Teaching Moments

Some teaching moments I've had over the past several weeks.

- Pulled a thumbtack out of a student's ear. He wanted an earring. Really?!?

- Got confused when a student told me she had a "Cope-y." Yeah...that's a nosebleed in Korean. Figured it out pretty fast though!

- Made a student write down 3 reasons for why calling other students trash is a bad thing. She could only come up with two. -__-

- Had a mother of one of my 7th graders come up to me today and thank me for helping her child study and learn English. She said he talks about me all the time. Made me feel warm and fuzzy inside. :)

- Had a girl student slam down her pencil case in frustration when she didn't finish her word search before class. Apparently, candy is a strong motivator. =)

A little about teaching...and a little about running! ^-^*

Annyong everyone!


Instead of writing a lengthy post about one topic, I'm going to write a few stories/anecdotes/updates (??) on different topics!! First up...the best question a student has asked me this year...


Student: Hello, teacher! 
Me: Hello, **! How are you?
S: Good. Teacher, I have a question...
Me: Ok!
S: I play baseball.
Me: Yes, I know! 
S: I use baseball bat.
Me: Yes, that's correct.
S: So...do I use baseball ball?
Me: Good question! You use a baseball. You play baseball. It is the same word.
S: Teacher! So confusing! But ok. Same word. Thank you.
Me: You're welcome! Bye **!
S: Bye.


This conversation made my day!! ^-^


Topic #2: English Festival--April Fool's Day!
The past two weeks I have been teaching the 3rd-6th graders about April Fool's Day. I tell them a little bit about it (emphasizing that we say NICE jokes and everyone is happy and no one is sad), show some examples and we watch a few funny youtube videos. Then, after doing all of that (maybe 20 minutes), I tell them I have a word search handout. The first student to finish is the winner! I say, "Do not write your name. Circle the words. No talking. Ready? Go!" and the class is silent for a couple minutes. As soon as I see the advanced students starting to get frustrated/confused, I start laughing. I say, "I FOOLED YOU! HAPPY APRIL FOOL'S DAY!!!!" and tell them no words are there. It is a joke. They get mad and tell me so with big smiles on their faces. Then I collect the handouts to reuse for the next class. Soooo funny! If you want to watch the video that was the biggest hit with my kids~go here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blOrY-nEGaE&list=PLE77CF25A17A69A9E&index=1&feature=plpp_video I always watched the kids watch the video. They were cracking up!!!!! and I was laughing at them! ^-^


Topic #3: Running my first 10km!
So...basically since we returned to Daegu I've been running at the gym trying to get healthy, lose the weight I gained pigging out at home, etc. and my friend told me about the Daegu marathon. Now there was NO WAY I could run a marathon, but I figured...with 3 weeks left to train, I should be able to run a 10km! I registered for the race and researched training schedules (I had only been running 3-5km so I needed to gradually double my distance). Then I bought new running shoes (mine were at least 3-4years old and started hurting my feet), and began running with a purpose!!! I was pretty good about going to the gym 3-4 times/week, but having this marathon goal meant I was running 4-5 times/week without fail. I was SUPER motivated!!! Not only did I want to finish the 10km, I wanted to finish it withOUT stopping. 


The marathon was last Sunday morning. I saw the international athletes warm-up and talked with a few other English teachers I happened to see. We got lined up, I started my cardio app to track my time and distance (just as a reference), and I pushed play on my ipod. I was ready to start the race!!! We ran from city hall up to where the Daegu train station is and back around. It was so much fun!!!! The best part is...I finished it in about 58minutes!!! I don't know the official time yet, but based on my phone, it was about 58 minutes. I had been running it at the gym in about 67 minutes, so I was really happy with my time! The weather was perfect and with so many people running around me and people cheering from the sidewalks, it was a blast. I definitely got tired and my legs were super sore later that day, but I really enjoyed the 10km. Plus I got a "Finishers Medal" which is awesome! Fluke and some friends met me at the finish line and that was really cool because they woke up early to get there! They motivated me too because I told them I would finish between 9:10-9:20... I wanted to be on time! So thanks to Fluke and our friends for supporting me!! I think I will look up more races around Daegu and keep running. If for no other reason than to give myself another goal and keep my motivation up. Maybe the next one I can run in 50-55 minutes!!! ^o^ Here's a pic of me at the finish line!

