The Been Briefing

A few snapshots of my teaching
 

Wuan jang nim (Mr. So) gave Lauren permission to come and observe my classes on Thursday, so Lauren was happily snapping pictures the entire day. She said nothing makes a better portfolio than pictures of happy students. I thought you might enjoy a few of these!

We have been going over the same simple words during dictation for the past week and a half. "How do you spell 'who'???" "How do you spell 'is'???" "How do you spell 'that'???" The kids yell back the spelling, and usually they get it right, but when it comes time for them to be tested on the dictation, some of them still spell the words phonetically. Oh, these precious little ones! And dear Dennis (he wants his name to be Caleb now) is the weakest at dictation. Please pray for him. He was almost in tears on Friday... he wanted so hard to do well, and I want him to succeed. (In case you're wondering, the white thing on my cheek is a ranbow/cloud sticker - a gift from one of the kids. hehe)

Min, after begging me for several days in a row, is now called Cara. So Cara loves the song "She'll be Comin' Around the Mountain" ... and she really gets into the clapping and the foot-stomping. It's absolutely hilarious. Here she is standing on her chair and getting into the song. LOL. Gotta love it, huh? :))

I have no idea what some of these faces are for, but some of my kids call me "wild teacher" because I exaggerate my expressions. Not only do the kids think it's funny, but it also helps for basic communication. They know when I'm happy, sad, disappointed, angry, surprised, etc. And they love it... every bit of it. Sometimes half the fun of class is talking "kid talk." It makes no sense, but it's fun and they get to use the same words over and over again.

(EXAMPLE) Danny: "You're funny, teacher." Miss Ruth: "I am?" I'm not funny, Danny!!" Danny: "Yes, you are. You're funny and wild, teacher." Miss Ruth: "I am NOT funny and wild. I am a very quiet and serious teacher." Danny: "No, you're not. You're not quiet. You're loud!" And so it goes on... for forever, if I allowed it. LOL.

The details of teaching these little ones are exhausting sometimes. They require so much energy, but I do love it. Apparently one day last week, some of these kids' moms asked Mrs. Kim if I could "teach" the children for a few hours in the morning. Mrs. Kim said that ERC is not an English kindergarten! I am so thankful she stood up for me, because as dearly as I love the children, four more hours every morning would kill me for sure! I can see why some women are kindergarten teachers for 20+ years... it's so much fun. But it does help to have all the resources to develop a thorough curriculum. Here, unfortunately, all the things that make for a stimulating learning environment are not at my fingertips.
My kids absolutely love playing the "thumb war." At first I beat them without mercy.... so that their victory is all the sweeter now when they "beat" me. Clara (who now wants to be called Wendy) is determined to defeat me. I let her win. :)

And here the two girls are in heaven. They have both beaten Miss Ruth at the thumb war. I dare say I shall never live it down. He he!

It was very helpful for Lauren to come, and I think Mrs. Kim may arrange a time for me to visit the Yeongtong campus - to observe Lauren's and Carlos' classes, to learn from them and to exchange teaching ideas. I think it will help to keep our lesson plans from getting boring. There's nothing more frustrating than disinterested students, especially kids who I know spend their lives in school and doing homework. It's a real challenge to teach these children without burning them out. Unlike a public high school - where I could assign homework out the wazoo and not feel one bit guilty about it - being a hogwan teacher requires I remember that this is a business, where children leave the moment they or their mothers are not happy. Most Koreans will themselves admit their education needs serious reform. I confess myself I have misgivings about working for a system that undermines the development of the Korean public schools. I pray that one day Koreans will no longer feel the need to put their children in 4 successive English afternoon academies and send their children (as young as 12 years old) to an English-speaking country, away from Mom and Dad, so they can get ahead by learning English. Surely it is not the best way.