one of the leaders at the meeting I had organized the previous year. I was so nervous, but I must have done something right, because I was asked to come back the next day for a second interview. And I have been the Traveling Library Coordinator at La Puerta Abierta ever since!
What do you imagine was going through my head when I saw all of those people interviewing for the job I wanted?
I didn’t leave or give up though!
What are some ways you stay motivated, even when you are facing competition?
Allow students to gather their chairs together in a circle. Begin by sharing one thing you are grateful for, allowing each student to have a turn sharing.
“What does the saying, ‘When one door closes, another opens’ mean?” Begin the discussion by walking over to the classroom entrance and abruptly opening and closing the door, inviting the students to engage in a critical reflection of the famous quote by Alexander Graham Bell. ”Think about a time in your life that a ‘door was closed’ on you.
How did it feel at the time? How does it feel now looking back? Can you think of one way this challenge may have been beneficial for you in the long run?”
Watch the Learning Journey, I am Isaias, encouraging the students to take notice of the many different journeys Isaias takes each day as a teacher.
Next, read Isaias' Journey to Becoming a Teacher, where Isaias explains how his professional path didn’t unfold in a way that he would have ever imagined but he still shares his gratitude for all the obstacles and opportunities that he was presented with along the way. Revisit the initial question, encouraging the students to reflect on the proverbial doors that had been closed and opened for Isaias. To check reading comprehension, ask students to explain the order of jobs that Isaias had. “Had Isaias not taken the job as jardinería, do you think he would have gotten the job at La Puerta Abierta? Some might say working as the Traveling Library Coordinator was ‘meant to be’. What do you think?” Shift the conversation to the students’ own perspective, extending deeper on the concept of fate, destiny, and our role as active versus passive participants in our own lives. “Do you believe that we are in control of our own lives, or are our paths already determined? What is the difference between these two mindsets? How do you know what things/ events you can have an impact on, and what is out of your control? How do you react differently in those situations?”
Bring the discussion back to Isaias and his journey to becoming a teacher, while exploring math. On the first page of Isaias' Journey to Becoming a Teacher, Isaias shares some of the physical impact that his work as a jardinería had on his body.
Together, you can practice multiplication of fractions and whole numbers to help Isaias determine what elevation he would reach if he traveled ¾ the way to the two highest points of elevation in Santiago. As a project, invite the students to do their own research on each of the volcanoes in the Lake Atitlan region and allow them to present their findings to the class in small groups, allowing them to strengthen their own personal teaching skills. On the second page, you are able to practice dividing fractions and whole numbers and multiplying mixed numbers by helping Isaias determine how long it would take him to finish his duties in the office.
Lead a group reflective discussion diving into Isaias’ gratitude for being able to help out in the school office - although he was working more for the same pay, he saw it as a vital stepping stone for him to transition from working in the garden.
“What sort of stepping stones might you need to take in order to accomplish a goal you have? Are there any that don’t at first seem to have a direct impact, but may influence it in the future? What challenges might you be faced with, and how could you overcome them – both yourself, and with the help of others?”
This is one way to teach this story. You could also weave your own way, threading two or three other people the AI finds for you alongside.
Want to weave a full lesson around this story?
The weaver finds 3-4 real people whose stories thread together with this one.
Weave a lesson →Literacy in Motion
Por favor, adelante.1 I am just preparing for my visit tomorrow to Chacaya, a rural town outside of my hometown of Santiago, Guatemala. I work at a school here called La Puerta Abierta, which means “the open door” in Spanish. La Puerta Abierta was started many years ago as a library and reading room for the children in our community. We now are a small school with five classrooms, a wonderful teacher for each, and a curriculum that’s been designed to inspire creativity alongside a love of reading. There are many schools both here in Santiago and the surrounding rural towns that do not have the same resources as La Puerta Abierta, or the ability to access ours, and because of this we have created the Traveling Library. This program allows us to travel to rural schools and community centers to share our library and learning activities with them. I am lucky enough to be the one who gets to travel around and share my love of reading and learning with others.
Our Traveling Library consists of 12 different themes, such as culture or community. So each month has a new theme. If 1/12th of our books are on the topic of community, can you help me figure out what percentage of our books are community-themed?