A Day in the life of Ati Teacher No.1

I always get these ideas for annual blog posts, so we have a reason to update more frequently. Anyway, here is another idea, lets see if it sticks this time eh? So the title says it all. I'll update this blog post periodically through the day, and hopefully you'll see what school life is like for me (and Jenn!) on a daily basis.


- Rode my bike to school today like usual, left my apartment at 8:00 AM, rolled up to school in about 10 minutes. I have to be at school by 8:20, but I like to get there early so I can avoid all the kiddos.


- No 1st period today so I got time to make some copies and lesson plan. 


- Gotta check email first though. Then facebook. Then drink my coffee. Oh crap. It's time for 2nd period. Whoops! There goes my productive hour...


- Just had a bunch of 9th graders for 2nd period. Man...what a bunch of zombies! They didn't even get into the game I prepared for them. Wish I could say that they're normally an awesome bunch, but nothing new here. Oh well. Gotta keep trying!


- So mentally drained from that one class. I try so hard to get them to speak just anything and it just sucks when a class doesn't participate. Sigh...


- Oh well, got a break until 5th period. Made 300 more copies. Just killed a tree right there, this industrial-sized copier is wicked though. Took about 3 minutes. Super fast! Finished powerpoint and lesson plan for part 2 of lesson 1 for 8th grade. Going to do a board game activity, 1st time ever. Lets see how that goes. Stayed productive, started part 2 of lesson 1 for 9th grade. Gotta make this lesson active, maybe I'll try to get them out of their seats so they're not such zombies. 


- Lunch time! Curry and rice. Kimchi too (of course!). And some cole slaw thing and when I refer to it as cole slaw, I mean that in the most distant of comparisons. It tastes nothing like it. o_O But it's not bad. 


- Finished lunch quick today. Just going to chill until 5th period at 1:20. Going to try out that board game activity. Wish me luck!


- Well...one period later, and I gotta say I'm not disappointed with the results, but not happy either. They played the board game, and played using the rules I gave them, BUT only when I was at their table. Aargh! Next class, I will have to be more stern about them following the rules, and give a bigger incentive probably. Overall, not bad for a first try.


- Gotta watch it though, there is a spot on the board game where you can "Get some candy." A lot of the boy students (of course right?) lied and said they landed on that spot. So I told them if they really wanted candy, they'd have to follow me to my office (on the other side of the school) and give me 5 sentences about themselves. No speaking mistakes. Ha. Let's see who wants candy now.


- 10 minutes later, 8 boy students later, and I'm out 5 pieces of candy. I can't believe they followed me to my office! But this actually made me happy, because I got to hear them think up 5 sentences on the spot about themselves, and they were correct. These were all my troublemakers too so just hearing them speak English made me super happy. 3 of them didn't speak all their sentences correctly, but I told them they could try again tomorrow. Let's see if they do! 


- On a side note, I don't actually get to give them grades here. Don't get me started on how unfair and stupid this is, just know that I strongly oppose it. So, I do have to occasionally resort to candy prizes/rewards. A reward stamp sheet has helped a lot as well. But I would get so much better participation if students actually had an incentive to try in my class. All I got going for me is that they like me and that I got candy. When they don't like me...hey, I still got candy! Haha. Enough about this topic, it just makes me angry. -_-


- Got a break right now before 7th period. Easy day today, only 3 classes. Normally have 4-6 a day. Going to prepare for my last class now. Will be trying the board game again, but this time I think I'll have them do a few textbook activities beforehand to reinforce their knowledge. See ya after 7th!


- What a difference a class makes! This class took to my board game instantly, and it was a complete success. Once I realized that the girl groups would follow my directions, I just switched back and forth between the two boy groups to make sure they weren't goofing off too much. Anyway, I felt really good about that class just now. It's always nice to have a good class before the end of the day!


-Speaking of which, the day ends in 20 minutes! I get to leave at 4:20 PM. So I'm going to finish cleaning up my desk (it always accumulates so much random items somehow), and then call it a day. Bye!

Today Was a Good Day Volume III

Well...it wasn't really today, but I didn't have time to write about it on that day, so here it is now! Today was a good day volume III:


I have this particular class of 5th graders who, let's just say, are very difficult to teach. They are usually 5-7 mins late to class (not really their fault), which makes my lesson more rushed. When I only have 40 minutes, being 5-7 minutes late (plus 1 minute to get seated and organized) is a significant time to lose. They are a noisy bunch so it takes me (and my co-teacher) longer to get through the required textbook exercises (really boring, but apparently necessary to learning English). They know when they finish the textbook exercises, there is a game/activity. Yet, they still take forever to do the textbook exercises. Basically, this class is challenging in many ways. The part that is significant to why this day was a good day, is the part where...they walked into class 4 minutes early. Yes, I looked at the clock because I was SHOCKED they were early.


