Introduction by John Myers
My name is John Myers, and I am the ELL teacher here at Friends Select School. I’ve been teaching English as a Second Language for more than 20 years, so I guess you could say I’m an expert in what I do. Students who come here from other countries face unique issues that aren’t always obvious to us when we interact with them at school. Learning English can take a long time for many, and learning the culture can be even more daunting. It is for these reasons that I approached the editors of The Falcon to ask that the ELL students contribute these pieces, so that we all can learn a little more about their unique experiences coming to school here at FSS.
From Paris to Philadelphia
My name is Sohane Delabroy and I am in the 9th grade at Friends Select School. I am originally from Paris, France, and I moved here when I was in 5th grade. When I first found out I was moving to the United States, I was excited because I would get to live in a different country than where I grew up. I was also sad because I was going to miss my family a lot and not see them as often anymore.
My first day in the United States was really stressful. I didn’t speak any English yet and I couldn’t speak to anyone, and I didn’t understand anything anyone said to me. Luckily, the first school I went to here was a French International school and most of my classmates spoke French. This made it more comfortable for me to learn English and I was happy going home at the end of the day.
My level of English when I came affected my schoolwork a lot because I couldn’t understand the classwork and the homework. The hardest thing about learning English was the grammar and how to write. Understanding people talking to me in English was quicker for me than trying to speak in English myself. Luckily, in my first school, the English teacher used to teach me English after school, and over time, I began to understand more and more. I started to feel more comfortable, too. Overall, it took me about a year and a half to feel comfortable enough with my English, and now I feel pretty good about it.
I like living in Philadelphia. Compared to Paris, Philly has a lot more trees and nature in the city, which I think is nice. The thing I miss most about France is my family. I’m very close to them, and I’m always excited to go to see them. I can’t wait for summer because I will go back to France and see them again.
