Volunteer Leslie Taub spends her Friday afternoons teaching English classes to a group of Russian women in their 70’s and 80’s. They emigrated from the former Soviet Union anywhere from 5-20 years ago. Each is dedicated to improving her English. We talked to Leslie to learn about her class and students.
Where does your interest in volunteering originate?
When I was growing up, my parents volunteered with the Robison Jewish Home in Portland, Oregon. They would often take me and my sisters with them. We’d help out in the activity room and at events. As a parent, I’ve hoped to instill the value of service in my girls as well. When they were younger, we’d volunteer as a family at Teen Feed. Now that they are older, all three of them have found service opportunities that match their interests.
How did you get involved with JFS and the English as a Second Language (ESL) program?
I’ve always supported JFS. My sister is on the Board, and I’ve attended the JFS Luncheon. A couple of years ago, my middle daughter started volunteering as a friendly visitor for seniors. During one of her conversations with Director of Volunteer Services Jane Deer-Hileman, Jane mentioned they were looking for ESL teachers. I’m a teacher, so my daughter thought it would be a good fit. She put me in touch with Jane, who then had me talk to other ESL teachers to learn more. Based on our conversations, I thought I’d love it. I was right. I look forward to our class every week. My students are very dear, and I feel as though I’ve gained 10 new aunts.
What do you do in your classes?
This year, we’re reading The Secret Life of Bees. Each week I assign the students a chapter to read at home. When we come together, we talk about what happened in the passage we read and review any difficult vocabulary or answer questions. We also work on speaking. I give the students a prompt and give them a few minutes to jot something down before sharing out loud. One of the prompts asked them to talk about the best thing that had happened to them that week. My favorite responses were the ones saying that they felt pain when they woke up, and that they felt grateful for feeling that pain because it meant they were alive. They also really enjoy the homonym worksheet I have them complete every week.
What are some of the challenges that have come up as they’re learning English?
A few of my students use an English-Russian dictionary. If a word on their worksheet isn’t in their dictionary, they tease me that the word must not exist.
What do you find the most meaningful part of the work?
Seeing my students progress. When we started, one of my students was shy to speak. She’s since blossomed. Overall, the ladies are so eager to learn and practice speaking. I’m really proud of all of them!
What have you learned from your students?
They’ve taught me so much, not only about the geography and history of where they came from, but about how the human spirit can handle anything. That it’s never too late to make a change. These women have been through difficult situations, but they aren’t stopping. They just want to keep going, to keep learning. And, they are really appreciative for the opportunity to do so.
Look for works by Leslie’s students in the Spring 2015 JFS Matters.
Leslie Taub is one of many ESL teachers. If you are interested in volunteering with this program, please contact Jane Deer-Hileman.
By Jenelle Birnbaum
Violinist, hiker and all-around arts nerd Jenelle Birnbaum is the Marketing Coordinator and Web Administrator at JFS. Outside of that, she enjoys speaking French and vegan cooking.