I always have a short interesting/entertaining video to show classes when they arrive to my classroom early. Some classes are always early (because in the previous period they were only next door and not in P.E. or a classroom 2 buildings away) and after giving them a couple minutes of playing/chatting/whatever it is those boys do, I start a video. Some students choose to talk quietly, go to the bathroom, or whatever. For the most part, all the students want to watch the video. 


Let's just say...this particular class hasn't seen a video in months. So when they walked in early, I said, "everyone sit down...I have a fun video to watch!" They looked at me like I was crazy...they weren't really sure what I meant. I pressed play on the "art with sand video" (Check them out--they are amazing) and watched the students watching the screen. The entire class was focused on the screen. They were quiet. They were entertained.  The best part is...when the video finished...I told them, "I always have a video before class. If you come to English class early, you can watch a video." Then the bell rang. We started class right on time. They finished the textbook exercises in record speed and efficiency. I gave them a "+1" on their class point chart for being such a good class. They had plenty of time to play the game. It was an amazing class. I reminded them that when they come to English class early, they get to watch a video. 


Cross your fingers that the next time I teach this class, they are at least 2 minutes early.

Today Was a Good Day Vol. 2

Hi everyone! This is my first "Today was a good day" blog entry! Enjoy :)


I have a student who last semester was extremely difficult to control and this semester, still refuses to do anything, but is more quiet about it. Today I said, "Please open your book to page 132." I know he understands me. He opens his book and then says, "No, teacher. I won't do." Instead of *trying* to make him complete the exercises by staying beside him the entire time, I decide to do something new. I looked at his drawings on the inside of his torn book cover. I asked, "What's this?" He proceeds to tell me all about the monsters. I ask him to name the body parts, to count the body parts (I think there were 6 arms and 3 eyes???) and to label his monsters. We have a short conversation about his life. (I knew his living situation was far from ideal.) And he told me he is happy living with his grandparents (I don't know what exactly happened to his parents, except that under their care, he was not happy.) He walks to school (like most of the students) and has breakfast every morning.


I always knew that connecting with students and having meaningful conversations with them is the best way to motivate and teach them. Until today, I had not done that with this child. I'm embarrassed to admit this because it should have happened much, much earlier in the school year. Anyway, later in the period, during a partner creative writing activity, his partner asked me how to spell a word. I always ask the students to try to spell the word first and then I will help them. Well, this boy blurted out the correct spelling! (For a difficult word too!!!) Partners are supposed to help each other and learn from each other. Until this activity, I had never seen this boy be a "partner" or participate in a cooperative learning activity voluntarily. No, I don't think he will suddenly do all the textbook exercises without being prompted. No, I don't think he will suddenly be volunteering and raising his hand all the time. BUT, I do hope that his participation improves and he has more of a desire to learn English. I look forward to the next time I teach him. I wonder what short 2-minute conversation I will have next time???

English Festivals

Hi everyone!
This week was my school's 3rd English festival of the year! Which means... I was very busy!!! So what is an English festival??? Basically, instead of using the textbook in English class, we get to do something more interesting and cultural for one period. For grades 3-6, the other native English teacher (NET) and I plan and prepare exciting activities around one theme. The first English festival was Easter-themed. We taught the students how we celebrate Easter, we did an Easter egg hunt, and we played "pin the tail on the Easter bunny." Most of the students are Christian, but we were careful to say that only Christians celebrate Easter. I was uncertain about this religious holiday theme, but this was the theme chosen by the Korean English teachers. Anyway, it was a lot of fun! The pin the tail game was hilarious. For the second festival, we decided to teach about our manners/etiquette. We taught about "bless you" after sneezes, saying "excuse me," typical table settings, and different styles of food. It was the perfect excuse to show the sneezing baby panda video on youtube! And I had a video of my mom setting the table. Even without sound, the kids enjoyed it. The third festival topic has been my favorite so far...Halloween!!!!

They all wanted to pick an object from my "Color Bag" and say the color!

Making their color wheels!
Based on their reactions, I don't think they knew they could mix the primary colors
to make green, orange, and purple before this lesson!

