Patiently

Back at work here doing the normal thing of classes and then break time. I would be lesson planning right now, but the current 2nd grade teacher asked for her books back. I think I have a copy of the Volume 2 book back at my house, so that can help me later. Just won't have the teacher's guide, however I didn't rely on it too much.

All I have left are November, December and bits of February for next year. I suppose I can get to those in time, as they are far away. Still there is the need in me to keep punching them out, however ridiculous that sounds.

Because I booked my vacation tickets through Hanatour I have to wait 48 hours before my flight to select my seats. I can't sleep without the window seat and so am trying my best to be patient. Hopefully, my flight will have a lot of, "I hate the window seat" type folks.

Things to do before heading off on my vacation:
- Get Tom to his brother's house for cat sitting.
-  Visit the Doc to refill meds
- Transfer more money to my American bank account.
- Organize my packing of (warm and cold clothes). Would like to make it so I have enough room to fill them up with new finds.
- Get the seats.

All right, I suppose I could go clean up my desk here and do more house cleaning in my classroom. ㅋㅋ

Video as a Tool For English Education in Korea

I noticed something the other day while teaching my winter camp classes, and that is Korean kids love Youtube just as much as kids back home. Of course, this should come as no surprise as Korea is a very wired country. But I think seeing videos in the classroom has been a part of their lives since they started school. I for one have used a multitude of math-song videos and for fun, played those cutesy and catchy ones that get their attention.

An excellent evolution has occurred with the use of video in the classroom, and that is teachers making educational videos with their students. The forum waygook.org has already shown areas where teachers are integrating a video-creating lesson into their classes. Also, you catch teacher made videos on youtube with some that are awesome and others quite simple. Here for you are an example of teachers taking the video camera in the classroom and making it a fun tool for English education.

1. Mike Karlan's "Bandit" Videos:

The following is called, "The Color Bandit":

A quirky and fun video with a great example of kids using English in a fun and enthusiastic way, you see the theme of an evil bandit who stole colors. The kids must think of a plan to destroy him so they can use colors again. At least, that is my interpretation. Nicely edited and it shows that the kids were involved and had a good time.

2. Daft Punk's Harder...Faster Song:

I recently was creating a lesson about comparatives and found that other teacher's out there used the Daft Punk Song, "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" with their students.

This one from "miathetraveler"

First off let me congratulate these teachers for getting their middle school students to participate in something like this. From what I understand teaching Middle school is challenging in that the students are hard to motivate. 

This one from "danitravels"

I like this one better as you can tell they were really into it and I like the way they organized their signs. This would make a great project for a camp session or an after school group. I think with some patience I might even be able to do this with a group of my first graders. 

3. Make a Movie Camp:

Sometimes it is best to just let the kids figure out what to make, and you can do this with a themed "movie camp." Found on waygook.org, are lesson plans and worksheets to use for the camp. The following are video examples of what came out of the project.

What are the benefits?

In my opinion this gets students excited for learning English and the result is something definitely different from the usual hum-drum lesson. However, I am sure if you tell your students, "We are going to make videos!" That there will be a group that sighs and says, "No, I don't want to." Like all lessons it is all about getting them motivated, and this should be no different.

Also, they get to see what their English looks like and sounds like in the final product. This is a great tool for them to understand where they need to improve. Throughout the project, students work on plot, character design and story therefore getting to use their English skills in a productive way. 

Some pitfalls might be that you don't have enough equipment for the students, like cameras and computers to edit with. Also, students will work in groups and as you may already know this is sometimes a hard thing for them. I recall one group I had during a camp where they argued over everything the whole time.

In the end, I think making videos with your students is an overall beneficial part of the English classroom here in Korea. Why not add this to your curriculum? 

Do you have any teacher-student made videos you would like to share?

People Return

It feels like an extra Sunday around here. The roar of cars from the nearby traffic lanes have picked up their buzz. When I went out for bread at my local mart I was happy to see it open and saw people walking around with coffee.

The upstairs neighbor has been playing the piano, which they usually do on the weekend. And the cry of children and teenagers can be heard in the distant park. All signs that Seollnal is coming to its end as people make their way back to Seoul.

