I am a full-time Spanish teacher. As part of the LAL program, I teach the upper level Spanish at Pleasant View Elementary School and I also teach at Zionsville Middle School. I also teach pre-school, pre-k, kindergarten and first grade Spanish at Interactive Academy during the school day. And to wrap up my day I also teach after-school Spanish to 1st , 2nd , 5th  and 6th graders.

I have done this for the past 15 years. As you can imagine, I spend a lot of time writing about what my students are learning in class.

What I don’t often get to write about is what my students teach ME each and every day.

Your children teach me to be brave. They teach me that no obstacle in insurmountable, and that the biggest obstacle of all is your own attitude. Everything is possible if you believe in yourself. Everything is frightening when you don’t.

They teach me to stay curious. There is a whole world of possibility out there. There is a first time for everything. Every day is a new adventure. It is up to you to find it.

They teach me to smile. What is better than a kid’s smile? Whoever comes up with a way to bottle up a child’s joy and make it last forever will become a billionaire. The world would be a better place if we could each hold on to a little bit of the joy, of the awe and wonder of childhood. So, I try to smile, I try to cherish the little things, and keep my eyes open to the child-like wonder of the world.

I spend every day with the bravest, funniest, most insightful kind of people: kids. We have all heard that being around kids all day “keeps you young”… it also keeps me brave, keeps me curious, and keeps me laughing.

With them, every day is truly an adventure.

Señora Quetzali Rojas
LAL Spanish Teacher