Next, what are two different ways I could write this percentage, using whole numbers and the following table?
Each week, I travel to about eight different schools and community centers that are part of the Traveling Library program. I pack the books and supplies I’ll need for my visit in my backpack, hop on the back of el colectivo (public transportation on a pickup truck), and head out on my way. The town I mentioned, Chacaya, is one of my favorites to visit. It is about a twenty-minute ride through the mountains on el colectivo. The school has a beautiful view of the lake and surrounding volcanoes, and the children are always so excited to see me. It is clear how happy and excited they are to be at school each day, and I love being able to experience that with them.
Aside from reading, I like to include a variety of creative activities during my visits that are exciting and engaging for the children, like singing songs together.
Do you have a favorite activity that your teacher does in school?
Can you describe it to me?
How often do you get to do it?
Why do you think your teacher chooses to do this activity?
If I spend 1 1/4 hours with one class, and 1/3 of this time we are singing songs, how much time do we spend singing songs?
The elder center, which is part of another local organization here in Santiago, is another one of my favorite places that I get to visit. The elders gather at the center three times a week, and I visit them every other Friday as a part of the Traveling Library. We sing songs and read books together. Just like the children at Chacaya, the elders are always so excited to see me. And I feel the same way.
Engaging a group of elders versus a group of children can be pretty different, wouldn’t you think?
It’s also pretty similar, in a lot more ways than you’d imagine!
What are some of the differences and similarities you think I might encounter between the two groups?
When I was younger, it was going to public school here in Santiago that first made me realize I wanted to become a maestro someday. The quality of education was very poor, the classrooms were overcrowded, and the teachers were not engaging. It was during this time in my life that I thought to myself, “I am going to be a teacher someday. But I am going to be different.” I remember in school growing up, we often had forty or fifty students in one classroom, with only one teacher! It was not a good environment for learning, as the teachers never gave us the attention we needed and deserved.
A good technique that I’ve learned as a teacher working with a large amount of students is to break out into small groups. This gives students the opportunity to connect with one another and get more personalized attention. Using the powers of 10, if my teacher had 100 children and split the class into small groups of 10 children each, what would the exponent be? What if he had 1000 children?
Another part of my life growing up that was a big influence in my decision to become a teacher was my family. Growing up as the oldest brother to six younger siblings was the best way for me to discover my natural teaching abilities. I was always helping my little brothers and sisters with their homework, or teaching them how to do things growing up. So, in a way, being a teacher has always been a part of who I am. Over the years, I discovered that not only did it come naturally to me, but I also really loved it.
Can you think of any ways that your experiences with your family when you were younger have shaped who you are today?
Do you think that you influence your family members as well?
In what ways?
Begin the lesson by creating a calm, collaborative space – invite your students to gather chairs together in a circle for a shared moment of silence.
“What was your first ever favorite book?” Invite the students to engage in a discussion on the importance and meaning of “early literacy development”.
“What is literacy? What does the phrase ‘early literacy development’ mean? Why might it be important?” Allow the students the opportunity to reflect on their early experiences with books - sharing favorites that they may have read with their families or in school when they were younger. ”What was exciting to you about these books? How do you feel about books and reading now? How might a child’s excitement about reading impact them later in life?”
Watch the Learning Journey video I am Isaias and then read Isaias the Traveling Librarian. Encourage the students to observe Isaias as a teacher, librarian, and integral member of his community.
“How does Isaias use reading and literature to empower the individuals in his community?” Encourage the students to take notice of the intergenerational nature of Isaias’ work in the Traveling LIbrary Program. “Why might literacy development be just as important for the elders as it is for the young children?” Extend the conversation to a discussion on the lack of literary resources in developing countries. You can prompt, “Extending on our previous question – how might a child’s lack of excitement or lack of access to reading impact them later in life? What might happen if a young child has a negative experience with books or reading? What about little to no experience at all? Do you think this ever happens in our own community and/or country? Can you think of any creative ways to expose kids to reading, and make it exciting and fun for them?”
Let’s use math to understand how Isaias engages with students in the Traveling Library Program! At the bottom of the first page, you will be able to practice regrouping decimals to help Isaias determine how many community-themed books he has in his library.
