Mr. Yassine Bahmane, who prefers to be addressed as Mr. Yassine by his students, joined the faculty this year to teach French and Arabic.

While growing up in Casablanca, Morocco, Mr. Yassine learned French, Arabic and Spanish, all of which are widely used in that country. He also spoke the Berber language at home with his parents and two older sisters.

With all these languages under his belt and teaching two at school, the transition between them can sometimes be difficult.

“You find yourself explaining things in a different language,” Mr. Yassine said. “Sometimes I haven’t switched. In Arabic class one time, I called a girl ‘mademoiselle’.”

Besides the confusion of switching between two languages throughout the day, Mr. Yassine felt overwhelmed  by the hectic first week of school schedule.

“I had many tasks to keep in mind and in order, plus I was new to the system. It was quite challenging. But many teachers were willing to assist, as I am willing to assist them,” Mr. Yassine said.

When not creating lesson plans for school, or earning his masters degree in communication and studying for a PhD, Mr. Yassine reads, visits friends, and plays soccer every weekend. But the teaching comes first, as it has for others in his family.

“Many of my family members are teachers. It’s in our blood. My two older sisters are teachers, and my father was one as well,” he said. “I am glad to be at Manual. I hope that the students will have progress. I’ll do my best to instruct. Students should learn to not only speak the language but understand it. That is a crucial aspect of language and teaching.”