1. Too much food

Never in my life have I been so consistently well fed and full. Families often provided 5 course meals of beautifully made pastas, deserts, and authentic Italian food every night. I have never eaten such amazing meals, and always went to bed completely satiated.

It was terrible.

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2. The kids are way too cute

When they stress out trying to find the correct English word. When they give you hugs and kisses on the cheek. When they help you with your Italian, sing the camp songs non-stop and when they draw beautiful pictures of you. They are beyond competitive, and go all out when they dress for their plays. They practice hard to remember their lines. They give you little gifts to show their affection. They speak Italian to you even when you’ve explained several times that you don’t speak their language.

Yuck.

 

3. The host families treat you like you are their own

This summer I was accepted into every household with welcoming arms. I stayed with amazing people that gave me a room, but more than that, introduced me to their day-to-day life and accepted me into their families. Some families took me around their town; others even took me site seeing to places like the Milan Food Expo, the Dolomites and castles. Despite living with most families for only two weeks, I formed a special bond with each and keep in touch with many, months later.

Why would anyone like this?

 

 

4. Who wants to sing and play games all day?

It was my job to sing and play for most of the day. I repeat, I was getting paid to play capture the flag, sing songs about llamas, and create plays.

Need I say more? Just awful.

 

5. You have to travel all around Italy (groan)

Every one or two weeks, you are sent to a new city, family and camp. I was in and around Milan, in the mountains, near Verona, and near Venice. On some weekends I was able to travel with other tutors and see the surrounding areas. After camp was over, I traveled around the country, hitting the places I hadn’t yet been to.

Excruciating.

 

 

 

6. You work with people from all over the world

At orientation, the worst part, you are stuck with about a hundred people your age, with similar mindsets, in a beautiful hotel in a foreign country. These people are from America, Canada, Ireland, England, Scotland, South Africa, New Zealand etc. After orientation, you are placed with people at each new camp, and you are constantly making new friends, many of which you may travel with after camp or stay in touch with for a long time to come.

Ugh.

 

7. You’re making a difference in youths futures

And finally, you’re teaching English to kids in a way that will make them more likely to enjoy the learning process. This will improve their English, and may inspire them to pursue the language much farther. The learning of the English language will help them with interactions in their future professional lives. All because you made learning English fun!

In conclusion, I hope I have made it very clear why no one should want to spend a summer working at ACLE. On top of this, you will make so many new memories that you’ll remember for years to come. Who in their right mind would like that?

 

Amelia Hoffmann
ACLE Tutor, 2015

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