As for me, I'm busily working away at my lesson plans. Already into next October, and know that I should just slow down. But if I get to my upcoming American vacation with a lot done, I think I'll be even more relaxed. Anyways, hope you had a good Lunar New Year's time and wasn't stuck behind another car on the long stretch of freeway.

Winter Camp 2012 Wraps Up

Wow! Camp has come and gone in what feels like the blink of an eye. However, I can say I'm pleased with that reality. Camp this time around (compared to last summer) was a bit easier. I think it is because I had the higher level class, although at times they started to test me.

I found that it was good to get the book done and play review games and other silly activities with them. They seemed to like it most when I was less serious about things and delved into their creativity. I recall on the lesson about "The Emergency Room" I got into a thing about the number, "119". I told them that Korea copied America because we have "911". From here on one student started to boldly lecture me about how America copied Korea. I then proceeded to tell him how Korean people wouldn't even have a telephone to use that number with, if it weren't for Americans inventing it. This led to one student telling me that Steve Jobs is Korean and that he invented the phone. I corrected him that Steve Jobs is not Korean but did invent the iPhone.

That was a fun moment.

Otherwise, the open class went pretty smoothly. At my school parents come to view the students give presentations. Throughout camp the kids work on a role-play and make crafts. So I had them present their role-plays and crafts to the parents. Some kids were ultra shy and at the golden time refused to come up. It was a little strange as in class they were very energetic.

During the open class I didn't make much eye-contact with the parents. To be honest these folks still scare me a little and I know they are judging me, even if they don't officially have to do it. But I compensated this by speaking and asking the presenting students a lot of questions.

These kids have truly grown up a lot since the first day they arrived, and I am really proud of them. After the open class the kids go down for a closing ceremony in the auditorium. Here each group shouts a chant that has been designed by their camp teacher. One of the low-level groups did a really good job giving a great chant. I watched as one of the very lowest of the kids stood up enthusiastically and shouted out English with a huge smile. I think this school does a good job with teaching English, in this respect.

Well that's camp! Now I have one week off for the Lunar New Year. What am I going to do? Oh yes....lesson plan. ><

For Class: Omok Board Game

I picked up this game from working at public Elementary schools. One of my Korean coteachers introduced me to this board game called, "Omok". The game is similar to tic-tac-toe or 5-in-a-row. Basically the students take turns picking squares. They practice whatever they see in the square by speaking or working out a problem. If correct they get to claim that square and their goal is to get 5 in a row.

As you can see I have been using these for teaching math, and the students really like the game. I have an earlier version of "Doubles" where they roll the dice and double that number. This then becomes the number they can claim in the board game. So you can see, you can manipulate it any way you want to depending on what you need to practice.

I like to laminate (coat) the boards and have students use board markers and erasers. This way I can reuse them over and over, and students too can start new games if they like. It's a good way to break up the flow of the class and get kids working together.

My Fractions Study Guide

Since the start of this recent semester I realized that these kids need extra study aids to get them through all the English math jargon. Also, it was starting to pester me that they kept on mistaking the word square for circle.

As I am planning for next year I am continuing on my path to make study guides. The above is the one I recently made for the fractions chapter. Now I must admit that I am actually a math dummy. However, I did very well during my math classes in college, mostly because I found algebraic formulas fascinating.

Thankfully, I teach 1st and soon to be 2nd grade math.  The book we are using makes it not only simple for the student but also for the teacher. However, I wanted to make sure that when I get around to saying "one-fifth" that the students understand what I am sputtering. So I hope this study guide will help them put words to picture.

Usually they just shove the paper into their bags and I don't see them again. Next year they are going to have class note books and these guides will get permanently glued into them.

Whenever a student did hold onto their study guide and pulled it out during a spelling bee challenge, I felt pretty proud. I usually would praise these students and point out to the others that their ability to spell "rectangular prism" would be easier if they had their guide with them. ;)

Keep on Chugging Them Out

After three days into this year's Winter Camp I have finally found the time to come home after classes and get back to lesson plan creation. I have now started on the 2nd semester for next year. Given the first week of planning wasn't too bad as that will just be fluff stuff till we start the book again.

This Winter Camp I have the high level kids and on the one hand it is a relief they aren't as wacky as the low levels, but on the other they argue with me about everything. "Teacher, but I answered the question so give me a sticker!" "No, teacher you are wrong!" (That last one gets spit out quite often.)

