Our last three semesters in Caye Caulker we’ve stayed with Mario at the Vista del Mar Guesthouse

As I sit here, lounging at the beach, I cannot express how amazing this trip was. The beautiful sunsets, the Gatorade blue sea, exploring the island/country and especially working at LICA has been the highlights of this adventure. At LICA, I was placed with a first year teacher. She went through two and a half years of college and completed her twelve-week internship. My teacher has definitely been trying her best to help provide her students with the best education. I wish LICA was fortunate enough to have access to the materials that America has to offer. The lack of resources on this island makes it difficult for teachers to reach the needs of each individual, especially students with autism and of other needs.

Some of the nine educators at this school are also first year teachers or completing their internships (without a mentor). The education system and process of becoming a teacher is completely different than the US. The Professional Development meetings held at the school contained information that I have learned from taking course at BSU. It was nice to see the teachers grow. Us BSU students taught them classroom management, how to recognize and deal with students’ emotions, along with multiple other skills. It was evident that these teachers began to apply these skills each day. I think it was a great learning experience for us student teachers, as well as the teachers at LICA. If you are contemplating whether or not to student teach abroad, DO IT.  You will not regret it.

Adios, Caye Caulker.

This Friday (12/20/19) is my last day in Belize. It has been an amazing experience to live these past two months on a small island off the coast of Belize. Caye Caulker has become a special place in my heart and I will never forget the memories and friendships I have made while living on this island. I was lucky enough to travel here with one of my good friends who shares the same major as me which has been great because we were able to bounce ideas off of when it came time for our lessons. When I say to travel with a good friend, I mean it. If you’re thinking about doing any sort of study abroad or teaching abroad, see if any of your friends might be interested. I have been lucky enough that the two of us are of like minds, like mannerisms, and like activity levels. Together we have helped each other through living away from home for so long as well as pushing each other to try different things. Luckily, we had four other amazing women who were placed on this same island to work with and experience this adventure together.  My advice for the next lucky teachers who get to come here.

Be open to meeting new people, Ellie and I looked forward to our free time on the weekends because we typically would meet all sorts of travelers from around the world. Just by hanging out at the split, playing corn-hole and challenging people to it we were able to make a lot of friends. Don’t be afraid to ignore some locals that might make you feel uncomfortable, give them a friendly wave/ smile and keep walking. Depending on who was asking, Ellie and I were sisters, twins, lovers, or just friends. We looked out for each other, we ALL did. The island is very safe, but some of the locals here don’t understand personal space/boundaries and it’s in their social norms to cat call women that they find attractive. However, we have made tons of friends with the locals; Karen at Ice and Beans is a great person to talk to and see a friendly face in the morning for a coffee or bag of mini donuts. Josh (we call him bop-pop) has been a great local who has looked out for us and is a hilarious guy to talk to, we’ve met one of his older brothers, Dice, who owns one of the side of the road grills by the split, some of the best food we’ve had is on the side of the road stands. If you are looking to budget your money, these are the places to go. When at the split, try to find Kayla, her daughter currently goes to LICA and she works at the split most days. Shes a good person to know there. Also, make connections with the parents of your students, a lot of the times they like to hear the opinion from an outside source and are a great resource if you are feeling overwhelmed/ looking for things to do/ or just need parental guidance. We had plenty of parents telling us things to do, events to go to, and places to eat.

Speaking of places to eat. I already mentioned side of the road food which is really good and really cheap, but there are a great number of restaurants to eat at. Enjoy Bar across from Ice n’ Beans  is a rather cheaper place to eat, their veggies are so good, we have visited them too much to count just for the veggies (get the shrimp stick with double veggies and garlic bread). Swings bar across from the basketball courts is also reasonably priced, we haven’t been there as much but it’s a frequent stop. Food republic has AMAZING food from appetizers to dessert, a little more expensive but a great place to go if your family comes down for a visit. Il pelicano; I don’t think I spelt that right; is also a good place for pasta dishes, is a little more expensive but, it has a great atmosphere and good food. The sports bar is a good place to catch food and a drink, it doesn’t normally get all that busy until 9pm. Look for our friend Charles behind the bar, let him know the teachers say hi. HUGE tip, play trivia on Sunday nights! It’s only an hour long but it can be a lot of fun (NO PHONES ALLOWED).