Using the table on the top of page two, keep the class in a large group and have everyone stand together in a circle. Counting down (“3, 2, 1, go!”) have the students shout out the answers to fill in the table all at once. After, take a moment to allow the students to reflect and share how it felt standing together and shouting out answers. “What did you experience? Was it exciting, frustrating, easy, difficult? A mix of all of that? Anything else?” On page three, Isaias explains his technique for managing large class sizes, where the students will be able to practice the powers of 10. Allow the students to break into small groups with the closest people standing near them to then solve this problem together. Once solved and shared, allow the students a similar moment of reflection on their new group dynamics versus the previous. Ask, “How did it feel to be engaged in a smaller group? What challenges might Isaias have faced as both a student and educator when trying to teach and learn in large group class sizes? How might a smaller size of students helped, in both scenarios?” On the second page, you will be able to practice multiplying fractions word problems to help Isaias get an idea of how he promotes literacy development in young children and the elders through music and song.
Overcrowding, lack of funding, and limited resources are issues that schools in many countries face - not just Guatemala. Allow the students to take a moment to reflect on their own personal experiences in school - are the class sizes large?
Small? Why might that be so? Are the teachers paid enough? Are there enough resources for each student? Allow students time for individual journaling, writing down any experiences, thoughts, or ideas that come to mind. Following this, encourage students to gather in their small groups from before to share their reflections, as well as ideas for how to enact positive change.
This is one way to teach this story. You could also weave your own way, threading two or three other people the AI finds for you alongside.
Want to weave a full lesson around this story?
The weaver finds 3-4 real people whose stories thread together with this one.
Weave a lesson →Roles & Responsibilties
Buenos dias![1] Please, come on up! Have you ever rode on the back of a pickup truck before? This is actually our mode of public transportation here in Santiago, called el colectivo. I take it to and from work every day, and right now I’m headed home. You are more than welcome to join me, I’m sure mi madre[2] has some of her delicious arroz con carne[3] cooking for lunch. I work at a small school nearby called La Puerta Abierta where I run La Biblioteca Mobil, which means the Traveling Library. But we can talk more about my job a bit later over lunch (check out Isaias the Traveling Librarian); right now we need to focus on where we are headed! Ahí vamos![4] The roads of Santiago curve a lot and are steep – make sure you hold on tight!
Riding el colectivo isn’t a bad way to commute to work! It’s quite a good start to the day! What sort of public transportation system do you have in your town? Do you take it to school? How long does it take you to get to your school? I was curious, so one day I timed it. It takes exactly 7.53 minutes for me to get to my school. If you were to compare decimal place values of that number, what value would the 7 hold? How about the 3?
I live with my family, which includes mi madre y mi padre[5], and six younger siblings. Our house is pretty near to the town center of Santiago, which is a small but busy town on the shores of Lake Atitlán, in the Western Highlands of Guatemala. Santiago is surrounded by a beautiful, deep lake and tall, towering mountains – and life here certainly has its highs and lows. Having enough money to feed such a big family has been one of the biggest struggles, and as the eldest brother I was especially needed to help support the family financially. Many of the children in Santiago need to work during the day, helping out on their family’s farm or shop. One of the things my siblings and I do to generate income for our family is hand-stitch güipiles, which are traditional Maya blouses that the women in my town wear.
A güipile is an elaborate, embroidered top made from intricately hand-stitched designs. One güipile takes about a month to make, and has many individual stitches. If one güipile has105stitches, and my family were to make 5 güipiles, each with the same amount of stitches, how many stitches would we need to make in total?
Each güipile design has a symbolic meaning behind it, such as the pajaro (bird) we typically stitch here, that is representative of Santiago.
The name Santiago literally means “house of birds” because there are so many different types of birds here!
Does your town have any sort of symbol, animal, or representation that it is known for?
Do you know why that was chosen?
When I was seventeen, my younger brother Domingo and I moved to the city of Sololá to attend high school. Sololá is the capital of the Atitlan region and although it’s only two hours away, it felt much farther. Moving to a new city at such a young age was a big change for us, but my mother was the one who insisted on it so that we could properly learn Spanish. So off to Sololá we went.