But we are in the swing of things with the class song established and soon groups will get their role-plays. Also, I am trying to just have fun with them and let their irrational need to get up and dance like crazy when I play a song, slip by me. I am starting to realize that I shouldn't burn too many bridges with these kids as I will have them again next year.

Anyways, I am going to plan the 2nd semester for next year a bit slower as that is far off. The subjects to be covered include, fractions and 3D shapes...which I think can lend some creative activities! haha

Have a Jolly Golly Christmas It's the ...

I'm currently on my Christmas vacation that will last till the New Year. To give the kids something special we (the English teachers) dressed up in a Santa outfit, played songs and handed out presents. The kids had a splendid time, except for a few that were displeased with their presents. Hey! It's not my fault kid! The presents were brought in by other students and randomly put into a bag.

To be honest, this year I'm not too much of a fan of this holiday. For one, I am reminded of my recent break up with Korean boyfriend #2 and the good times we had last year. You can see in these posts (here and here) that he visited me in San Francisco. As you can imagine, I am little beside myself this season just wondering why such a difference.

But life moves on and lesson plans need to get made, which is mostly what I am doing this Xmas vacation.

I think having this stable job and even just the promotion of going to 2nd grade and being a team leader, has me grounded. The work is keeping me busy and the good times had with the children are helping me feel the holiday spirit. But I'm hoping next year's holiday season will be a festive and warm one with someone to share it with.

Happy Holidays~

How a Recent Saturday Went By

For some reason the cold weather pushed me to do some baking. So it is that I let three bananas go ripe and collected all the necessary ingredients to bake some banana muffins.

As I did this I also worked on lesson plans for next year, yes I know I work too much. Although, I am seeing that it will be really easy to put together next year's lessons as it is all patched together from this year. Duh!

The muffins came out yummy and full of warm sweetness. The crispy brown sugar on top took me back to my childhood.

As I just spent a chunk of money on plane tickets for my February vacation I can't really go out so much. I thought I was going to save money this year, but it looks like that it isn't happening. Oh well! I guess will shoot for next year, haha!

Results of the Jelly Bean Contest

The kids did pretty well guessing close to the number of jelly beans in each of their jars. As for a class assignment I think it was a lot of fun and helped them make a big connection to the word, "estimate." The fall back was that many students were disappointed they didn't win. I suppose I could have given out the jelly beans evenly to the class and let the winner just feel good. But I sometimes feel that things can't always be "even" for these kids.

A lot of emphasis in Elementary school (especially the younger ones) seems to be that everything has to be the same and fair. I explained the rules before they put in their numbers and so they should have understood. What was good, I think, was that some classes had a group of all the same close numbers. So I let them play rock, scissors, paper to sort it out.

One of the winners came up to me the day after, and told me that her dad had eaten all the jelly beans. I thought that was pretty funny and cute. If you are thinking of doing this for a math lesson or just for fun I highly recommend it. You can have them write sentences or make up a story, who knows!?

Drama Festival Preparations

The big thing for this semester is that the kidlets will perform a play during a drama festival next month. Because of this we have been singing songs with them for the past two weeks. If you asked me what song was stuck in my head right now, it wouldn't be Kpop. It would be this:

After the 23rd time I was really hoping the kids got it down. Next week we start the scripts and every class will practice their lines. Students have been broken up into groups and so it is organized that way.

Because of all this drama festival stuff my usually programmed schedule of bookwork, games and activities have been cut down. At first I was a little dismayed but then elated because this means most of my lessons are being pushed back. I am really happy I did all that planning during the summer break, as with this festival stuff I have had little time to do side work.

I am kind of glad work has been busy because it makes life truck on and all the stressful things going on outside of life get muted out. However, I guess I have to face life at some point.

Joy's Jelly Bean Contest

One of the chapter's coming up in the student's book is "Estimation." For this week of estimating fun I decided to have all the classes take part in a Jelly Bean guessing contest. There are eight groups and each one will get to see a jar semi-full with jelly beans and make a guess as to how many.

A worksheet will accompany this activity and the winner will receive the jar of beans to take home.

I've already counted them and so can quickly announce the winners. Just something fun I have added to this semester that I hope spices things up for the kids.

