Entry 1: Introduction

Hey ya'll welcome back to my VBlog! My name is Shelly Garza, I am a senior at The University of Houston. I am also super excited that this is my last semester at UH (Si Dios Quiere) and the countdown for graduation is on! I hope you guys enjoy this semester and for those who also graduate in May good luck and let's finish strong! 

 Click HERE to watch my video!

Comments

  1. SophiaFebruary 2, 2019 at 3:04 PM

    Hi Shelly! It's nice to see that you're enjoying your time in your student teaching! I think that it's really cool how your parents learned English by having you and your siblings respond to their Spanish in English. Unlike me, who went through school to learn my language, you and your parents learned Spanish as a naturalistic learner, or as Ortega defines it as learning a second language through "through informal opportunities in multicultural neighborhoods, schools and workplaces, without ever receiving any organized instruction on the workings of the language they are learning" (Ortega, 2013, pg. 6). I think that's amazing because not only do you and your siblings help your parents learn English, but they also help you learn Spanish as well, and because of that, you were able to share that learning process together. Learning another language is really crucial in today's society in finding work, and I'm sure that it was a blessed opportunity for you to learn that language in your home while growing up.
    I look forward to seeing more of your posts!

    Reference:
    Ortega, L. (2013). Understanding second language acquisition. Routledge.

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    1. Shelly GarzaFebruary 3, 2019 at 11:20 AM

      Hey Sophia, Thank you so much for watching my video! Now looking back at it, it is pretty cool how we all fed off of each other to learn to different languages at the end. It was a beautiful thing to keep the two languages freshly within the household growing up. I’m glad I was able to help my parents and I am also very blessed that my parents taught me the Spanish language as well. With that I am able to speak to my family closer to Mexico with comfort.

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  2. Kanwal ShiwaniFebruary 3, 2019 at 1:13 PM

    Hi Shelly!
    I loved watching your video! I think it’s neat that even though you learned English as your second language, you can still understand Spanish and even speak it to your relatives back home. I think that might be because Spanish is connected to your culture and the environment that you parents grew up around. According to Ortega, the most important and well-studied sources of universal influence are age, mother tongue, environment and cognition (Ortega, 2013, 9). I personally think that it’s hard to alternate between the two languages and even harder to keep up with the vocabulary and the phrases but speaking more than one language is beneficial in the work field. Thanks for sharing your experiences with us, I can’t wait for your next vblogs!

    Ortega, L. (2013). Understanding second language acquisition. Routledge.

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    1. Shelly GarzaFebruary 5, 2019 at 7:47 PM

      Hey Kani thank you for watching my video! What helped my family out the most was how patient we were with each other. We never judged the mispronunciation of words or phrases because we simply understood it was a learning process. Now my parents and my siblings can speak both languages effortlessly and I’m blessed to know 2 languages. My culture played the most important role in it all and I am really forever grateful for that. I hope to teach my children Spanish at a young age as well.

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  3. floreslvFebruary 8, 2019 at 5:44 PM

    Hi Shelly! I enjoyed watching your video, I really liked how you were so positive about your student teaching and I’m so interested in how you switched grade levels mid-year. I really find it cool that your dad picked up English pretty fast because according to Ortega “the individuals learning an additional language are still young children when they start acquiring the L2” (Ortega, 2013, 4), I’m really happy that he didn’t have much trouble and that you kept both Spanish and English!

    Ortega, L. (2013). Understanding second language acquisition. Routledge

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  4. gabs22February 10, 2019 at 5:07 PM

    Hi Shelly! I enjoyed watching your video, you had so much to say about background and I loved that you shared all about what made you who you are today! I thought it was so interesting that your dad just decided to move to a new city, knowing he didn't speak English well and learned just fine through his job! I thought it was great that your parents made the connection of you speaking back to them in English, when they speak Spanish since that was how they learned English! Ortegea stresses that we learn the language that is spoken in our home and that clearly worked out for you!

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  5. Vivianne PinedaFebruary 10, 2019 at 9:06 PM

    Hey Shelly! I loved watching your videos and getting to hear how excited you are about student teaching! YOur kiddos are sure to take your positive vibes and feed off of them to have a great school year with you! I think its great how your parents helped you to learn English and think this worked perfectly for you! I think its important when working with ELLS to remember that there isn’t a one fits all way to learn English or other languages. Your experience will help you to be an encouraging educator!

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