There were so many different activities and games we had to choose from that are Halloween-related!! We decided to do a short powerpoint, play the mummy wrap race game (toilet paper mummies--except we used ace bandages tied together to be economical and environment friendly ^-^) and make Halloween masks. When the students left the room, they wore their mask and said, "trick or treat!" to get a lollipop. I love my 5th grade students, but it's always fun to teach the other grades too. This week I taught the 1st, 4th, and 6th graders. 

Mummy wrap race!! 

Now, the 3rd-6th graders get one period for the English festival. Grades 1-2 get 2 periods of English!!! They do not have any English instruction in their curriculum, so for 1 period, we teach basic English (i.e. greetings, colors, numbers, body parts) and for the 2nd period, we practice/review the basic English before introducing the cultural part of the lesson. Because of the huge language barrier and their age, we do something basic and plan activities that do not require any formal instructions. For example, we made a color wheel. Following my example and demonstration is enough to do the activity. We played number games where modeling is enough to understand the rules. This week, we showed Halloween pictures, taught a few vocabulary words, and made Halloween masks. 


The English textbook is, for the most part, really boring. Very rarely do I teach any of the suggested games. Very rarely do the students enjoy the textbook part of the lesson. I still do not know why it is called an English "Festival" when it is only 1 period of English that does not follow the textbook. However, I know the students really enjoy it. It is one period where they learn something interesting and new and mostly just play engaging games. It is a LOT more work for me (and the other NET), but I'm always so excited to teach each period. Teaching the same textbook exercise 6 times gets boring...watching kids wrap each other like mummies 14 times--never boring!!

It's not always fun and games

When Jenn and I started this blog, we had the intent of talking about our time here in Daegu. Which consists mainly of teaching, teaching, and...teaching. Instead, we ended up writing mainly about our weekends, and our recent vacations and almost nothing about our everyday lives! So what is it like on a normal day for us? What are some of the obstacles that we have to deal with everyday? Well, I can't speak for Jenn, but here are some of the struggles that I have to deal with when it comes to teaching Middle school students.

I read somewhere (don't quote me on this) that the lowest level of motivation across grade levels occurred during Middle School. I remember reading that and thinking, dang,why am I not surprised? My main struggle in class is getting students motivated. Sure they like me, yeah I'm "Handsome" teacher, but as soon as the class starts, its a daily grind getting students to care. The textbook might as well be covered with fire ants, judging by the way the students look at it when it's time to do one of the exercises. Noise level and classroom management are also pretty difficult. I'm not gonna lie, its hard as heck sometimes trying to get 40 8th grade boys to be quiet right after their PE class. I guess if I could say anything about teaching, it would be that it is mentally exhausting. You put so much effort into your classes, that sometimes it can be pretty disheartening when things go wrong or students just give you a blank stare. But...one thing that was told to me at orientation has helped a lot. Be prepared to fail. One of our lecturers told us that, and he was right. Classes are going to suck sometimes. Nothing to be done about it except get back to the drawing board and figure out something that does work. 

But then you get the classes that are just out of control. Maybe its right after lunch, or the final class before the day ends. Whatever it is, it just doesn't flow. That's when you can't really do anything but make the class write lines. Literally. Last week, I made one of my boys classes write lines for the last 20 minutes of class. That's right. 20 minutes! That's how awful they were. And today? I had to teach them again! Well, I walked into the classroom determined to do better than last week, and bam. They were so much better behaved! Maybe I should be a hard-ass more often huh? 

Anyways, writing this post has made me realize why I don't really write about the bad days here. It's kinda depressing! And I like to stay positive you know? But, in any case, these are some of the things I have to unfortunately deal with on a daily basis. I don't mind to be honest. I keep a short memory, and it helps to remind myself that they're just kids and that middle school IS kind of a drag sometimes! Boys will be boys right? Besides, out of all my classes, only 2 or 3 give me struggles like the ones that I've mentioned above (doesn't seem like much, but those classes can really drag you down man!). The majority of my classes are awesome! Seriously. They are. Especially my advanced 9th grade classes. Anyways, Jenn and I will try to write more about our time here in Daegu, and not just our weekends away! :)

Bye!

Hello!! 안녕하세요!!

So...Fluke wrote an amazing post about his first semester here, so I'm not-so-subtly copying his idea and writing about my first semester. Let me begin with 안녕하세요!! (Annyeonghasaeyo!!=hello!!)


