Living Abroad Project
Final Project for Spanish III and AP Spanish classes
...So you have your suitcases packed and your guidebook ready. You've
triple-checked that you do indeed have both your plane tickets and your
passport -- and will maybe check one more time... just in case. ​You're off to
live in a new country for a year for the first time in your life and you
could not be more excited.
But first, there are a few things you need to sort out before moving. For
example, you need a job before getting there, you need to figure out where
you’ll live, how will you move around, transportation, utilities, things to do,
what can you afford with your new job and salary, among many, many, many
other things.
For your final project, you will need to figure out how your new life will look like
in a country I will assign to you. Here are some of the things you will need to
research:
1- First, you will need to find a job, but it’s not just any job, you will need to
look for something you can do with a high school diploma, which is the higher
education you’ll have at the time of moving. Where will you work? How much
does the company pay in the country and city you are moving to. How many
hours do you have to work to be able to afford a living? Will you need to find a
second job? What is it going to be? Do you need a visa to work at that
country for a year? How can you get it? What do you need to obtain it?
2- Where will you live? Securing housing should be one of your top priorities
before moving. You're in a new country. You're homeless. That local hostel,
hotel, or friendly couch will only keep you for so long before you need a
(somewhat) more permanent place. I know you think it'll be easy to find a
fantastic apartment in the big city, close to all of the major sights and with a
steal-of-a-rent, but this isn't realistic. Those places are more expensive, and
you may have to be flexible on where you live to find a place within your
budget.
Check if there are shelters or hostels in the area that can take you in, or that
you may be able to afford for the first few weeks or months while you can
save some money to move to a better place. Then, find an apartment or
housing option you can afford with your salary. Remember, you will need to
pay for other things like utilities, transportation, food, leisure activities, etc.
You’ll have to fit everything into your brand new budget and life!
3- Transportation- How will you move around in the country? Do they have a
reliable, affordable public transportation system, or do you need to get a car, a
bike, or something else to move around? How much will it cost you? How
much is public transportation if that’s an option? How much will you pay
monthly for a car? Do they have financing options in that country? Can you
afford it? Are you buying a bike, motorcycle, using Uber? How much will it
cost?
4- Utilities- Remember that now you live on your own, and you have to pay for
everything to survive. Look for electricity, water, gas and insurance, internet,
and cable companies. How much will you have to pay for this services in your
country?
5- Food- what’s your budget for food? What do they eat over there? What
dishes are they known for in your country? How much does it cost to buy
basic things like milk, water, meat, chicken, bread, rice? Make a shopping list
and find the prices of groceries for the country you are moving to.
6- Currency- what’s the country's currency? How much is that when
converting the money to U.S Dollars. Remember you will get paid in other
currency and you need to afford everything based on that.
7- For fun- What can you do for fun? Which places can you visit while you are
there? Nearby cities? Landmarks? How much money you have left to spend in
your free time, if any? Can you visit some of these places for free? Where can
you go to meet new people, to make new friends?
8- Cultural differences- Don't be too afraid of being the ugly foreigner -- at
least at first. You'll make mistakes, of course, but as long as you exercise a bit
of common courtesy, read up on some basic etiquette, and channel those
manners that you only used with your grandparents and you should be fine.
That being said, there are some cultures that are more finicky than others.
● Figure out any ​specific ways you might offend the locals, and
avoid them​! Depending on where you are, it may mean not eating
with your left hand, showing the soles of your feet, or sticking
chopsticks vertically into a mound of rice, or some words that may be
normal for you. Research and write some examples.
● Learn how to greet people and how to share a meal​. These are
two of the most important lessons you will pick up abroad, and will
likely even get you a few new, delicious recipes from living abroad to
share with your friends back home.
● Look up the local holidays​. This will help you navigate the cultural
landscape of wherever you live. Having a list might even warn you
about impending non-stop fireworks, massive water fights, or
celebrations filled with colored powders.
After researching all the information you need, you will create a powerpoint
presentation, Word document, or Poster where you are going to present all
findings. Everything will have to fit in your project, so keep that in mind if you
plan to do a Poster. Your project has to be CREATIVE. You will need to add
pictures of some of the things you looked for, like your job location, apartment,
transportation, places to visit, among others.
Add interesting facts you find about the country while researching it… you
may add a video, a song, or something else you may want people to know.
REMEMBER: this is your final project. It is worth 2 grades. It will count as a
major test grade for the last 3-week period and it will be your final exam grade
as well. Your project and work done has to be good enough for 2 major
grades. Don’t wait until the last minute to do it. It is a long and time-consuming
project. You have to look for a lot of different things and some of them may
not be that easy to find. You have to stay in budget as well, and that may not
be an easy task. USE YOUR TIME WISELY. You will get your grade based on
your final work, time and effort put into the project. If you do a last minute
thing I will make sure your grade reflects the same.