If you’ve ever passed through the language pod at our school during the day, you might have noticed students dancing or singing to different Spanish songs. At the forefront of this engaging classroom experience is Spanish teacher Bernadette Villanueva, who joined our school’s staff last March.
Although Villanueva joined recently, she has been teaching for many years. In the early 2000s, she was a part of the International Baccalaureate (IB) program at Washington Liberty High School. It was then that Villanueva got the opportunity to take her IB Spanish students to Costa Rica alongside a local school, which forever changed her perspective on education.
“When I took the students to Costa Rica, that was probably one of the best educational experiences that I was able to be a part of and be able to create. I saw for myself how education should be for all of you guys,” Villanueva said.
But education wasn’t always in the books for Villanueva. It was only something she took into consideration after her mother had suggested that she had a knack for teaching. Instead, Villanueva wanted to pursue singing and dancing on Broadway.
“I got married and I had children and that put the Broadway dream to the side. And eventually, I figured out maybe I didn’t want to do that,” Villanueva said.
While Villanueva may not be singing on the big stage, she carries this spirit into her classroom. Students throughout the year have been learning different songs and how to play cultural instruments such as the güiro, a traditional Puerto Rican percussion instrument. These songs help the students use their Spanish to develop pronunciation and sentence structure skills.
However, one of the main reasons Villanueva came back to teach is her connection with the students. She loves being able to share little pieces of wisdom as well as enjoy the energy that her students bring to the classroom.
“I will miss the conversations I have with you guys. I get so much more from you guys, and I think it’s the same way that you get from a teacher when we are able to have these conversations; it really strengthens the trust and understanding,” Villanueva said.
Looking forward, Villanueva is taking on the world. The first stop is Puerto Rico, her homeland, to decide whether or not she wants to retire there or not. If not, Villanueva is planning to explore other places around the world, like Taiwan and New Zealand. She plans to continue the lifelong process of learning in Taiwan by becoming a student once again and learning the language.
As one of Villanueva’s students myself, I can sincerely say that taking Spanish with her has always been an exciting and interesting process because of her enthusiasm for the class and her care for the students. Our school certainly won’t be the same without Villanueva’s warm and energetic presence and her creative outlook on the classroom. However, we are excited for this next chapter and the new adventures she embarks on as she travels.