Speed Ahead

My one week vacation ended this morning as Tom nudged me awake at 6:30. I know not to wake up immediately because of this, but when I did wake up I knew that three weeks of camp were ahead of me.


The camp at this school is different from the previous camps I have had in that it is a lot more academic. I have one group of kids for the whole time and we will be going through two major topics. These are Science and Reading, and the rest of it is "activities" and "drama." I didn't see the book until today, bright and early right before things started. Immediately, I realized this was going to be hard due to that it is mostly words and few pictures. The activities and drama section was apparently put together at the last minute as the materials originally submitted weren't accepted. We've ended up with one topic for each week, and very few hands-on materials for it while mostly relying on data in the book. The drama section, although put together very well, is way over their heads.

In the end, what you have here is a situation I always dread in this business. Being put in a room full of young low-level learners with non-matching material and a lack of a plan.

Today went by as chaotic as it could and I made due, trying fruitlessly to make reading games out of the material. But my batch of kids seems to be a mix of the really low so I am going to have step it back a notch. I had planned on showing them videos to accompany the Science material, which I found on youtube. But alas our internet is down. Another challenge added to the mountain of them.

After some talk with a senior teacher, I was told that mostly the goal is to prepare stuff for the open class (not judged) at the end and get the bookwork done. The children will work on the following items:

• Making a class flag to carry at the closing ceremony.
• Practice a role-play and perform it.
• Practice a class chant.
• Practice a class song.

As you can see, I will have things to keep them busy with for the next three weeks. Just that they didn't give us much in the way of drama scripts, material to prepare them for role-playing, chants and songs. Thankfully, I have experience in the role-play department and know what I need to do there, as for the chants and songs it is just a matter of giving them the lyrics and practicing a lot.

All right so camp is not what I expected and it is definitely different from years past. In fact, I really feel sad for not planning this camp and miss the fact that there is no "cooking" day.

In the meantime, I am trying to get ahead with next semester's planning. As for the lesson planning portion I am already a bit ahead but I want to get the materials made for at least the first month. I am the kind of person, unfortunately, who is not satisfied till something is done right away. It makes me end up being anxious and when something affects my path of completion I get all bent out of shape.

Last night, I had a conversation about this with JH and he told me how I need to relax and keep big goals in mind. Also, to keep my cool when something comes along that makes me have to change what I am doing. He is a big help to me, even though it takes some time to get him to understand it all completely.

Camp is just three weeks and we are suppose to just have fun with the kids, so I am going to try my best to kick back a little, play games and make it work in a fun way. However, I mostly just want it to be over.

I have a lot I want to post about trips that transpired during the last week. Let's hope all this work stuff doesn't get in the way!

Open Class Approaches

On Thursday I have four open classes, which means it is going on all day. The parent's will be within breathing distance from me, all the while observing and evaluating. Or maybe they will just be mesmerized by my kick-ass presentation!

Who knows?

All I know is that last week I stressed out about it and this week I am trying to hold on to some confidence. My plans use some good material and activities, but the bookwork is what I am concerned with.

Really, I just want Thursday to pass so that I can move on with my life and find out if I fit the bill or not.

Sneaky Friday

Eight hours of work blows by pretty fast when the amount of stuff you need to do surpasses the time you have to do it in. Not to mention most of your time being eaten up by meetings and figuring stuff out. So when the end of Friday came today at work it felt like a mirage...I just couldn't believe it.

Between Wednesday and today I managed to decorate my classroom, look at the book and figure out a teaching strategy and learn that getting my health check is complicated. Speaking of the health check, which is a requirement to get my new ARC card, it can't be done at my local hospitals. Well, actually it can be done at one but the hours they do it are in the morning and guess what...I work at that time. There are only 4 teachers that need to get it done at the school and some of them went yesterday to the local hospital only to find out they don't do the health check anymore. To cut this story short, some of those teachers are going to show up early at the other local hospital Monday to hopefully be done in time for their first classes and others might try a bigger hospital in the afternoon.

As for me, I am going the route of trying to get it done on a Saturday. After much digging around the various international health clinics around Seoul I decided to go to Yonsei. For one they are the regular hospital I visit to get my GI check up done, so I am familiar with it. I called them about getting the health check done on Saturday (tomorrow) and they said they can't make appointments, but you can show up and wait. So guess what I'm doing bright and early tomorrow?

