Our assistant teacher Sarah Mitchell wrote this article for us. You will like it. "When I first arrived to Cerro del Viento my first challenge was entering the building. After a struggle with the intercom I was let in and went straight to the teacher’s lounge. There I met almost 20 teachers, all friendly and eager to help me on my first day. I noticed many of them spoke very quickly, making it much harder to understand them. However, some—especially the language teachers—spoke slowly and clearly so I could understand the advice and instructions they gave me. Walking through the hallways, I was immediately reminded of my High School and Middle School: the noise and the crowded, rushed time between classes when I tried to talk to my friends as much as possible before I had to go to my next class. I also caught a few couples kissing in the corners of the hallway and saw much flirting between boys and girls. The styles of fashion are quite different, but I see certain articles of clothing and accessories that are similar to what I see in the United States. Also, just as in my schools in the U.S., there is a wide variety of students at Cerro del Viento—different clothes, some with piercings, wearing perfume, makeup, hair gel, others not.
The most obvious difference between Cerro del Viento and my school is the frighteningly loud bell to mark the end of class. In my school class ended at a certain time and the teacher let you go when they wanted. If you were late for your next class, you could blame it on the teacher (but only sometimes). Here, the bell rings very loudly to alert students and teachers. Also, I noticed teachers and students alike leave directly after school whereas in my school there were students and teachers after school until 8pm or 9pm every day for sports, after-school help with class work, musical rehearsal, homework etc. However, aside from these small differences, Cerro del Viento seems very similar to my High School and Middle Schools. The weirdest part is being on the other side of the desks, teaching instead of being taught!"
Sarah Mitchell
