Week 1: I survived, but I need a beer!
Written by Bessie on Friday, April 10, 2009 in Korea, Republic of
Feelin' normal
The teaching gig is pretty enjoyable. I'm with kindergarteners 5 hours a day and then teach an elementary class (8-9 year olds) in the afternoon, and some days I call kids at home to talk about a story they read about ducks. I start everyday at 9:45 am; 3 days a week I end at 7:30 pm (with some breaks in the middle), the other 2 days I end at 4:30 pm. Feelin' normal
The focus of the school is teaching English through math, science, etc, although many of them take those classes on the side in Korean to learn more. I like it, but man, worst luck, my last day of class on Friday, I had to break up a fight. I'll start from the beginning.
I love the Little Ones.
So, yeah, my kindergarten class is 6 adorable little kids, all about 5-6 years old. They all have English names like Ray and Emily. They know the alphabet, numbers to 20, and love when the answers to questions are colors. My most advanced student can speak in full sentences with little accent, but the others sometimes struggle with getting one word out.
Already in the first week, I can see the kids improving here and there pronouncing things better and getting excited when they remember a new word. I read them Curious George 4 times this week, taught them how to do the Itsy, Bitsy Spider, and we finished the week off with a trip to a local farm to plant seeds.
Easter Goody Bags I bribed my kids with for being good on a field trip.
Eeek! Phonics!
I anticipate a theme of our blogs about our students: how hard Korean kids are pushed to learn & work hard. I'll start this off with one of my students starting to cry during Phonics. He's probably 5, and doesn't have a strong English background. So, as I'm explaining instructions and other students around him start filling in the workbook (words like snow & boat make the same "o" sound), his head goes low and he start sniffling.
First, I'm thinking someone took his eraser or something, but I eventually piece it together that he's totally freaked out, and I just try to get him through class. Talking with another kindergarten teacher, I find our her kids also freak out during Phonics, one even puked everyday in her class for a while. Their parents expect so much out of them though that they get really worried when they don't do well. Poor things...
cute kids in a park in Seoul
The Big Ones, not so much.
Mid-afternoon our sweet kindergarteners go home, and elementary aged kids, 2nd-5th graders come in for their 2nd shift of school, and go nutso on the place. So I'm exaggerating, many of them are super sweet, studious little things, but one kid can always ruin it for the bunch, right?
These kids vary in English ability, some of them you could mistake for shy, native speakers, some of them are on par with my kindergarteners. Trouble is, they're tough to keep engaged at 4:30 when they've already been in school all day, and they'll probably have another 3 hours of class that day, then do homework.
Anyway, so the fight. We're going around the room, with each student reading a sentance from a story. After one kid finished reading, the one next to him told him he was a bad reader and then called him "Crazy, Crazy," that was the translation I got anyway, and it's apparently pretty offensive. The kids start slapping, punching, then hitting each other in the faces. Awesome. I get between them, and they both had these looks like they're going to kill each other. I manage to get them downstairs very red-faced and worked up, and hand them over to my supervisor, who lays the smack down in Korean. They come back to class eventually, calmed-down, where I separate them, and will for a while. Again, not being good at something is a pretty big deal here.
Yeah, Adults!
The other teachers in my school have been a lifeline this week. They answer great questions like, where's the library, what's the deal with teaching in slippers, and where's the beer? We went out with them 3 of 5 days for dinner, and again over the weekend. We even went to a pretty tastey Mexican restaurant 3 blocks from us, that we'll definitely be frequenting. The teachers are a mix of Koreans, Americans, Canadians, a Brit & an Aussie.
Here I come week 2!
Comments on "Week 1: I survived, but I need a beer!"
Kiddy boot camp is pretty accurate. We got thrown right in there...
I would say the kids come from pretty well-to-do families to be able to afford a private school like ours, but I've also heard of parents working really hard, getting 2nd jobs, and things to support their kids' expensive educations. Our older kids attend public or private school during in the day in Korean and then in the afternoon and evening they attend another school or two.
It's nuts how much they go to school & how much they'll work when they're adults!
I hope this won't leave you never wanting children!! They are very lucky to have you both. I'm sure you will learn as much as the kids do this year. Have a great second week!!! Love to both of you...Shawna
haa haaa, I don't think that it will. If anything this will prep us even better for having kids. "Look out little ones, mommy and daddy won't mess around!"