If that fails I will join the other teachers early at the local hospital to hopefully get it done that way. Otherwise, I will keep looking for a Saturday one that works. The stressful thing about this is that my school requires us to have KEB bank accounts in order to get paid, but I don't have one. In order to get one you need your ARC card. Payday is the 25th and so I am hoping to have all this done before then so I can get my money.

The classroom is decorated, but of course not really to what I would want to look like. However, I got the board organized with labels for "Today's Date" and "How's the weather?", along with a section for team points. There is still a lot to do, but mostly I just wanted things to be generally ready for the first week of classes.

Next week will be interesting, as Monday and Tuesday are level testing days and then the real fun begins Wednesday.

It's been a whirlwind and I have never worked this hard before at a job in Korea. Despite this I do like the fact that I am in charge of so much and am challenged by it all.

Hopefully next week I will take pictures of the classroom and the area so you guys can get a visual understanding of it all.

Become a Better Language Teacher: Group Work

If I were to shorten "Become a Better Language Teacher" into an acronym it would look like this: BABLT or BBLT. I am thinking of using one of these acronyms the next time I put up a post on this subject.

Today I finished reading, "Teaching Large Multilevel Classes" by Natalie Hess, which I highlighted in a previous post. This book is truly inspirational and if you haven't yet checked it out for yourself I would highly consider doing so. Otherwise, just take the time to think about today's topic which is "Group Work."

In the large class, such as one found in Korean public schools, you often find yourself wanting to put the kids into groups. There can be challenges to this such as not having your own classroom or fearing it might not work. From my experience I have seen group work be a success and also bomb. The tips in this book helped me realize that I wasn't considering how I could have better served my students by giving them a little training in proper group work. Now, you might be thinking what else is there to group work? Just put the kids in groups of 4 or 5 and let them go at it. I use to think that way and now I realize that works for some time, until things continually don't.

Train groups so that everyone gets a chance to speak and has a specific task.

You might start to notice, after doing the same assignment in each class, that there are people in their group who just sit there and do nothing. As a teacher inside a classroom with 5 or 6 groups it can be hard to attend to each one and make sure everyone is active. The following tips will help you set up group work so that every student has a chance to not only speak but be a part of what is happening. Following these will be several activities that will boaster this kind of group dynamic.

Group Work Tips:

• Match the type of activity with the # of people it works best with. Drills and vocabulary = pair work. Problem solving = groups of 5. Intros & discussions = groups of 4 & mingling activities. 
• Non-participating members in a group issue: Make them have a primary role such as facilitator or encourager, look up words, present the group's results, rate each other. 
• Give each person in the group a designated responsibility. For example, if it is a game make sure one person is taking score, another checking the rules, another checking the English spoken...etc.
• With the class talk about why they work in groups. Go over what makes for a good group and a bad group dynamic. 
• You basically want to lay out to them that when they are put in groups everyone should be expected to do something. Talk about what kinds of roles there are.

Organizational Activities / Activities to enhance group work:

• Working Together: Ss get into groups. Meant to practice having roles and get Ss use to having them. Use a group activity as a tester to allow them to practice using their roles. 
• The Quiet Signals: A lot of us are already doing this. Signals meant to stop group work, such as clapping or saying a line that needs a response. Make to practice it first with the Ss. 
• Give Me Your Sticks: (I like this one.) Each group member gets 5 sticks. Every time someone speaks they put in their stick. Goal is for everyone to put in their sticks. Once an Ss uses all of their sticks they can't talk unless they ask the group facilitator for permission. At the end of the activity, ask which group used all their sticks, and they get a prize / reward.

Content Based Activities: How language works through the group.

• The Aquarium: 2 large groups. Inner one is the "aquarium" and they sit together and start a discussion. People on the outside tap an "aquarium person" & they exchange roles and join in on the discussion.
• The Walkabout: Cut up questions are placed around the classroom walls. Ss work in pairs & make their way around the classroom. One Ss stands back-to-wall & their partner reads the question. They rotate and change rolls.
• Picture Puzzles: Using a cut up picture groups look at parts of it & discuss what the whole picture is like.
• Group Cheer: Groups come up with their own cheer for when they want attention or praising themselves. Example, "Smart! Smart! Smart! Terrific Tigers!"