Culture Shock
I'm not sure I really experienced it. I mean, a lot here is different, some parts are completely different, and other parts remind me of home, but I think I just adjusted over time to what initially seemed a little strange. I never felt like the culture of Korea was so different that I couldn't adjust. Preparing dinner on top of my washing machine and refrigerator are totally normal now. The bathroom becoming a showeroom--totally normal. Changing from my regular shoes to indoor shoes and wearing them all around the school--normal. Cars on the sidewalk--to be expected. Seeing signs in English everywhere and forcing myself to read the Hangul to practice--getting easier and I'm reading faster. Waving "HI!" to just about everyone still makes me smile. Getting stares for looking different--it's normal, but still awkward sometimes. Adding the word "maybe" to practically every sentence with a co-worker because it is more polite to be indirect than direct/to-the-point has become more natural. While it is frustrating at times, I catch myself adding "maybe" to conversations among friends when it is not unnecessary! Bowing to everyone older than me and saying hello--this is probably the habit that will take me the longest to adjust to when I go back home!


Teaching English...with a Co-Teacher???
Well, most of you know that I did not have a "Co-Teacher." I had a teacher who spoke hardly any English and therefore could never translate when necessary. Good news is that the class became my class!! All English instruction came from me. I planned all instruction and prepared 99% of the materials. I designed the activities or got inspiration from fellow English teachers in Korea. I had my own classroom management techniques. I was the teacher of English!! My "Co-teacher" essentially got paid to do nothing. BUT...I love the kids and I love my job. Honestly, I would so much rather be in complete control than having zero control like some other English teachers I know. I mean, I came to Korea to teach. I would not be doing so well here or be as happy if I was merely a puppet by the Korean English teacher. I know I will continue to grow as a teacher, but this first semester I definitely grew as a teacher.
 I only taught grade 5 so I really got to know my students and their personalities. I love teaching grade 5!!! The kids do not have the 6th grade attitude yet and they are adorable. I have a handful of students who are fluent in English and I love having a quick chat with them before/after class. I have students who love English class even though they are way below grade level in English. I love the students' smiles and excitement when a game/activity goes well. I like singing with them and having them practice their English fluency without them realizing it. I like the "Jennifer teacher! Jennifer teacher! How are you?" I love their responses to questions. Even though not all the students have the vocabulary to express their creativity in English, I know through their art, their projects and their oral responses, that quite a few of my students have an amazing sense of humor. One time, the target sentence was "What a nice car!" when looking at a part of a cartoon strip. A student said, "What a nice car! Let's steal it and go to Woobangland (the amusement park in Daegu)!"


Learning the Language
Hmm...where to start....basically-I know more than I did when I came here! However, I thought by this point I would know way more than I do. The reason is that learning Korean isn't crucial because in Daegu, there is English everywhere. I'll order my meal in Korean and then the cashier will say the English number back to me to make sure she understood! I'll say nae-il (tomorrow) and the person will say, "Tomorow? Ok." haha it's been really nice to have English menus and restaurant names, but so many more places would be possible if we knew more of the language. Reading it is one thing--understanding what we are reading is another.
I've learned some words from my kids! I learned the word for bathroom and how to say "I do not have." Of course, the later was in response to my question, "Where is your book?" haha. Other words I've picked up from hearing it so often or from friends sharing what they know how to say. All and all, I want to learn more Korean!


Last few comments...
I love Daegu and I love Korea ^^ I love meeting up with friends downtown. I love shopping in the subways. Oh, I love public transportation!!! I love traveling and exploring on the weekends. I love how my students call me "Je-ni-pa" or "Je-ni-pa Teacher." I love not saying "excuse me" and "sorry" every time I accidently bump into someone in a crowd because it's not part of the culture here. I love the Korean English teachers at my school who help me with whatever I need and who just come to my classroom to chat sometimes. I love when other teachers at my school have the courage to speak to me in English. (I never assume they speak English and I don't put them into what could potentially be an embarrassing language barrier experience). I love finding new restaurants and becoming a returning customer. I love seeing my students around Daegu and receiving the head bow with a "Oh, hello Jennipa." Overall, I have thoroughly enjoyed my experiences in Korea thus far. No, not everything has been easy. No, I was not a perfect teacher nor did I have the perfect co-teaching experience. But yes, I look forward to the next semester. Yes, I am so, so, so, so glad I came to Korea for this incredible teaching, learning, traveling, and personal growing experience it has become!!!