Lastly, feel free to email me, message me on facebook or any social media if you have questions about the island or things to prepare for 🙂 I’m happy to talk about my experience in a lot more depth if you want to know more!

Email: abbeyjbarber@gmail.com

Hello! I cannot believe it has already been six weeks! The time is really flying by. LICA recently hosted Cultural Day, where different cultures of Belize were represented with certain food, clothing, music and dances. Friends, family, and the community were all welcome to watch the students perform. The teachers put together food items to sell as a fundraiser for the school. It was such a great experience!

For students coming to Caye Caulker in the future, you will need to get your passport stamped approximately 30 days after you arrive. The office is located on San Pedro. The fee is $50BZ. The Immigration Office does not accept credit/debit cards or American money.

The six of us here were able to visit the primary and high school on San Pedro. I went to The Island Academy, which was absolutely AMAZING. The classrooms were very small, but the location of the school is right on the beach. The school consists of mini cottages with a few classrooms inside each. I had the opportunity to meet Jen and chat about our student teaching experiences in Belize.

Two weeks ago the six of us went on another snorkel tour for the day. We swam with sea turtles, manatees, sharks, and all sorts of fish. As we sailed back, we watched the sunset. I highly recommend snorkeling, whether its half or full day. The next day two of us traveled to a Mayan Ruin called Lamanai. To get there, you have to take an hour ferry, an hour car ride, and an hour riverboat tour. There were five different monuments to climb and takes pictures of. We were able to hear and see howler monkeys jumping from branch to branch. Definitely check out one of the Mayan Ruins while you are here! If you’re not up for the long trip to Lamanai, Altun Ha is the closest Mayan Ruin to Caye Caulker.

Another place to visit is Koko King on the north side of Caye Caulker. It only takes two minutes by boat to get here. Koko King is more of a beach setting where you can walk right into the water, whereas Caye Caulker has concrete walls you can jump off of.

One and a half more weeks to go!

Hi all, it’s been a few weeks since my last post on here. A lot has happened since that post, the group of girls who I have been able to call my friends and colleagues have had such an amazing time. We are all staying in the same guest house just in different rooms. Between the six of us there are four rooms; myself and Ellie are splitting a room, Maddy and Emma are splitting a room, and then Liz and Sara have their own rooms. I can’t say anything for the other girls, but I’m glad that I shared a room with Ellie. It splits the cost of living here in half which is good for budgeting your money. I would definitely suggest to anyone who plans to come to Caye Caulker to room with a friend if possible, to save some money. Luckily, Ellie and I have known each other for a long time; whether it be playing on opposite sides of the volleyball court or having classes together, we’re in the same major so that’s really helped us to become close.

Our room is pretty basic, it has two double/full size beds, a small couch, tv, medium fridge, microwave, stove, small island, kitchen sink and cabinets, large wardrobe thing, and a decent sized bathroom.  The room is sort of set up in an L shape, my bed is closest to the door against the wall and Ellie’s is around the corner (also against the wall), so we are able to have our own separate spaces and some privacy when we need it. We had found a larger wooden pole in our room within the first few weeks and had no clue what it was, we used it to bang on the ground because Emma and Maddy are living under us. Found out, it’s actually a pole to hang stuff from to separate the “rooms”, so when ever we need our personal space and privacy, we throw a blanket over the pole.  Now not every room is the same, The two girls living together have a similar set up to us, but with different pieces of furniture. Sara has a single studio room and again, is set up different compared to us. Liz got lucky, she has a huge room with two double/full beds to herself!