Those are just some examples of simple group activities, but I am sure by now you have plenty of activities and games that you have made for group work. The thing here is to not just give them fun things to do but think of group work activities that can allow for everyone to speak and have a role. Start considering how you can prep your students to work well in groups and get them thinking about being responsible for their own learning. Although I haven't put these new things that I have learned into practice I can see where and when they will be effective. What I have really loved about reading this book is that it put all the jumble of the last two years into a correct place in mind.

I hope these tips and suggestions inspire you to create a better group work environment in your classroom.

Preparing Myself to Become a Better Language Teacher

Admitting that you have no formal training in teaching English as a foreign language is perhaps really embarrassing to the general expat in Korea (who is a language teacher). Indeed, there were times during my last two years at public elementary school that I wondered what I was doing there and why they even hired me. The large question remains in the expat community over what makes us qualified to have these jobs. Over time I have formulated my own answer, which is that a "qualified" native English teacher in Korea is one who has an open mind, is patient and willing to put in the effort required. A non-qualified teacher would be one who sees their job as just a way to bring in the money and get by, while their social life and time after work is more important. Korea, to these folks, is just a short sting between undergraduate and graduate school. 

Being "qualified" to teach in Korea shouldn't require a hefty background in the subject and credentials under your belt. Since the protocol for hiring people for these jobs simply requires you to have a Bachelors degree and be a native speaker of English.

However, I will digress here and say that once you have been in the industry here and have a few years under your belt you end up desiring more skills and knowledge to better match the needs of your students. This is where my current pursuit comes in to become a better language teacher. In other words, to go beyond my already "qualified" skills and give myself better tools and knowledge to teach well and produce better results.

I have come to see the past two solid-years of teaching in Korea as my "stomping in the mud" experience. There I was able to see what works and doesn't, along the way creating my "teacher-self." Now I feel it is time to expand and really understand the EFL environment and what I can do to improve.

That is why over the course of my lengthy vacation, here in the States, I picked up several books from Amazon on teaching EFL. Today I am going to review one of these books and provide samples from it, that I feel are going to greatly benefit me at my next job.

Teaching Large Multilevel Classes by Natalie Hess:

source

Review: So far, as I am not finished reading it, the book has provided me with a lot of "ah-ha" moments. In other words, it has been really helpful in allowing me to take my experiences from the past and digest them into cohesive material. The book is written in an academic way, but it doesn't hinder you from following along. Everything is put right to the point and doesn't mess around. There are several sections to this book on different aspects of what you need to teach. Within these topics are a description and then activity examples with plenty of information to let you know how to do it. However, this isn't a cheat-sheet book that you can just look up an activity and apply it to your class. The book provides the necessary details to let you come up with your own activities and scripts. I would highly recommend this book for the seasoned Native English teacher or the one who is about to jump on the plane and fly over to Korea. 

Coping with Multilevel classes through 11 Principles:

The book starts off by providing 11 Principles that you can apply to the large class. A large class is likely up for interpretation but in this case, teaching in Korea, it means a class with more than 30 students, which is the typical scenario for elementary school and even higher for the other levels. However, if you are working at a hagwon (private school) then you will find yourself with a small sized class. These principles might still be applied. 

Generally, I think most new public school teachers feel an initial anxiety knowing they are going to teach a large class, especially since all the students are EFL. Usually, their next thought is that we will have our coteacher and they will "help" us. In most cases, and most recently, this is not the situation. These days, coteachers are either really involved or just sit in the back of the class and doze off. The native English teacher is expected to teach at least 80% of the time in the classroom. Meaning you need a set of class management and principles to get you by. By showing the following examples from this book I hope they will come in handy for any Native English teacher out there.

