so I really enjoyed today very much; i think it was my favorite day overall. the day began 45 minutes later than normal and i was able to have TWO full cups of coffee before starting the day (i've been having trouble getting places on time especially in the morning because i am slooow moving before 8am). we got in the van and made our way to Abraham Lincoln, an elementary school K-6 in a small community called La Perla (The Pearl, in English) and met with the school's directors and several of its teachers. the children were not there yet because the school will open next week. i found this "field trip" very educational and perhaps the most relational and practical of all the places we have been. indeed, all the places we have visited have really given us a great perspective on puerto rican culture; even the literature class with Dr. Helena i am thoroughly enjoying (more reflections on that later, i've got several from our 3 two-hour sessions!). however, this school visit was invaluable in that it provided many doorways in what will likely be an ongoing discussion between teachers in puerto rico and teachers in the united states. what we need is to strengthen our connections and our means of collaboration and i truly saw that happening in our dialogue in the school library. that is the kind of stuff that i truly enjoy because it is more relational and i learned so much useful information... about their school system and their culture in just those two hours than i may have learned in the historical places altogether (again, not that they were not educational; i do believe you must learn the history of a people to understand the context of the current cultural movements). i feel as though i could have spent several more hours there discussing solutions and strategies without feeling like much time at all has passed.

After our visit to the school, we did meet one of the community representatives of La Perla and he shared with us a bit more information and statistics on the area. i had asked about student populations and how many people comprised the community (800-1000, or 200 families; 120 children, 60-70 of which attend Abraham Lincoln).

I also found it very interesting that even within this small community the diversity the teachers at Abraham Lincoln face is quite similar to that of what teachers in the United States deal with in our multicultural schools. At Abe Lincoln, one of the English teachers was describing that the school is made up of all different socioeconomic levels, races and languages. We can probably learn more from these teachers than we may have thought initially. I am excited at the possibility of continuing any type of collaboration or connection with these professionals who want the same thing for our students as we do... the very best.