During bus orientation at 3 p.m., I explained ‘school drop-off’ and Google Translate rendered it as ‘drop off chickens,’ so the room cracked up before we switched to drawing routes and it finally made sense. What harmless translation bloopers have you turned into teachable moments during resettlement and cultural orientation?
After my own ‘drop off chickens’ moment, I started flashing a laminated card with a car + school icon whenever I say ‘school drop-off’ during the 3 p.m. bus orientation — it adds 10 seconds but prevents the giggles and gets us back on track. Do you ever do a quick back-translate in Google Translate before starting? If not, the picture cue alone is usually enough.
Quick fix that helped me: I switched to saying “morning arrival” and “afternoon pick‑up” and taped those with icons by the bus map, which feels MT‑proof and stops me from accidentally founding a poultry co‑op. When an interpreter’s in the room, I hand out a one‑page glossary so we all stick to the same terms. @l_torres99 have you tried a shared glossary, or do the cards cover it?