Let's take a look:

1. Don't Panic! In more professional words the book basically laid this out as the first principle. Saying that the job is challenging but bad days should not weigh us down.
2. Variety: Match all levels and vary the way in which things are done. You will likely get into a routine, especially working from the class book. Make sure to mix it up and keep the Ss (students) on their toes.
3. Pace: Know what activities should be fast & slow, pay attention to the time. Coteachers really value this and will criticize you if you fail. My tip: Use the first class of the lesson as a tester to see how much time Ss need on certain activities. Then the rest of your day will go smoothly.
4. Interest: Each lesson should incorporate activities that get Ss interested. What this means is set up the class so that there are the usual stuff but something "fun" mixed in to it. Outlining the day's activities at the beginning of the class will help Ss to get interested.
5. Collaboration: This is a fancy word for "group work." Basically you want to get the students working together and using the language a lot. In time they will work together and even create their own works.
6. Individualization: One of the biggest struggles in a large class, especially if you have many of them throughout the week, is getting to know each and every student. I for one believe you don't have to know each and every one of them, but instead make sure that every student is given a chance to express themselves in class. This can be done either by speaking or working on an individual assignment. 
7. Personalization: Make sure each Ss has the opportunity to to present their own opinion and be recognized. 
8. Choice & Open-ended expressions: One thing you should really strive for is to get away from the Multiple-choice type of questioning or the "yes - no" answer response system. Ask questions to the class that open up their minds to make full responses. Asking "why" or "could you explain that more" helps.
9. Setting up routines: Although variety is something you want to strive for, keep lessons fairly similar to each other so a routine is set up. You know...after covering material there is later a test. So you will need to review before hand. Build up things so that they are familiar in a timely sense. This helps not only cognitively but also with class management. 
10. Opening up the Circle: Teaching in a way that allows every Ss to participate. Don't just pick the same "Min Su" who raises their hand. Wait for more Ss to put up their hand. One thing I learned from this book is to alert the quiet kid before class that you want him/her to participate and will likely call on them. 
11. Questions That Arouse Interest: Basically this goes with #8. Just try to get Ss more interested in the topic. I did this a lot with the 6th grade last year, and it helped get them involved and steamed up. haha

I look forward to keeping those principles in mind as I start at my new school next year. In general, I think we Native teachers need to start thinking of our classes more like opportunities instead of "I have just 3 more classes today...I can make it." Sure you get tired of teaching and there are weeks where you feel burnt out. But approaching the job with a positive attitude in this manner might keep things more perky.

Sample Lesson Activities:
I would like to show some examples from the book of activities you could use. However, I haven't gotten through the whole thing so I am just going to pull from their "Reviewing" and "Writing" sections.

Reviewing Activity:

1. English Goals: For the beginning of the semester. Ss write down their goals for learning English then walk around and discuss it with others. Eventually you figure out the major ones and turn those into goals for the whole class. As the semester rolls on you review them with the class and see if things have been met or not.
2. KWL Chart: "Know", "Want to Know" and "Learned". Make a chart with those topics on it. The chart will be used when starting a new lesson. Ss will brainstorm in groups answering the first two questions. After the lesson they go back and review the first two steps and the fill in the "Learned" section.

Written Work:

1. Buddy Journals: Ss keep a journal between them and a friend. Could be Ss in the same class or from another. Could be done with email.
2. Wall Newspaper: Using written work from class pick ones of interest. Edit them and have Ss re-write them Post them up on a bulletin board. Let it cycle throughout the year.

There were a lot more samples and many with great ideas, although I did feel some of them were for advanced levels. However, it is definitely your job to take an activity or task you find through research and transform it for your student's levels and capabilities. Plus after using an activity in class you usually end up modifying it anyways as things work themselves out. 

Whether or not I actually do become a better language teacher at my next school, I know that I at least have the drive to do it. My motivations aren't my salary or that I will even be working at a private elementary school. Instead, I plan on doing all this because I want to see the results in the students and the feeling it will produce in the classroom. 

Am I nervous? You bet I am. As much as I want to get in there and start putting these thoughts into action a little part of me wonders how it will work out. Then there is the whole coworker and comradeship situation that must go smoothly, and I end up pulling out my iPod and playing Veggie Samurai to forget about it all.  

I know last year was a particularly difficult one when it came to working with my Korean coteachers, but I must move on and let go of it all. Take with me the lessons I learned and apply them to my next school. Thankfully, I will not be coteaching, but that doesn't mean I am out of the woods.

