My Classes

I've realized as I look over posts I've written, that I haven't really talked about teaching very much; despite the fact that I spend over 40 hours a week at school. In fact I think I only mentioned it once. Where to start.... First: I'm really enjoying teaching here. Once I got over my original feeling of being overwhelmed I was fine. I feel like now I've really hit my stride.

I've been thinking about my classes a lot because next week is graduation, and my entire schedule will change. My kindergarten class is called 7-2. The kids are seven years old, and this is their second year of English. Starting in March they will go to Korean first grade; that means I will get an entirely new class. Some of them will come back and take classes in the afternoon, but I'm getting ready for everything to change. I'll tell you about my kindergarten class first because I really do love those kids.

In the seven months I've been here some students have come and gone. As it stands now, I have seven students. Four boys: Aden, Eddy, Peter, Sean, and three girls: Sunny, Katie, and Angela. Angela joined my class only a couple months ago, but the others have been their the entire time I've been in Korea. It's impossible to describe all of them, but we definitely are a class of characters. When I got to LCI (my academy) there was another teacher named Liz so on papers, and in everything else I was referred to as "Liz W". At first my kids thought that was really funny, and I didn't understand why until I realized their names are structured differently, and they didn't get what the "W" was about. Korean names are spoken with the last name first. I explained the "W" to them, and since then they have now become: Aden H., Eddy D., Peter P., Sean K., Sunny L., Katie P., and Angela O. I have also been given a variety of nicknames. The best is Liz Baby (I don't know how that happened) and the extended version is Liz Baby Superman Teddy Bear (yes they do really call me that). They even went so far as to name one of our two pet snails Liz Baby (the other was Transformer); at least they have great senses of humor right? I love it.

One of my favorite things we do in class is Song. We start everyday with a song and work on it for two weeks. The best part is that I get to choose the song. In the last couple months we have done: Three Little Birds, Windy, Heal the World, I Want to Hold Your Hand, Hit the Road Jack, Love Train, Do You Remember, Little Saint Nick, and Jingle Bell Rock. Currently we are working on our graduation song and dance. Our song is I'm On My Way by The Proclaimers. They always do a great job with our song whether we're singing the Beatles or Jay Sean.

After Song everyday I teach Themebook, which is their main lesson for the week. This month it is endangered and extinct animals, in the past it has been household items, things to do on the playground, seasons, etc. we cover everything. I also teach two reading books, a writing book, and math. One of my other favorite things we do is Writing Diary. I get really excited about it, and it's been fun watching the kids slowly warm to it since I would get so pumped. What it is, simply, is writing. Each week they have a different topic. Why I get so excited is because all the other books are about circling answers, or connecting dots, or True or False, rarely do the kids have to write their own sentences. It's very rewarding helping them, and watching them have to write on their own. We started Writing Diary in July where my only requirement was that they write at least three sentences. Now they write five or more on their own, I'm a very proud teacher. They've come so far.

Other funner things on the schedule include: Cooking, Art, Science, P.E., Kids Excel, and Project. There's a special room for Cooking, and every week we make something simple from tortilla pizza to kimbop (Korean sushi, no fish). The kids love Cooking. Art is also fun, it's one of my favorite things we do, and every week we have set projects. One week they'll draw, and the next week make something. Sometimes drawing will involve making something with origami to put in the picture which I am always challenged at. That said, I can now make both a persimmon and a penguin with origami paper. The crafts range from ducks, to dolls, to spaceships. I think Art is so much fun because we just chill, put our songs on, sing, create, and have fun.

Science is also a set project. I get a poster with instructions, and we go from there. We've made periscopes, cranes, thermometers, and done magic tricks. In P.E. I get to play whatever games I want with the kids. For Kids Excel they do a Reader Rabbit game on the computer. Project is a new period that started in September. It lasts for six weeks and involves a variety of projects focused on one topic. So far we've done Money, Dads, and currently are doing Graduation. It was a bit of a joke at first but has gotten better. The money one involved the kids bringing in different kinds of money and we even got to go to a grocery store to talk about what things cost. At the end of each Project the kids get a booklet with all the papers they did and pictures of them. The most important part of Project is getting the pictures of the kids working. It's a sad truth but that's the reality of a hagwon. Below I'll post some pictures of the kids during Project because you can see my classroom and me looking like a real teacher :)

After kindergarten I have two elementary classes. My first elementary class consists of kids in their first year of Korean school. They went to kindergarten at LCI and were the top kindergarten class. They are some of the highest level students at the school and are all really smart. I have a lot of fun with them. Like my kindergartners, they know enough English that their personalities really shine through. I can explain difficult words to them and they understand. I love drawing pictures when explaining things to them because they think it's hilarious. Let's just say I'm no artist, but I do get the message across. Some of them recently have been reading the Harry Potter books (in English too) and right now that's all they talk about.

I have that class Monday, Wednesday, Friday from 2:40-4:50. From 5:10-6:50 I have my last class which are three crazy boys. These boys are nine and never went to an English kindergarten but have been studying English for at least two years. They are hilarious. Okay, first I should say that their crazy, but over time we've come to terms with each other. They take a certain kind of patience and a sense of humor. We had our rough patches but we've come to an understanding, and I really like those boys a lot. I wish I could share their little -isms but they would not be done justice typed. Sometimes I just have to shake my head - like when they try to hide from me, or mutter things in Korean; but most of the time I just find them hilarious.

Those are my classes, and I'm really lucky to enjoy them all. Most teachers have at least one class they struggle a lot with, but since the boys and I hit our stride, everything has been good. After graduation there's a chance that my schedule will completely change and I'll be given completely different classes. Time will tell. Until then, I hope I've given a little more insight into my classes here.

Pictures of me teaching Project in kindergarten:

Drawing: I'm sure, one of my infamous pictures. (Dad Project)

Checking their letters to their Dad (Dad Project)

"What can we buy with money?" Action shot in the grocery store. (Money Project)

A good view of the classroom, and what appears to be everyone paying attention. woo hoo! Starting at the back table from left is Sean, Peter, and Aden. At the front table from left to right is Angela, Eddy, Katie, and Sunny.