Helena, a MMLA Student Ambassador, shares her thoughts about her experience with the MMLA Faculty and Staff.

At MMLA, there were a lot of extra activities that we could take part in. There was usually swimming or some kind of sport. Sometimes there was photography and other times there were ‘telenovelas’ to watch (spanish soap operas). I really enjoyed making room decorations and watching soccer (a favorite passtime of the entire Spanish Academy). On Saturday evenings, we all dressed up and headed to the dance. Before the dance began, we handed in our passports (the colored pouches we wore around our necks signifying which Academy we belonged to) and, for the evening, we were allowed to speak English. It was really fun because we got to meet kids from the other Academies or even get to know the ones in our own better. There were a lot of really fun activities at MMLA!

Helena Black was born in Buffalo, New York. About a year ago she moved with her family to Omaha, Nebraska. She is a Freshman in high school and really enjoy it, especially the language classes. She enjoys reading, doodling, and hanging out with all of the great friends that she has met in Omaha.

What are some of your favorite activities at MMLA?

Helena, a MMLA Student Ambassador, shares her thoughts about her experience with the MMLA Faculty and Staff.

The faculty and staff at MMLA were very nice. The RAs were always there when you needed comforting or just a friend. The teachers were also really friendly and had a lot of fun stories to tell about language experiences they had been able to take part in. They made all of the lessons really fun and I enjoyed them. All of the people who ran the camps were also super nice. They did their best to make sure we all had a great time and learned as much as we could. The nurse was really nice. I managed to get stung by a bee on the bottom of my foot. Luckily, it happened right outside the nurse’s office. I hobbled in with the help of my friends and she quickly had me walking normally again! Everyone I met at camp was great.

Helena Black was born in Buffalo, New York. About a year ago she moved with her family to Omaha, Nebraska. She is a Freshman in high school and really enjoy it, especially the language classes. She enjoys reading, doodling, and hanging out with all of the great friends that she has met in Omaha.

What’s was your experience like with the MMLA Faculty and Staff?

Continuing with our series of MMLA Student Ambassador responses. In this entry, Helena Black, a French student at the Swarthmore Academy, discuses why she decided to switch from the Spanish Academy to the French Academy.

I started out at MMLA Swarthmore last year as a rising Freshman doing Spanish. I really enjoy languages and recently added French to my classes at school. I am currently taking French I in addition to Spanish II. The experience at MMLA was great and my Spanish improved significantly. I felt that I would benefit from participating in the French Academy this year to strengthen my abilities in this second language. I will be doing a Spanish Immersion Program in Costa Rica for ten days in June that I hope will solidify what I learned at MMLA last summer and in school this past year. I plan to continue both languages and I hope to attend MMLA for both Spanish and French in the future. My goal is to take AP Spanish and French and I have some catching up to do in French to accomplish this.

I found that everyone was really nice and very supportive at MMLA last summer. My enthusiasm must have come through as I was even able to persuade a close friend of mine to attend this coming summer. That is another reason why I am participating in the French Academy: my friend speaks French. I hope to gain a lot of language skills in the French Academy so that it will be possible to skip French II next year and go into French III. That way I will be able to take AP French in my Senior Year of High School.

Helena Black was born in Buffalo, New York. About a year ago she moved with her family to Omaha, Nebraska. She is a Freshman in high school and really enjoy it, especially the language classes. She enjoys reading, doodling, and hanging out with all of the great friends that she has met in Omaha.

In the meantime, check out last year’s blog.