All in all, I hope all my past gripes and new found enthusiasm has somehow helped other expat teachers in Korea. :)

Student's Perspective on Seoul

As the semester started up this week we have been discussing what we did on our vacation. For me I showed them the video I made of my America trip and had a little discussion. When it comes time for the kids to voluntarily share their vacation the answers have been pretty typical. "Went to my Grandparents house." "Went to Mt. Chiri." (This one being quite popular...with the following response of, "It was boring.")

In one of the 6th grade classes a young girl told us about how she went to the Aquarium in COEX. Her most important point was her reflections on visiting Seoul. I have always wondered what the kids in my area thought of the "big city up north", since they live down here in Gyeonggido. Sure it isn't exactly the country side down here but compared to Seoul there is cleaner air and a lot more leg room.

She commented on how she couldn't believe the number of cars and how dirty the air was. The look in her face was of amazement. It proved to me that most of these kids have spent little time in the "big city" of Seoul, compared to the amount I spend up there. To them it probably seems like a far away and expensive trip. I can understand since getting there, parking and finding your way around can be difficult to the new person.

Similarly when I lived in Berkeley, which is across the bay from San Francisco, making a trip out there seemed like a big deal. Sure I went to college out there, however it was on the outskirts of the city and I usually never went in. I recall when I made those first journeys into the city and the rush I felt staring up at the skyscrapers. Similarly when I went to New York City for the first time, I couldn't help but feel so small. Maybe it's the same for these kids out here when they go into Seoul. I bet when they get to the age where they can go out on a trip to Seoul by themselves that they really must find it to be exhilarating and liberating.

Found Something Cute

As I was doing research finding material for a "Farm Animal" unit for my afterschool class this coming semester, I stumbled upon this (from here).

Probably couldn't use it for the unit, but would be a fun "time filler" to share with the students.

Notes From Camp: Week 3

Dear Camp Diary,
  I guess it is nearly time to say farewell, as it looks like there are just two more days left. What can I say? We had some good times there with the third graders and some bad times when things got a little nuts. Yet, the second week held up really well with the fourth graders enjoying the egg drop.

Here we are now with the 5th and 6th graders. They have been separated into two classes, which is probably for the best. I have the 6th graders, while the other foreign teacher has the 5th graders. But we get to sample both as the kids switch classes now and then. Seeing the 6th graders reminded me that the Fall semester is going to start next week, and it will be back to the regular grind.

Teaching the 6th graders is certainly less of a struggle since their English is way more advanced then the lower grades. I am trying to keep them active and to not get that bored look on their faces.

On Tuesday we did the drama activities and they really got into the "Create Your Own Roleplay" assignment.

I gave them a laminated handout where you pick out some characters then by the roll of the dice determine what the story will be like.

Then they wrote down the parts of their story on the accompanying worksheet. I was impressed with the amount of time they put into it and how well they worked together to come up with a creative story.

I guess I will mention that I designed these handouts and the lesson. If you are interested in using them just send me an email making your request.

There wasn't a whole lot of time left to actually practice their presentations, so if I were going to do this again I would have given them more time. Yet what mattered most was that I saw them having fun and using English.

I am glad that camp is at its end since three weeks is just too long. My biggest complaint is that our Korean coteachers presence in the classroom was minimal. Sometimes I would go back to the office to get something and I would see them browsing the internet. Sure I understand that we can do our job without them, especially if the students are 5th or 6th graders, but their attitude towards things has been very lazy. The frustrating part comes in that if I were to reflect the same attitude I would be the one in trouble. Despite feeling disappointed I let it go and tried my best to not let it bother me.

Positives Joy! The best part of camp was having my own classroom, even if it was just for 20 days. The other bonus of camp was seeing all the hard work and lessons I made come together and work really well with the students. I can see that I know now what works with Korean children and doesn't. Finally...seeing those egg drop creations fall and the children cheering in the background, was also spectacular.

The next semester is coming and Mrs.Kim will move on and we will get the Dude teacher. I hope Mrs. Kim and the other coteachers don't fill his head full of nonesense about me before we start teaching. I am going to talk to him before our classes start and let him know that I hope to have a good time and work well together. I am really dieing to say something like, "Whatever Mrs. Kim said about me...don't believe it." But I would rather him just figure it out as things move along.

Signing off from camp! ~BYE