You are a natural born teacher and have survived your first week quite well - congrats! It also looks like you'll be having lots of fun with the other teachers too. Think positive. Enjoy!
thanks! Yeah, I think just getting through these first few weeks will be key, and it will just keep getting easier. Each time I'm with the same group of students it keeps getting easier. I can anticipate their craziness a little better, and wrap them nicely around my fingers... Hopefully anyway!
Wow! Hey que CHIVO, you guys keep traveling the whole world that's great...... Good luck!!
I am curious. What did your kids do for a teacher before you got there? So, do their parents pay for them to attend your school? I was at US Toy today and saw gobs of things I thought you could use. Have any idea about sending things to you?
Susan
Our school was understaffed without us, so the other teachers were working overtime to cover our classes. Although, Kyle is teaching some things that didn't exist before him - they've made it for him.
Parents do pay for them to attend school. I've heard a few different prices, so I don't want to say yet, but I know it's not cheap! It's a private school, and here that means it's a business before anything else.
We do have an address, but we're not totally sure what it is yet, we can check! We can get cute things like stickers - thank goodness! We'll keep you posted - thanks for thinking of us!!
i had to break up a fight at drew's school once when i was subbing. the explanation for the fight was, "she was throwing paper at me." i said, "well, why didn't you tell me about it?" answer: "i was afraid." really? you're afraid to tell me (apparently, i'm super intimidating) that someone is throwing paper at you, but you aren't afraid to beat the heck out of that person? interesting... hope you are at least having a good time with them!
wow, that's terrible, and a crap excuse. It's a little weird with these kids because they're English is about the same as my kindergartners, as in not that great. So they don't communicate complex things all that well, especially not when they're red in the face and wanting to kill each other. I guess that's my goal as teacher, right?
It is great that both you have jobs in Korea. Watch out for those nuclear guys in the north!
Teachers need many skills including people and parenting. I am not surprised you have both skills. I look forward to future posts. And hearing about Kyle's baseball exploits.
it feels so great to be working again, and doing it on another continent is an added bonus! We're definitely having a great time. :)
Pig stomach with three layers of fat....hummmmm....I guess that will give you the fortitude that you will need to face the kids the next day. Those work hours don't exactly seem like what they had originally told you! I can't imagine trying to keep a 5th grader engaged and excited about learning until 7:30 p.m.! How large are your upper grade classes?
Yeah, the hours are not totally ideal, but the planning time & break between students has some perks. I love Tuesday/Thursday when I'm done before 4:30. 9:45-7:30 is along time at work, even if I have 4 hours of breaks.
I'm so glad you made it! I was getting worried because we hadn't heard from you at all!
you need to get on Facebook! :) We didn't get hit by a North Korean missile or anything... :) Hugs!!
I'm very proud that you are still smiling!
Thanks! I'm definitely having a good time - and everyday it gets easier!
You've always had a lot of Heart, Bess. Seeing things through a child's eyes will remain your greatest teaching asset. And..... I love your dinner photo! Another round of beer here! LOL
Speaking of kids, a big part of me wishes Johanna and I could pack up Sophia and Stella and traipse around the world with them but for now Chicago seems to be eclectic enough. Although we are considering a move to Texas in a few years.
Here in the windy city we get a Korean channel (we did away with our cable in December of 07) and occasionally watch it. What strikes me as the most interesting is the way their culture promotes conformity and competition. I also knew that their kids had to work hard but it's very hard to picture it in kids only a few years older than my girls. What's really funny though is how little the kids in my school are motivated to excel. A few certainly, but it is definitely not the priority for most (or for their parents).
I'll be on a road trip to DC with our 8th graders for the next four days so I'm off to cram a week's worth of work into the next 25 hours or so.
Ciao from Chicago, Nathaniel
There's definitely no lack of conformity here, but I think that has to do with a whole bunch of people living in a small area: conformity makes it easier.
I think the kids work a little too hard sometimes and that the emphasis is not on learning but on how hard they work. But that's a whole other post...
Wow! You are getting kiddy teaching boot camp. Neat. Their desire to learn fast sounds good but the parental pressure side is tough. Is the school in a wealthy area or middle class?
by Melissa at April 13, 2009 08:59 AMLove U