Alejandra Balcazar started working at the Bryn Mawr Little School three years ago in the infant and toddler room. In 2018, she joined the Middle School as a language teacher for Spanish and French in addition to teaching older Little School students four days a week in Afternoon Room Two. Balcazar loves to share her love of languages with her students, and is always finding fun, fresh and engaging ways to immerse her students in language and culture.
 
What’s your teaching style?
Teaching languages allows me to be very flexible in my classes. One day we can read about French pastries and end up eating croissants, and the next class we can be learning about indigenous tribes in Puerto Rico. I try to make my class as communicative as possible and engage the students in daily situations while always reminding them that it is okay to make mistakes.

How many languages do you speak and how did you learn?
I speak English, French, Italian and of course Spanish. I started learning English when I was very little, maybe 3 years old. I remember my mom telling me that the Disney channel was not available in Spanish, so I had to watch cartoons in English. Then I went to college for modern languages where French and English were mandatory and I had 14 other languages to choose from so I chose Italian and Arabic, but this last one didn’t stick with me. I couldn’t see my life without speaking other languages and I think my world would be so small and limited if I didn’t.  Nowadays, I think my mom did what was best for me by introducing me to different languages because without speaking English I doubt I would be living in this country.
Favorite part of teaching?
I love arriving to school and seeing the students so motivated. Every day, I look forward to seeing them so eager to learn and it always amazes me how fast they do it. I also enjoy each minute with my colleagues. Their discussions and experiences are so motivating, and each day I learn something new. Four days a week, I teach the older students at the Little School in Room 2. I miss working with the infants, but the older kids keep me busy and entertained all the time. I get to teach them Spanish, and we learn basic concepts while singing and reading stories. Clearly there’s a big age difference between Middle and Little School, however both groups are so interested in learning, enjoy hand-on activities and definitely their favorite moment is when I say, “Let’s go outside!”
 
The world is so big and we still need to learn so much from other cultures. Helping them achieve their communicative goals by taking risks to speak in other languages, that is why I became a teacher.
What do you love most about teaching languages and culture to students?
The purest joy of teaching is when you see the result of your work in those moments when your students demonstrate learning. When you see a face light up at comprehending a question and then answering the question in the target language. My favorite moment is when I hear a student say— “Oh I really want to go there,” after learning about a new country. It makes me feel that I just helped them realize that the world is so big and we still need to learn so much from other cultures. Helping them achieve their communicative goals by taking risks to speak in other languages, that is why I became a teacher.

Why should every student take a language at some point in their academic careers?
Learning languages has so many benefits from social to health. Learn a second language, and you have a lifetime to benefit from cross-cultural friendships, broader career opportunities, exciting travel adventures and deeper insights into how others see the world. It is also proven that learning a second language improves memory and increases attention span. Nowadays, if you want to be part of the increasingly integrated global business community, you need to be able to communicate in multiple languages. Learning to communicate fluently in multiple languages provides additional job security and advancement opportunities in uncertain economic times.
If you could invite three people to dinner, who would you invite and why?  
Cleopatra, Michelle Obama and Shakira. To me they are perfect examples of strong women. I’d love to chat with Cleopatra about her experience becoming queen of one of the most important civilizations of that time,  when most of the world was ruled by men. I’d also like to ask her how she managed to speak twelve languages! Michelle Obama is such an inspiration for me. I’d like to hear her advice on how to be a successful woman, overcome critiques and challenges all while being a wife and a mother.  As for Shakira, we need some music at this dinner. Shakira is also the woman who has invested the most in helping Colombian children. I would like to discuss with her how we can make sure children in my country have access to a good quality education like the students here. I think this would be such a fun dinner!
 
 
Located in Baltimore, Maryland, The Bryn Mawr School is a private all-girls pre-kindergarten, elementary, middle and high school with a coed preschool for ages 2 months through 5 years. Bryn Mawr provides students with exceptional educational opportunities on a beautiful 26-acre campus within the city limits. Inquisitive girls, excellent teaching, strong student-teacher relationships and a clear mission sustain our vibrant school community where girls always come first.