LaGuardia HUL 100 - communication and the non-native speaker

NANCY ROSA SABALU – TEACHER IN SUNNYSIDE’S SCHOOL

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New York works: Audio Portraits of School’ Sunnyside Produced by Lilyan Morillo.

INTRODUCTION

Hello, everybody. My name is Lilyan and I interviewed my cousin. She is Nancy Rosa Sabalu and she is from Peru and she got here in 2003. Nancy Rosa is a great teacher in a public school in Sunnyside. I walked to the School to meet my cousin, cars sound, people noises on the street, it was raining.

I finally got to the school where she was waiting for me and asked her some questions.

Nancy said me “hello’’. I was ready to ask her.

She told me her story.

CHILDHOOD

During her childhood, she lived in a small town in Peru, in a quiet place and far away from the city, she dedicated to agriculture because her parents had small farm. She studied in her free time. She was very studious. She liked to read many books.
Her full name is Nancy Rosa but when she was a girl her family called Nany because her younger brother could not say her real name. She had six brothers and two sisters. She was the oldest of all the children. All her brothers loved each other very much. They were happy. She enjoyed teaching her younger brother. When she graduated from high school, she did not continue her education immediately. She helped her mother with washing, ironing and cooking. Her first job was in a grocery store, when she was 17 years old. Then she decided to change her work. She was a teacher’s assistant. She always enjoyed teaching feeling that this was the best choice, she worked for two years. She went to college several years later. The continuation of her education had to wait until she save enough money to pay her tuition.

FAMILY

She told me that one of her family traditions was her family dressed yellow for the celebration New Year. The condition and status of her parents was not very good at the time. She remembers one time that her family did not have money to buy clothes, a toy for a night of Christmas. She was very sad because she saw other children to enjoy their toys, but she understood that the most important for a family was love and united. Her parents advised her to study very hard. She graduated as teacher in the Catholic College from Peru. She pointed out me that she began to work in a public school and she was very loved and respected for her students.

DREAMS AND GOALS

She got married and had two daughters. She explain me that she worked very hard to keep her family because the economic situation from Peru was worst each time, the inflation was increasing. Her hope and dream is that her children would be professional. Nancy tells me that she gives so much of her time to them. Her mother always said “I never think about giving material things, I think it is more important to give food and educational to my son’’. She remembers that. Nancy had to protect the future of her family and, so she decided to come to the United States. One of her dreams was to be professional here, because many times some immigrants are unable to work in their fields of experience.

She told me that she has learned in her life that somebody can overcome in life with effort and dedication. Now, she is a great teacher in a public school in New York for children students and they love her.

ACTIVITIES

She told me about other activities.

Other of her activities is going to the church every Saturday and Sunday together with her family. She is member of a congregation in Sunnyside N.Y. She is counsel for couples that have problems in their marriages.
She frequently talks and advises her students to study because they are example and future of country.

PERSONALITY

Nancy tells me that she is talkative, friendly with her neighbors, serious and quiet. She was always responsible and serious. Her goal was be a good teacher.

ADVICE

She advises me to be persevering because she always worked hard for the benefit and future of her family. She teaches me that many times we can reach our goals with dedication and effort.

If she could change anything about her life; she would have studied English language is very important in this country for to continue studying and find a good job.