I remember entering into the gates of the English Camp in Haiti. I remember being overwhelmed with excitement and joy. The coolest thing about becoming a volunteer at the IYF English Camp is that you learn from the students about their culture. You learn about how to approach the classroom experience with an opened heart and mind. Teaching at the English Camp was a humbling experience and it taught me how to overcome my challenges. Most importantly the English Camp taught me how to share my heart.

On the day that I taught the Occupations and Professions lesson, I asked each student to stand and tell the class what they wanted to be when they grew up. There was one student in my class who stood up and said, “One day I hope to travel the world”. She wants to help children – give medical support and care to orphans and vulnerable children affected by natural disasters, poverty, war, and HIV/AIDS. She wants to restore Haiti. This young student was quiet. It was a big deal for her to stand up and talk about her dream. Her dream is so special and the English Camp inspired her to share her dream. These types of moments are unforgettable.

Derell Edward-Terray Jones

Wayne State University

Theatre-Acting

“What can I do for Haiti?” “How can I best teach English to these students?” These were the thoughts I had before I left for the English Camp in Haiti. I thought that I could do something for these students and give something valuable to them in the process. But what I realized during my short stay there wasn’t what I did for these students, but what these students did for me. They showed me how ungrateful I am for the many things I take advantage of growing up in New York. Even to have running water was a blessing that I only realized when I saw the big communal basin with which everyone washed their hands. I wasn’t there to teach anyone, I was there to learn from and exchange my heart with others. True gratification came when I was able to share the hope in my heart to the students living in a hopeless world. This experience was a gift that I can’t exchange with anything in this world.

Marisol Romero

Columbia University

Political Science

Senior

Going to Mexico was the most unforgettable memory that I have. When I heard that I would have a chance to go to Mexico to teach English to Mexican students, I was so excited. I always thought that I should help others and try to work for others, but it wasn’t easy to set aside the time and make an effort. When we were on the way to Monterrey, I thought that I needed to help the students well and kept thinking this throughout the English camp as I taught my students. Yet, after four quick days the time to leave came and we got on the bus. All of a sudden, one of my students came on the bus crying.  She came to me and said “Thank you Nathan. I will miss you so much.”  That moment, something hit me and I realized, “I didn’t even do much. All I did was teach her English.”

On the bus going back home, I realized that although four days is not enough time for them to fluently learn English, it is enough time for us to connect heart to heart. The most precious thing I can do to help others is to share my heart and give them the hope that I have.  I am sure that this hope can change their lives as well.

The English camp to me was more than me giving something; it was about receiving from those students. It enlightened me knowing how happy it is living for other people. Even after a year, I can still reminisce about Mexico like it was yesterday.

Nathan Park

Oakland community college

Engineering

The 2012 IYF English Camp in Monterrey, Mexico and the Final Workshop in Dallas, Texas were life-changing events that have positively affected both us as volunteers as well as the students we went to serve. The Final Workshop was a great way to help us develop the right mindset for the English Camp. We attended several seminars given by world- renowned linguistics experts and professors. During these seminars, we were taught the mechanics of the English language as well as teaching methods that effectively involve the student in the learning process.

Along with this training, we also attended Mind Lectures that expressed the true heart of IYF and prepared us with the right mindset for the English Camp in Mexico. The combination of Mind Lectures and Academic Seminars transformed us into teachers with both exceptional training and the heart of a servant.

During the English Camp in Monterrey Mexico, we used many of the teaching methods we learned during the Final Workshop. More importantly, we were able to approach the students of Mexico with a positive and humble mindset, which allowed us to fully invest in our students’ learning and connect with them on a personal level.

Jean-Claude Michel Jr
Medical Illustrator / Designer / Animator

My name is Helen and I was a volunteer for the 2012 IYF English Camp to Monterrey, Mexico. At the last workshop in Dallas, I met volunteers from around the world and together, we listened to Mind Lectures, English Lectures, and the wonderful Gracias Choir.

I expected some very structural training but was pleasantly surprised. The training was not conventional at all. The Mind Lectures didn’t teach me how to control the minds of my students or anything like that. Rather, it was more of a long storybook where we listened about the world of the heart. If it were structural, I probably would’ve not thought twice about the lecture after I left, but since it was so out of the park from what I expected, I kept thinking about the stories and how it could be teaching me.

In the same way, the English lectures were also unconventional. Instead of working on lesson plans, we played student. We all felt the perspective of being a student learning a foreign language. Using such a method, I learned how we could be overwhelming to foreign students and unsympathetic to their background. Nowhere else will you experience English teaching training like that of IYF’s, or get to see live performances every day from the Gracias Choir and eat the delicious Korean food.