Aside from Spanish, the primary language that is spoken here in Santiago is called Tzu’tujil, which is a native Mayan language.
I learned Tzu’tujil as my first language when I was very young, and then Spanish as my second language when I was in school.
I am learning English now, and it is much more difficult than I ever remember Spanish being to learn.
Why do you think that might be so?
Do you remember learning your first language?
Have you ever learned a second language?
Was it challenging or easy for you?
Living in Sololá away from our family was quite hard for my brother and me. We didn’t have very much money and could not see our family often. My brother was only fifteen when we moved, and there were a lot of “adult” things he didn’t know how to do. As the older brother it was my responsibility to take charge, and and I always tried my best to teach him as much as I could.
One of the things my brother didn’t know how to do until we moved away was the laundry.
Do you know how to do the laundry?
If so, how did you learn?
If not, from whom do you think you could learn this skill?
If we had 2 ¾ loads of laundry to do each week, and ½ of the clothes belonged to my brother, how many loads did my brother have?
Can you help me convert that fraction into decimal form?
“What is the most important thing you do each day and why?” Guide the students through a discussion of the varying roles they have in their lives and corresponding responsibilities.
“What is the difference between a role and a responsibility? What are your responsibilities at home? What are your roles? What about here at school?” You can share some of your roles and responsibilities in various aspects of your life as examples. Allow the students to create two lists on the board: one with as many roles they can think of, and one with as many responsibilities they can think of. “How many of us share the same responsibilities as each other? How many are different? How might my responsibilities as an adult be different than yours? What might be the same?”
As a class, watch the video “I am Isaias” and invite the students to notice Isaias’ many differing roles. Following this, read through the Learning Journey story "I am Isaias".
Allow the students to consider the cultural element of Isaias’ roles in his life. “Traditionally in Latin American culture, the eldest sibling often assumes a lot of the responsibility of the family. Why do you think this is? Does the eldest sibling in your family have more responsibility?” Discuss how Isaias’ role in his family may look different or similar to the eldest sibling in our own families (or other families they know, if students do not have older siblings). Through this story, we learned how many children in Santiago need to work to support their families’ income. Encourage your students to reflect on the financial dynamics of their own families and how it may or may not be reflective of their own culture. “What does the term breadwinner mean? Is the father figure or male head of the household considered the breadwinner in your family? In your culture? Why might this be different in Isaias’ culture?”
Let’s explore how Isaias uses math in his everyday life. Practice Multiplying with Powers of 10 by helping Isaias determine how many stitches he and his family would need to make to finish their güipiles.
Isaias explains how one of his roles in his family is to help support them financially by making traditional Maya blouses worn by the women of Santiago, called güipiles. Explain how each town in Isaias’ region of Guatemala has their own symbol that they hand-stitch on their güipile: Santiago being the bird. Consider sharing a photo of a traditional güipile, then allow the students to draw their own güipile design with a symbol of their choice. “Why did you choose that symbol or design? Does it hold any special meaning to you? What might the bird represent to the people of Santiago?” Invite five of the students to share their güipiles at the front of the room to then use as a visual representation to solve the Powers of 10 problem together as a class. Additional problems practicing Comparing Place Values, Multiplying Fractions and Rewriting Fractions as Decimals can be found in the story too, as we help Isaias navigate the other roles in his life: teacher and older brother.
Allow students the time and space to reflect on the shared roles discussed earlier in class. Encourage students to envision possible future roles in their lives that they may want to have someday: teacher, father, mother, grandparent, etc.
Sitting together in a circle, guide a discussion on what potential challenges, obstacles, and excitement each role may present.
This is one way to teach this story. You could also weave your own way, threading two or three other people the AI finds for you alongside.
Want to weave a full lesson around this story?
The weaver finds 3-4 real people whose stories thread together with this one.
Weave a lesson →Not hers. Not yours. People are always more than the chapters anyone could share. Hold what is here gently. Approach with curiosity, before judgment.
If a moment stayed, follow it. If a question rose up, hold it. The quiet teaching is still teaching.
Three or four real stories woven into one lesson, your topic, your time. Isaias is one. The weaver finds the others, threads the math, the literacy, the values, the reflection.
Open the weaver →