Every Wednesday we cook, we rotate who cooks and in which room we will eat in. Luckily, we’ve figured out a system; two girls buy food and cook, two girls buy drinks, and two girls clean. For the last month and a half we’ve been doing this thanks to the suggestion of Liz’s mom and I think because of it, we have all really gotten along well. We use these days to talk about what’s going on at school (we are placed at two different schools), what’s going on in life, what our plans are for the weekend, etc. It’s turned into a check-in point for us with each other as well as just good ol times hanging out and having some laughs. I truly will miss these nights and hope that we will have reunions throughout the years.

P.S. We are still having success making all sorts of friends from the world and it has been a little different of an experience and story with each person. 🙂

News from Caye Caulker, Belize!

Halfway through our teaching abroad today! Emma and I continue to bond with the kids at the high school, Ocean Academy. Working on such a small island is an adjustment, we see our students everywhere! The boys just won their first basketball game of the season against San Pedro! With how isolated the island is their season only consists of one competitor and depending on how many games they win in a row, sometimes their whole season only consists of a few games. They play their next game away at San Pedro’s school on Monday. San Pedro is much better equipped with many more students so it is a very big deal that the whole school attend the away game. We hope our boys win to prove superiority, but we hope they lose to let them play a few more games this season! We also had yesterday off for Cultural Day which is a national holiday here. Belize primarily celebrates the Garifuna people, a prevalent ethnic minority that settled here in1802. Belize has the largest population of Garifuna people in Central America still. The whole country has re-enactments of the shore landing and celebrates these people, as well as the other Belizean minorities. Belize is one of the most ethnically diverse countries in Central America and on cultural day, people are encouraged to celebrate whatever culture they come from. We got up early to watch the sunrise, then the re-enactment shortly after dawn. It was quite an experience with drummers and a small carved out canoe-like boat carrying the actors. There are also a few Garifuna dishes people look forward to eating, like Hudut, a fish soup. The whole experience was very cool. We have our observations tomorrow from Dr. Marvelle in our Reading class, wish us luck! We also are meeting with Dr. Marvelle and the Belizean Minister of Education today after class. Looking forward to an interesting conversation!

Until next time!

Liz and Emma

Caye Caulker, Belize

Caye Caulker is a beautiful, five mile long island. You’ll find yourself greeting all the stray dogs and cats who follow you to school or dinner. The locals are very friendly and welcoming. I feel very safe on this island, especially being with five others. The six of us tend to do everything together. This past weekend we went snorkeling with sharks and stingrays! We went through a company called Raggamuffin and it only cost $35 for a half day tour with all equipment provided. Other recommended places to go on the island include morning yoga at the Namaste Cafe, the Split, and watching the sunset at the Iguana Reef Inn. My family recently visited me and stayed at this hotel. At night, the owner feeds the pelicans, stingrays, and nurse sharks right at the dock. I was able to help feed the pelicans and swim with the stingrays. There are also swings and hammocks in the water you’re able to watch the sunset on.

I highly recommend future students who travel to Belize to wear LOTS of bug spray because the mosquitos are terrible at night, bring snacks, toiletries, and small bills. Though I have not had a problem with breaking larger bills, it is much easier to pay in smaller bills. In Belize, they accept American money, which is a 1US to 2BZ dollar conversion. However, US coins are not accepted.

At La Isla Cariñosa Academy, I am placed in Infant 1, which consists of five year olds. This class is equivalent to a kindergarten class. My class has twelve students, six boys and six girls. Some of the students arrive to school in golf carts or bikes with their parents. There is a fifteen minute break where students are allowed to leave the classroom to purchase a snack or a drink from the cafeteria. For lunch, there is an hour break. Sometimes I like to bike back to my room at Vista Del Mar and sit in the AC. Though the school has AC, it often does not work. Last week the power went out and the students remained in school. My teacher has already been absent twice and I had the opportunity to introduce different learning strategies and techniques. This coming week I will assess the students on letter and number identification. There is no form of assessment besides the four quarterly exams. So far this experience has been quite interesting, but I am enjoying my time here!!